NOM NOM NOM In their caterpillar phase, diamondback moths can wreak havoc on a cabbage patch. A newly approved field trial aims to test whether a GM strain could reduce their damage.
Ian_Redding/iStockphoto
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Magazine
In the July 8 SN: DNA traces many roads to domestication, seeking quantum supremacy, the 25th anniversary of the qubit, bones’ secret messages, how monkeys see faces, redating Homo sapiens, a record-breaking gas giant, strange dragonfly wings and more.
MUDDY OCEAN? The dwarf planet Ceres could have once been a ball of mud with a solid core, a new model suggests.
IDA/DLR/MPS/UCLA/JPL-Caltech/NASA
SEEKING QUANTUM SUPREMACY Google, IBM and others are developing quantum computers. IBM has made its five-qubit computer accessible online for free, and the company is planning a 50-qubit computer for commercial use. The large tank shown here holds the cooling system that keeps a 17-qubit processor cold.
Andy Aaron/IBM Research/Flickr (CC BY-ND 2.0)
HEAR HEAR DNA extracted from an inner ear bone of this dog skull is helping researchers decipher dogs’ origin story. The skull is about 4,700 years old and was found at Cherry Tree Cave in Germany.
Amelie Scheu
Science News
News
Cows produce powerful HIV antibodies
For the first time in any animal, researchers elicit broadly neutralizing antibodies against HIV. Cows’ antibodies could help with drug development.
News
These genes may be why dogs are so friendly
Dog domestication may be the result of just a few genetic changes, including ones that made canines more interested in interacting with people.
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Humans first settled in Australia as early as 65,000 years ago
Australia may have said “G’day” to humankind thousands of years earlier than previously believed.
Feature
DNA evidence is rewriting domestication origin stories
DNA studies are rewriting the how-we-met stories of domestication.
The –est
The incredible shrinking transistor just got smaller
Tiniest transistor, made with carbon nanotubes, suggests computers aren’t done shrinking down.
Essay
A quarter century ago, the qubit was born
The invention of the qubit a quarter century ago enabled the quantum information revolution.
News
Common drugs help reverse signs of fetal alcohol syndrome in rats
A thyroid hormone and a blood sugar drug affect levels of a hormone needed for brain development, study in rats shows.
Feature
Quantum computers are about to get real
Qubit-based machines are gearing up to solve problems that are out of reach for even the most powerful supercomputers.
News
Dog domestication happened just once, ancient DNA study suggests
DNA of ancient canines counters idea that dogs were domesticated twice, in Europe and Asia.
News
Scientists peek inside the mind of Maxwell’s demon
Scientists probe information retained by Maxwell’s demon.
News
Giant mud balls roamed the early solar system
The first asteroids may have been great balls of mud, which would solve some puzzling features of meteorites.
News in Brief
GM moth trial gets a green light from USDA
GM diamondback moths will take wing in a New York field trial.
News
Water bears will survive the end of the world as we know it
Water bears have a till-death-do-us-part pact with the sun, study suggests.
News in Brief
Copper in Ötzi the Iceman’s ax came from surprisingly far away
Copper for the ancient Iceman’s blade traveled about 500 kilometers to his northern Italian home region.
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These bacteria may egg on colon cancer
Streptococcus gallolyticus may goad colon cancer growth.
News
Ravens pass tests of planning ahead in unnatural tasks
Clever birds may have evolved their own broad powers of apelike thinking about the future.
News
Brain activity helps build an alpha male
In mice, nerve cells in the prefrontal cortex influence whether an individual is dominant or submissive.
News
Delaware-sized iceberg breaks off Antarctic ice shelf
An iceberg about the size of Delaware splintered from the Larsen C ice shelf in one of the largest calving events ever recorded.
News
The fight against gonorrhea gets a potential new weapon: a vaccine
A vaccine used in New Zealand to curb meningitis also appeared to drop gonorrhea infections, results that hint at a way to make a gonorrhea vaccine.
News
Just one night of poor sleep can boost Alzheimer’s proteins
Deep sleep may prevent the buildup of Alzheimer’s proteins.
News in Brief
How a crop-destroying fungus mutated to infect wheat
Study details how wheat got a new pathogen called blast fungus.
News
Drinking sugary beverages in pregnancy linked to kids’ later weight gain
Consuming sugary drinks while pregnant may mean kids are heavier when they reach elementary school age.
News in Brief
Fossil tooth pushes back record of mysterious Neandertal relative
A Denisovan child’s fossil tooth dates to at least 100,000 years ago, researchers say.
News in Brief
Newfound particle relies on its charm(s)
First-of-its-kind subatomic particle is composed of two charm quarks and an up quark.