Microbes
-
Microbes
Protecting the planet
Catharine “Cassie” Conley has the coolest job title at NASA: She’s the agency’s planetary protection officer. (The best title used to be “director of the universe,” but a reconfiguration a few years back eliminated that job description, she says.)
-
Microbes
Killing with the flip of a switch
A single genetic transformation turns mild-mannered bacteria into assassins.
-
Microbes
Gulf floor fouled by bacterial oil feast
Observations may explain the widespread mortality of sediment-dwelling animals.
By Janet Raloff -
Chemistry
Earth’s ‘boring billion’ years blamed on sulfur-loving microbes
A new study suggests these organisms could have kept oxygen levels low and waters toxic, stalling the evolution of complex life.
-
Microbes
Team spirit
Working together, bacteria and other microbes can accomplish much more than they can alone. Now scientists hope to harness that ability by engineering their own microbial consortia.
By Susan Gaidos