Science & Society
All kinds of outbreaks, from COVID-19 to violence, share the same principles
Adam Kucharski talks about his new book ‘The Rules of Contagion,’ a timely read during the coronavirus pandemic.
Featured Articles in this Issue
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Cover Story
To live up to the hype, quantum computers must repair their error problems
Before quantum computers can reach their potential, scientists will need to master quantum error correction.
Reviews & Previews
Science Visualized
Earth
Up to 220 million people globally may be at risk of arsenic-contaminated water
A new world map highlights possible hot spots of arsenic contamination in groundwater.
Notebook
Paleontology
Saber-toothed anchovy relatives hunted in the sea 50 million years ago
Unlike today’s plankton-eating anchovies with tiny teeth, ancient anchovy kin had lower jaw of sharp spikes paired with a single giant sabertooth.
Features
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Past plagues offer lessons for society after the coronavirus pandemic
Starting with the Roman Empire, societies have often dealt resiliently with deadly pandemics.
More Stories from the June 20, 2020 issue
- Chemistry
Astronauts may be able to make cement using their own pee
Lunar dust and a compound found in urine could be used to build future dwellings on the moon, a new study finds.
- Life
Algae use flagella to trot, gallop and move with gaits all their own
Single-celled microalgae, with no brains, can coordinate their “limbs” into a trot or fancier gait.
- Health & Medicine
Is the coronavirus mutating? Yes. But here’s why you don’t need to panic
Some studies claim there are new strains of the coronavirus, but lab experiments are needed to see if mutations are changing how it infects cells.
- Humans
Malaria parasites may have their own circadian rhythms
Plasmodium parasites don’t depend on a host for an internal clock, studies suggest.
- Life
Neon colors may help some corals stage a comeback from bleaching
When some corals bleach, they turn bright colors. Stunning hues may be part of a response that helps the corals recover and reunite with their algae.
- Physics
A star shredded by a black hole may have spit out an extremely energetic neutrino
A star’s fatal encounter with a black hole might have produced a neutrino with oomph.
- Life
Pollen-deprived bumblebees may speed up plant blooming by biting leaves
In a pollen shortage, some bees nick holes in tomato leaves that accelerate flowering, and pollen production, by weeks.
- Tech
A new artificial eye mimics and may outperform human eyes
A new artificial eyeball boasts a field of view and reaction time similar to that of real eyes.
- Astronomy
The oldest disk galaxy yet found formed more than 12 billion years ago
A spinning disk galaxy similar to the Milky Way formed just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang, much earlier than astronomers thought was possible.
- Quantum Physics
Physicists exploit a quantum rule to create a new kind of crystal
Cold atoms can form crystals as a result of the Pauli exclusion principle.
- Earth
Long-dormant volcano Mauna Kea has been quietly grumbling for decades
Small, periodic earthquakes have happened every seven to 12 minutes for decades, but aren’t reason for alarm, a new study finds.
- Space
SpaceX’s astronaut launch marks a milestone for commercial spaceflight
Two NASA astronauts aboard the privately built Crew Dragon capsule are the first to be sent into orbit from U.S. soil since 2011.
- Animals
New species of scaly, deep-sea worms named after Elvis have been found
A genetic analysis sheds new light on funky scale worms with glittery, scales reminiscent of sequins on the “The King’s” iconic jumpsuits.
- Chemistry
Moisture, not light, explains why Munch’s ‘The Scream’ is deteriorating
Edvard Munch’s 1910 “The Scream” is famous for its loud colors. New insight into paint preservation could keep those pigments from fading out.
- Humans
A gene variant partly explains why Peruvians are among the world’s shortest people
A gene variant reduces some Peruvians’ height by about 2 centimeters, on average, the biggest effect on stature found for a common variation in DNA.
- Anthropology
Africa’s biggest collection of ancient human footprints has been found
Preserved impressions in East Africa offer a glimpse of ancient human behavior.
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50 years ago, scientists first investigated antibiotic resistance in livestock
In 1970, scientists began investigating the effects of feeding antibiotics to livestock. 50 years later, we know it can be harmful for humans.
