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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Plants
How dandelions rig the odds for catching upward gusts
New images reveal microstructures that, depending on how the wind blows, help give a dandelion seed lift-off or the grip needed to wait for a better breeze.
- Astronomy
See a 3-D map of stellar nurseries based on data from the Gaia telescope
The map, spanning 4,000 light-years from the sun in all directions, combines a chart of space dust with the effects of a rare type of young, hot star.
- Space
This black hole flipped its magnetic field
Event Horizon Telescope data reveal the magnetic field around M87* shifted, weakened and then flipped, defying theoretical expectations.
- Tech
This experimental computer chip reuses energy
A first-of-its-kind test shows that reusing energy within a computer chip can work, thanks to two techy tricks.
- Physics
A ‘ringing’ black hole matches scientists’ predictions
Gravitational waves emitted after two black holes coalesced agree with theories from physicists Stephen Hawking and Roy Kerr.
- Health & Medicine
The brain preserves maps of missing hands for years
Countering the idea of large-scale rewiring, women whose hands were removed retained durable brain activity patterns linked to their missing fingers.
- Planetary Science
NASA’s Webb telescope spotted a new moon orbiting Uranus
Like Uranus's other 28 moons, the newfound object spotted by JWST will be named after a William Shakespeare or Alexander Pope character.
- Genetics
This snail may hold a secret to human eye regeneration
Golden apple snails can regrow full, functional eyes. Studying their genes may reveal how to repair human eye injuries.
- Astronomy
Seven superclouds sit just beyond the solar system
The superclouds probably produce star-forming clouds of gas, since most nearby stellar nurseries are located within the giants.
- Paleontology
A new species of ‘penis worm’ was discovered in the Grand Canyon
A trove of fossils, including a penis worm with a spiked, invertible throat, suggests this spot may have been a cradle of Cambrian evolution.
- Health & Medicine
A molecule produced by gut microbes may help spur heart disease
A leftover from microbes’ meals is linked to early heart disease in people. In mice, it contributed to plaque buildup in the arteries.
- Health & Medicine
AI is designing proteins that could help treat cancer
A team used generative AI to enhance T cells’ ability to fight melanoma. The immunotherapy approach needs more testing before use in cancer patients.
