Humans
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
Keep at it
Moderate exercise can extend survival for overweight and obese men who have diabetes.
By Nathan Seppa - Humans
Doritos in Space
Today, a huge European radar-transmitter system sent an ad for a cheesy snack radiating out into space.
By Janet Raloff - Archaeology
Resurrection of a biblical tree
Date palm pit found at Masada sprouts at age 2,000, becoming the oldest known seed to germinate.
By Amy Maxmen - Health & Medicine
No babies, no hormones
A radically different form of contraception would prevent pregnancies with small molecules of RNA.
- Humans
Wash Your Veggies!
The lesson in all of these food-poisoning outbreaks is that we must not expect a risk-free food-supply chain.
By Janet Raloff - Humans
Teacher Certification Increases, But . . .
Rigorous standards exist for what teachers should know and be able to do. The rub: only about three U.S. teachers out of every five schools have demonstrated they meet those standards.
By Janet Raloff - Health & Medicine
Virus versus virus
Customized RNA snippets delivered by a harmless virus could someday provide a new way to combat the hepatitis B virus.
- Health & Medicine
Seeing disease’s acidic side
Small tumors can be detected using a new technique that safely, reliably and noninvasively measures tissue chemistry.
By Amy Maxmen - Humans
Symbolic snacks
Capuchin monkeys can reason with tokens as they do with different foods, demonstrating a basic capacity for thinking symbolically.
By Bruce Bower - Health & Medicine
Parasite payback
The protozoan parasite that causes leishmaniasis seems vulnerable to the anticancer drug tamoxifen, research in mice shows.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
Time on their side
Review of a decade's worth of major league baseball games shows a slight cost in performance in teams with jet lag.
- Health & Medicine
Thanks for the pounds, Mom
When inherited from mom, a gene linked to obesity and diabetes interferes with blood sugar metabolism.