Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Math
Optimizing leafy networks
Scientists reveal a mathematical principle underlying the arrangement of leaf veins in plant species.
- Animals
Whaling, to be announced
The 60th meeting of the International Whaling Commission defers voting on deadlocked issues
- Ecosystems
Ecosystem engineers
Nonnative earthworms are deliberately burying ragweed seeds, enhancing the weed’s growth, researchers report.
- Chemistry
Quantifying the “gene for” fallacy
Looking at one gene at a time misses about a third of the genes that contribute to the way a cell functions, scientists say.
- Life
Viruses rewritten
Scientists could create wimpy versions of real viruses to develop vaccines for emerging diseases.
- Life
Losing sleep
A genetic source of mental retardation and autism may also disrupt sleep patterns.
- Agriculture
Bee-Loved Plantings
Zipcode-organized guidelines tell gardeners, farmers and others how to design a landscape that will not only entice pollinators but also keep these horticultural helpers happy.
- Life
Fossil helps document shift from sea to land
New fossils of an ancient, four-limbed creature help fill in the blanks of the evolutionary transition between fish and the first land-adapted vertebrates.
- Plants
Move it or lose it
Climate change may have dire consequences for California’s native plants, which may need to take refuge in some the areas under pressure for development.
- Animals
Don’t blame the guys
Scientists take a new look at what drives female damselflies to look like males.
- Health & Medicine
Ch-ch-ch-changes
Epigenetic shifts continue throughout a person’s lifetime, and the overall pattern of these shifts appears similar within families.
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