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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Neuroscience

    A new experiment didn’t find signs of dreaming in brain waves

    Brain activity that powers dreams may reveal crucial insight into consciousness, but a new study failed to spot evidence of the neural flickers.

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  2. Life

    Gut bacteria may change the way many drugs work in the body

    A new survey of interactions between microbes and medications suggests that gut bacteria play a crucial role in how the body processes drugs.

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  3. Paleontology

    Fossils reveal saber-toothed cats may have pierced rivals’ skulls

    Two Smilodon fossil skulls from Argentina have puncture holes likely left by the teeth of rival cats.

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  4. Health & Medicine

    A fungus weaponized with a spider toxin can kill malaria mosquitoes

    In controlled field experiments in Burkina Faso, a genetically engineered fungus reduced numbers of insecticide-resistant mosquitoes that can carry malaria.

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  5. Anthropology

    Africa’s first herders spread pastoralism by mating with foragers

    DNA unveils long-ago hookups between early pastoralists and native hunter-gatherers in Africa.

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  6. Astronomy

    Questions about solar storms, slingshot spiders and more reader feedback

    Readers had questions about solar storms, a robotic gripper, slingshot spiders and more.

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  7. Health & Medicine

    Resurgence of measles is a tale as old as human history

    Editor in Chief Nancy Shute discusses the recent global measles outbreak and the history of the spread of pathogens.

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  8. Animals

    A 50-million-year-old fossil captures a swimming school of fish

    Analysis of a fossilized fish shoal suggests that animals may have evolved coordinated group movement around 50 million years ago.

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  9. Life

    How bacteria nearly killed by antibiotics can recover — and gain resistance

    A pump protein can keep bacteria alive long enough for the microbes to develop antibiotic resistance.

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  10. Animals

    Shy fish no bigger than a pinkie provide much of the food in coral reefs

    More than half of the fish flesh that predators in coral reefs eat comes from tiny, hard-to-spot species.

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  11. Health & Medicine

    Being bilingual is great. But it may not boost some brain functions

    A large study of U.S. bilingual children didn’t turn up obvious benefits in abilities to ignore distractions or switch quickly between tasks.

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  12. Health & Medicine

    A cognitive neuroscientist warns that the U.S. justice system harms teen brains

    The U.S. justice system holds adolescents to adult standards, and puts young people in situations that harm their development, a researcher argues.

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