TRICKY PARASITE Trichomonas vaginalis has a funny shape and some clever ways of infecting people.
David M. Phillips/Science Source
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Magazine
In the April 13 SN: The browning of the Arctic, RNAs steal the spotlight, sensing Earth's magnetic field, a spider speed record, Bennu spits dust, a ketamine drug for depression and more.
SUPERMASSIVE SOURCE The gases and stars in galaxy M87, shown in this composite image from the Chandra X-ray telescope and the Very Large Array, gave different numbers for the mass of the galaxy’s supermassive black hole.
N. Werner, E. Million et al/KIPAC/CXC/NASA, F. Owen/NSF/AUI/NRAO
YOUNG AND ANXIOUS Worries can sideline a child as early as preschool, so researchers are designing therapies that help young brains do a reality check when unwarranted fears arise.
Imgorthand/iStock/Getty Images Plus
MAGNETIC ANCESTOR Ancient massive carvings from Guatemala such as this round figure include magnetized areas possibly intended to show the continuing power of deceased ancestors.
R. Fu
Science News
News
A global survey finds that the Arctic Ocean is a hot spot for viruses
Scientists mapped virus diversity around the world’s oceans. That knowledge may be key to making better climate simulations.
News
A lack of circular RNAs may trigger lupus
Researchers close in on how low levels of a kind of RNA may trigger lupus — offering hope for future treatments for the autoimmune disease.
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50 Years Ago
50 years ago, scientists fought over element 104’s discovery
A conflict known as the Transfermium Wars marked a contentious struggle over the search for new elements beginning in the 1960s.
Feature
How an obscure sexually transmitted parasite tangos with the immune system
Scientists are working out how Trichomonas vaginalis, one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted infections, causes problems in women and men.
News
U.S. measles cases hit a record high since the disease was eliminated in 2000
Each year from 2010 to 2017, 21 million children did not get vaccinated against measles, according to UNICEF.
Feature
When anxiety happens as early as preschool, treatments can help
Researchers are seeking ways to break the link between preschool worries and adult anxiety.
News in Brief
A marine parasite’s mitochondria lack DNA but still churn out energy
Missing mitochondrial DNA inside a parasitic marine microbe turned up inside the organism’s nucleus.
News in Brief
Excavations show hunter-gatherers lived in the Amazon more than 10,000 years ago
Early foragers may have laid the foundation for farming’s ascent in South America’s tropical forests.
News
A neural implant can translate brain activity into sentences
With electrodes in the brain, scientists translated neural signals into speech, which could someday help the speechless speak.
News
This is the slowest radioactive decay ever spotted
Scientists have made the first direct observations of an exotic type of radioactive decay called two-neutrino double electron capture.
Science Visualized
See beautiful fossils from top Cambrian sites around the world
Troves of Cambrian fossils are known at more than 50 places around the world. Here are five standout spots.
News in Brief
NASA’s Mars InSight lander may have the first recording of a Marsquake
NASA’s InSight mission appears to have detected a Marsquake for the first time.
News
Medicaid expansion may help shrink health gaps between black and white babies
States that expanded Medicaid as part of the Affordable Care Act shrunk racial disparities between black and white infants, a new study shows.
Reviews & Previews
‘An Elegant Defense’ explores the immune system’s softer side
The lives of four people helped or harmed by their body’s natural defenses illustrate why immunology has become one of the hottest fields in science.
News in Brief
Mercury has a massive solid inner core
The distribution of Mercury’s mass and small stutters in the planet’s spin suggest it has a giant solid inner core.
News in Brief
Ancient sculptors made magnetic figures from rocks struck by lightning
Carved ‘potbelly’ stone sculptures suggest people in what’s now Guatemala knew about magnetism more than 2,000 years ago.
News
The M87 black hole image showed the best way to measure black hole masses
The first image of M87’s black hole suggests it is 6.5 billion times the mass of the sun — close to what was expected based on how stars move around it.
Reviews & Previews
‘Invisible Women’ spotlights a gaping and dangerous gender data gap
‘Invisible Women’ explains how neglecting to collect or use data on women harms their health and safety.
The Science Life
A scientist used chalk in a box to show that bats use sunsets to migrate
A new device for investigating bat migration suggests that the flying mammals orient themselves by the setting sun.
News
The herbal supplement kratom comes with risks
The supplement kratom can cause heart racing and agitation.
News
More than a million tiny earthquakes revealed in Southern California
By putting millions of tiny quakes on record, scientists hope to learn more about what triggers the big ones.
News
A genetic scorecard could predict your risk of being obese
A genetic score predicts who is at risk of severe obesity, but experts say lifestyle matters more than genes.
Science Visualized
Warm, dry winds may be straining Antarctica’s Larsen C ice shelf
Wind-induced melting that occurred during the Antarctic autumn may be accelerating the Larsen C ice shelf’s collapse, which could raise sea levels.
News
Immigrants pave the way for the gentrification of black neighborhoods
A study using U.S. census data shows primarily Asian and Hispanic immigrants may trigger gentrification in U.S. neighborhoods.