All Stories

  1. Quantum Physics

    Shor’s code-breaking algorithm inspired reflections on quantum information

    Twenty years ago, physicists met in Santa Fe to explore the ramifications of quantum information.

    By
  2. Life

    Insulating sheath on nerve cells isn’t an even coat

    Myelin doesn't evenly coat axons, a finding that runs counter to what scientists suspected.

    By
  3. Genetics

    Cloning produces stem cells from adult skin

    Human embryonic stem cells made using adult cells could enable medical advances such as replacement organs.

    By
  4. Tech

    Animated movies made by computer

    A 17-minute animated movie made with a computer in 1964 took 2,000 hours of film processing and cost $600 per minute. The 2013 animated film Frozen cost about $1.5 million per minute to make.

    By
  5. Genetics

    New tools reveal new truths about fungi, flies, antibiotics

    In the newsroom, any story about a new scientific method faces an uphill battle. In this issue are a number of stories that feature how science is done.

    By
  6. Health & Medicine

    Unsolved drugs

    Long thought to launch precision attacks against bacteria, antibiotics may also cause lethal collateral damage, according to a controversial theory. Exploring how these compounds kill may reveal new ways to fight antibiotic resistance.

    By
  7. Planetary Science

    RIP LADEE: 9/6/2013 – 4/18/2014

    NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) mission ended April 18.

    By
  8. Life

    The name of the fungus

    A rebellion has broken out against the traditional way of naming species in the peculiar, shape-shifting world of fungi.

    By
  9. Astronomy

    White dwarf boosts light of stellar companion

    A gravitational lens in a binary star lets astronomers weigh the core of a dead star.

    By
  10. Health & Medicine

    Gene variant, processed meat linked to boost in cancer risk

    In people with a specific variation of a gene on chromosome 10, eating processed meat is associated with an increased risk of developing colon cancer.

    By
  11. Neuroscience

    Poor slumber is bad for young flies’ brains

    A child's sleep deprivation could alter brain development and adult behavior, a study of fruit flies suggests.

    By
  12. Life

    Protein that gets sperm into egg identified

    The protein Folr4 on a reproductive egg plays this crucial role in the fusion of the sperm and egg, research shows.

    By