All Stories
- Neuroscience
Loneliness is bad for brains
Social isolation shrinks nerve cells in the brains of mice, a new study shows.
- Computing
Virtual avatars learned cartwheels and other stunts from videos of people
A new computer system that lets animated characters learn acrobatic skills from videos could be a cheaper alternative to traditional motion capture.
- Particle Physics
Physicists measured Earth’s mass using neutrinos for the first time
Counting tiny particles that can zip straight through the Earth reveals what the planet is like on the inside.
- Life
A mash-up of yeast and E. coli shows how mitochondria might have evolved
An engineered partnership between yeast and E. coli suggests one way mitochondria may have evolved.
- Health & Medicine
Malaysia is ground zero for the next malaria menace
With deforestation in Malaysia, monkeys and humans are getting closer — and mosquitoes are infecting humans with malaria from monkeys.
- Science & Society
Screen time to heal, and perhaps to harm
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute reflects on the advances in virtual reality technology and how much time we spend on our computers and smartphones.
- Materials Science
Questions about toxic red tides, and more reader feedback
Readers had inquiries about a new deicing material, harmful algal blooms and more.
- Astronomy
Hubble has been busy since coming back online
Since getting back to work on October 26, the Hubble Space Telescope has been studying red dwarf flares, among other celestial objects.
- Physics
A new measurement bolsters the case for a (slightly) smaller proton
The PRad physics experiment has come up with a result favoring a punier proton.
- Anthropology
Neandertal teeth reveal the earliest known signs of lead exposure
Chemical analyses of teeth from young Neandertals show that lead exposure in hominids goes back some 250,000 years.
- Life
Eating less protein may help curb gut bacteria’s growth
A new study in mice and 30 mammal species hints at what controls the types and amounts of gut microbes, which can contribute to health and disease.
- Planetary Science
Dawn, the first spacecraft to orbit 2 alien worlds, has gone silent
The Dawn probe, which hopped between two objects in the asteroid belt during its seven-year mission, ran out of fuel and stopped calling home.
