Vol. 190 No. 12
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More Stories from the December 10, 2016 issue

  1. a Japanese macaque
    Neuroscience

    Eyes offer window into brain’s timekeepers

    In new experiments of time perception, when pupils were large, monkeys underestimated a second.

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  2. Neuroscience

    Shape-shifting molecule aids memory in fruit flies

    A prionlike protein may store long-term memories in fruit flies, a new study suggests.

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  3. sea ice
    Climate

    Human CO2 emissions put Arctic on track to be ice-free by 2050

    Sea ice is shrinking by about three square meters for each metric ton of carbon dioxide emitted, new research suggests.

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  4. Bose-Einstein condensate
    Physics

    Supersolids produced in exotic state of quantum matter

    Bose-Einstein condensates display properties of liquid and solid simultaneously.

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  5. climate normal map 2015
    Climate

    If you thought 2015 was hot, just wait

    The record-setting global temperatures seen in 2015 could be the “new normal” as soon as the 2020s.

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  6. illustration of a mud dragon
    Paleontology

    Dragon dinosaur met a muddy end

    ‘Mud dragon’ fossil discovered in China suggests that dinosaurs’ last days were an active time of evolution.

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  7. illustration of vascin
    Life

    Protein mobs kill cells that most need those proteins to survive

    A protein engineered to aggregate gives clues about how clumpy proteins kill brain cells.

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  8. MRI of baboon hearts
    Health & Medicine

    Poor diet in pregnancy, poor heart health for infants

    Moms who eat too little during pregnancy could have babies with heart risks.

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  9. red squirrel
    Life

    British red squirrels serve as leprosy reservoir

    Red squirrels in the British Isles can harbor the bacteria that cause leprosy.

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  10. Celebrex
    Health & Medicine

    Popular painkiller doesn’t have more heart risks than others, study claims

    A long anticipated trial of the drug Celebrex finds it poses no more risk to the heart than do similar painkillers, but critics cite flaws in the study.

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  11. scared baby
    Neuroscience

    Infant brains have powerful reactions to fear

    Babies can recognize facial emotions, especially fear, as early as 5 months old.

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  12. sleeping man
    Health & Medicine

    Restless sleep associated with heart rhythm problems

    Poor sleep, even without apnea, is tied to heart rhythm problems.

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  13. time square
    Neuroscience

    Sounds and glowing screens impair mouse brains

    Too much light and noise screws up developing mice’s brains.

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  14. weighing in
    Health & Medicine

    Downside of yo-yo dieting is rise in heart disease risk

    Yo-yo dieting hurts the heart, even if you’re not overweight.

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  15. mouse nerve cells
    Neuroscience

    Protein linked to Parkinson’s travels from gut to brain

    Parkinson’s protein can travel from gut to brain, mouse study suggests.

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  16. elderly woman
    Neuroscience

    Despite Alzheimer’s plaques, some seniors remain mentally sharp

    Plaques and tangles riddle the brains of some very old and very healthy people.

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  17. heartburn
    Health & Medicine

    Heartburn drugs may raise stroke risk

    Drugs used by millions for heartburn linked to increased risk of stroke.

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  18. illustration of Swift satellite
    Astronomy

    Mysterious radio signals pack power and brilliance

    The brightest fast radio burst has been detected, while another team reveals a previous burst might have carried gamma rays as well as radio waves across space.

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  19. quark-gluon plasma illustration
    Physics

    Whirlpools might have stirred up baby universe’s soup

    Vortices appear in the quark-gluon plasma produced in heavy-ion collisions.

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  20. blue begonia leaf
    Life

    Blue leaves help begonias harvest energy in low light

    The iridescent color of some begonias comes from tiny structures that also help the plant convert dim light into energy.

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  21. Gasbuggy device
    Earth

    50 years ago, nuclear blasting for gas boomed. Today it’s a bust.

    50 years ago, scientists made plans to use nuclear explosions to extract natural gas from underground. In one such experiment, the gas was released but turned out to be radioactive.

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  22. narwhal in Arctic
    Animals

    Narwhals are really, really good at echolocation

    Audio recordings from the Arctic suggest that narwhals take directional sonar to the extreme.

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  23. blue petrel
    Environment

    Ocean plastic emits chemical that may trick seabirds into eating trash

    Some seabirds might be eating plastic because it emits a chemical that smells like food.

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  24. African elephant Kenya
    Animals

    Most illegal ivory is less than three years old

    Most of the ivory seized by law enforcement in the last decade doesn’t come from elephants poached many years ago.

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  25. TEM of Zika virus
    Health & Medicine

    Antibody protects against Zika virus in tests in mice

    A new treatment for Zika relies on human antibodies and can help protect pregnant mice from the virus’s damaging effects.

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  26. E.coli
    Life

    Tiny toxic proteins help gut bacteria defeat rivals

    A strain of E. coli makes competition-killing tiny proteins and soothes inflamed intestines.

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