Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Life
HIV hides in growth-promoting genes
The discovery that HIV can trigger infected cells to divide means scientists may need to rethink strategies for treating the virus that causes AIDS.
- Anthropology
Neanderthals reveal their diet with oldest excrement
50,000-year-old fossil poop hints at Neanderthals’ omnivorous, but meat-heavy, diet.
- Health & Medicine
Hidden heart rhythm problem may underlie some strokes
In two clinical studies, people who had had strokes with no trigger sometimes also had undiagnosed atrial fibrillation.
- Health & Medicine
Your baby can watch movies for science
Any parent with a computer can let their kid participate in child development studies through a new website called Lookit.
- Health & Medicine
Junk food ahead of pregnancy may harm baby-to-be
Women who have poor diets in the year before conception might have a higher risk of delivering a baby preterm than do women who eat healthful foods
- Humans
Skulls reveal Neandertal’s hodge-podge genealogy
A new analysis of ancient hominid skulls reveals a patchy anatomical start of the Neandertal lineage.
- Health & Medicine
Pregnant women on the hook for calculating risks, benefits of fish
New draft FDA guidelines on fish for pregnant or nursing women make women do the math for how to maximize omega-3 fatty acids and minimize mercury exposure.
- Psychology
Just four questions can identify which ER patients need prompt care
A simple decision tree may find serious ailments in ER patients’ fuzzy complaints.
- Neuroscience
Sunbathing may boost endorphins in the body and brain
UV light makes mice churn out a molecule that is a cousin of morphine and heroin, a finding that may explain why some people seek out sunshine.
- Health & Medicine
Simple blood test detects heart transplant rejection
Heart transplant recipients whose bodies are starting to reject the new organ might carry genetic warning signs.
- Genetics
Gene variant tied to diabetes in Greenlanders
Greenlanders who carry two copies of a newly discovered gene variant have upwards of 10 times the chance of developing type 2 diabetes.
- Psychology
Children negotiate taking turns surprisingly early in life
Five-year-olds can coordinate decisions with others in a fair way, even when each child has conflicting interests.
