In the May 17 SN: Tetraquarks, the closest thing yet to an Earth twin, getting under Europa's skin and a continent's genetic prehistory.
May 17, 2014
(right) NASA Ames/SETI Institute/JPL-Caltech
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Magazine
In the Sept. 30 SN: Smog's health woes, secrets of the bat brain, slug slime inspires surgical glue, wild beer, Neandertal tar recipes, the sun's recent flare-ups and more.
- Feature
Written in bone
Researchers are reconstructing the migrations that carried agriculture into Europe by analyzing DNA from the skeletons of early farmers and the people they displaced. - Feature
The ice of a distant moon
Jupiter’s moon Europa hides a liquid ocean, and conceivably life, under kilometers of ice. The challenge for engineers is how to penetrate that frozen barrier with technology that can be launched into space and operated remotely. - News
Triclosan aids nasal invasions by staph
The antimicrobial compound triclosan, commonly found in soaps and toothpaste, may help Staphylococcus aureus stick around. - It's Alive
How to milk a naked mole-rat
For the sake of science, Olav Oftedal has milked bats, bears and a lot of other mammals. But a naked mole-rat was something new. - News
Gene activity sets humans apart from extinct hominids
Differences in gene activity caused by DNA methylation distinguish modern people from Neandertals and Denisovans. - Science Visualized
Narwhal has the strangest tooth in the sea
Sometimes called the unicorn of the sea, the male narwhal’s tusk is actually a tooth. Narwhals detect changes in water salinity using only these tusks, a new study finds. - News
Possible measles drug tests well in animals
Compound that saves ferrets from viral infection might someday lead to measles treatment. - Say What?
Exciton
Getting excited can kick a person’s energy to a higher level. At the nanoscale, strange almost-particles called excitons do the same trick. - News
In a crisis, fruit flies do stunt turns
An elaborate monitoring system reveals that fruit flies can execute sophisticated flying maneuvers in the face of danger. - News
Reef fish act drunk in carbon dioxide–rich ocean waters
In first test in the wild, fish near reefs that bubble with CO2 lose fear of predators’ scent.