Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Genetics
North America’s earliest dogs came from Siberia
North America’s first dogs have few descendants alive today, a study of ancient DNA suggests.
- Anthropology
Foot fossil pegs hominid kids as upright walkers 3.3 million years ago
A foot from an ancient hominid child suggests that Lucy’s species, Australopithecus afarensis, walked early in life.
- Health & Medicine
Evidence grows that an HPV screen beats a Pap test at preventing cancer
More research finds that a test for human papillomavirus infection catches precancerous cervical cells better than the standard test, a Pap.
- Archaeology
Mongolians practiced horse dentistry as early as 3,200 years ago
Horse dentistry got an early start among Bronze Age Mongolian herders.
- Health & Medicine
Finally, there’s a way to keep syphilis growing in the lab
Scientists have figured out how to keep a sample of the bacteria Treponema pallidum alive and infectious for over eight months.
- Genetics
The study of human heredity got its start in insane asylums
‘Genetics in the Madhouse’ reveals how human heredity research began as a statistical science in 19th century insane asylums.
- Psychology
Kids today are waiting longer than ever in the classic marshmallow test
Preschoolers wait longer for extra treats than they used to. What does it mean?
- Life
Leprosy lurks in armadillos in Brazil’s Amazon
Armadillos in the Brazilian Amazon are often infected with leprosy, which they may pass to people.
- Neuroscience
A brain chemical tied to narcolepsy may play a role in opioid addiction
Long-term use of opioids such as heroin is linked to having more brain cells that release a chemical that regulates wakefulness and arousal.
- Health & Medicine
How to make CAR-T cell therapies for cancer safer and more effective
CAR-T cell therapy was approved by the FDA in late 2017. Now, scientists are working to tame the cancer treatment’s side effects.
- Health & Medicine
Medical breakthroughs come with a human cost
Editor in Chief Nancy Shute muses on the risks many medical advances pose in their infancy.
- Health & Medicine
Poliovirus treatment helped patients with deadly brain tumors live longer
A genetically modified poliovirus appears to help fight brain cancer, a small, early-stage clinical study suggests.
