Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Archaeology
A ‘jar’ jammed with human bones may solve Laos’ ‘Plain of Jars’ mystery
The remains of at least 37 people in an ancient stone 'jar' in northeastern Laos suggest that thousands similar jars were used in burials.
- Health & Medicine
After Dobbs, miscarriage care looked different in states with abortion bans
States with abortion bans are trending away from evidence-based miscarriage treatment that includes mifepristone, compared with states without bans.
- Microbes
A Greenland explorer will eat only decaying seal for a month
British chef Mike Keen will ski across Greenland eating only fermented seal. Researchers will study how the Inuit diet shapes gut health.
- Archaeology
First evidence of Neandertal dentistry found in ancient molar
A 59,000-year-old Neandertal molar unearthed in Siberia was drilled with a stone tool – the earliest evidence of primitive dentistry.
- Health & Medicine
Hantavirus questions grow in the wake of a cruise ship outbreak
Scientists still don’t know why Andes hantavirus is the only one shown to spread from person to person.
- Earth
The crust under Africa is thinning in a way that hasn’t been seen before
Africa’s Turkana Rift Zone, a hotbed of hominin fossils, is caught in the act of “necking," a critical transition toward continental breakup.
- Math
Jazz and classical music have become simpler, a new study finds
Mathematical analysis suggests that melodies and harmonies have become less complex as music evolves and musicians find new ways “to create great music.”
- Health & Medicine
Uterus transplants can provide a path to pregnancy and parenthood
Donated uteruses transplanted into women without a womb can allow for successful pregnancy and birth.
- Health & Medicine
Some South American rodent-borne viruses may spread as climate warms
Some rodents in South America carry arenaviruses and hantaviruses. Climate change may bring both to regions where neither is currently a threat.
- Psychology
Yawning is contagious — even in the womb
Rather than catching a yawn on sight, muscles squeezing the uterus could be the trigger for a fetus to catch a yawn from its mother.
- Neuroscience
Why some brain cells are particularly vulnerable to multiple sclerosis
DNA damage from inflammation outpaces the cells’ ability to self-repair. The finding, in human brain cells and mice, could point to new MS treatments.
- Neuroscience
25 people learned to fly with virtual wings. Here’s how the brain changed
A new study shows learning to fly in virtual reality with virtual wings can reshape the brain, making it treat wings more like body parts.
