Health & Medicine
Two new books explore the science and history of the 1918 flu pandemic
One-hundred years after the Spanish flu, ‘Pandemic 1918’ and ‘Influenza’ provide a new look at the global outbreak.
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Cover Story
Beavers are engineering a new Alaskan tundra
Climate change has enabled the recent expansion of beavers into northwestern Alaska, a trend that could have major ecological consequences for the region in the coming decades.
Reviews & Previews
Science Visualized
Planetary Science
Saturn’s moon Dione has stripes like no others in the solar system
Icy moon Dione has long, thin, bright lines at its equator that run surprisingly parallel to each other for tens to hundreds of kilometers.
Notebook
Animals
How locust ecology inspired an opera
When an entomologist decides to write a libretto, you get an operatic elegy to locusts.
Features
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A gut-brain link for Parkinson’s gets a closer look
Early evidence suggests that Parkinson’s may be a gut disease that affects the brain.
More Stories from the December 8, 2018 issue
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Animals50 years ago, armadillos hinted that DNA wasn’t destiny
Nine-banded armadillos have identical quadruplets. But the youngsters aren’t identical enough, and scientists 50 years ago could not figure out why.
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LifeA 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.
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Particle PhysicsPhysicists 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.
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ComputingVirtual 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.
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NeuroscienceLoneliness is bad for brains
Social isolation shrinks nerve cells in the brains of mice, a new study shows.
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NeuroscienceA lack of sleep can induce anxiety
Pulling an all-nighter induced anxiety in healthy people, a recent study finds.
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ArchaeologyLike Europe, Borneo hosted Stone Age cave artists
Rock art may have spread from Borneo across Southeast Asia starting 40,000 years ago or more.
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NeuroscienceMarijuana may change the decision-making part of teen brains
A marijuana-like drug given to male rats during adolescence changed the structure of their brains.
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LifeThe number of calories you burn while resting depends on the time of day
This daily cycle of calorie burning is one of the many body processes that follow a biological clock.
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Planetary ScienceHints of Oort clouds around other stars may lurk in the universe’s first light
Sifting through the universe’s early light could reveal planetary graveyards orbiting other stars.
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GeneticsAncient DNA suggests people settled South America in at least 3 waves
Genetic studies of ancient remains are filling in the picture of who the earliest Americans were and how they spread through the Americas long ago.
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EarthThese tiny, crackly bubbles are a new type of volcanic ash
Scientists have identified a new type of volcanic ash made up of millimeter-long spheres with a crackled surface.
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Health & MedicineA potent fish oil drug may protect high-risk patients against heart attacks
People with, or at high risk of, cardiovascular disease lowered their chances of having a heart attack or stroke with a drug containing an omega-3 fatty acid.
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AnimalsClimate change may have made the Arctic deadlier for baby shorebirds
What were once relatively safe havens in the Arctic are now feasting sites for predators of baby birds.
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Health & MedicineVitamin D supplements don’t prevent heart disease or cancer
Vitamin D supplements won’t cut your risk of heart attack or stroke, according to highly anticipated study results.
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AnimalsSound-absorbent wings and fur help some moths evade bats
Tiny ultrathin scales on some moth wings absorb sound waves sent out by bats on the hunt.
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AstronomyOne of Earth’s shimmering dust clouds has been spotted at last
Almost 60 years after a Polish astronomer spotted clouds of dust orbiting Earth near the moon, astronomers have detected those clouds again.
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EarthA massive crater hides beneath Greenland’s ice
The discovery of a vast crater in Greenland suggests that a 1-kilometer-wide asteroid hit the Earth between 2.6 million and 11,700 years ago.