Humans

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Health & Medicine

    Though complex, new peanut allergy guidelines are based on science

    Unlike some past recommendations, new guidelines state that introducing babies to peanut-containing foods early is generally OK, with certain caveats.

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  2. Health & Medicine

    Promise and perils of marijuana deserve more scientific scrutiny

    Report outlines medical potential and health dangers of cannabis and its components.

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  3. Paleontology

    Readers weigh in on dinos, dark matter and more

    Ancient bird calls, the search for dark matter and more in reader feedback.

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  4. Archaeology

    Hunter-gatherers were possibly first to call Tibetan Plateau home

    Hunter-gatherers may have been Asia’s first year-round, high-altitude settlers.

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  5. Archaeology

    Ancient Egyptian pot burials were not just for the poor

    In ancient Egypt, using pots for burial containers was a symbolic choice, not a last resort, archaeologists say.

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  6. Health & Medicine

    Ebola vaccine proves effective, final trial results show

    The Ebola vaccine rVSV-ZEBOV proved effective at stopping the spread of the virus in a clinical trial in West Africa.

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  7. Health & Medicine

    Ebola vaccine proves effective

    The Ebola vaccine rVSV-ZEBOV proved effective at stopping the spread of the virus in a clinical trial in West Africa.

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  8. Neuroscience

    How scientists are hunting for a safer opioid painkiller

    Scientists are sorting through chemical structures, twisting and turning known drugs and exploring new ways to ease pain.

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  9. Health & Medicine

    New blood tests can detect prions

    Blood tests may detect prion disease in people even before onset of symptoms.

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  10. Health & Medicine

    Motherhood might actually improve memory

    Having a baby changes all sorts of things, including a mother’s brain.

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  11. Health & Medicine

    The Flint water crisis and other public health woes from 2016

    Drug use continued to threaten the health and safety of the American public in 2016, while a hidden menace in drinking water remained a worry in Michigan.

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  12. Anthropology

    Monkeys have vocal tools, but not brains, to talk like humans

    Macaques have vocal tracts, but not brains, built for talking much as people do, scientists say.

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