Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Microbes
The secret to icky, sticky bacterial biofilms lies in the microbes’ cellulose
Bacteria use a modified form of cellulose to form sticky networks that can coat various surfaces.
- Life
A robotic arm made of DNA moves at dizzying speed
A DNA machine with a high-speed arm could pave the way for nanoscale factories.
- Anthropology
Hunter-gatherer lifestyle could help explain superior ability to ID smells
Hunter-gatherers in the forests of the Malay Peninsula prove more adept at naming smells than their rice-farming neighbors, possibly because of their foraging culture.
- Animals
The mystery of vanishing honeybees is still not definitively solved
The case has never been fully closed for colony collapse disorder, and now bees face bigger problems.
- Paleontology
Tiny scales in ancient lagoon may be the first fossil evidence of the moth-butterfly line
Fancy liquid-sipper mouthparts might have evolved before the great burst of flower evolution
- Animals
18 new species of pelican spiders discovered
A researcher used old and new specimens to discover 18 species of pelican spiders from Madagascar.
- Climate
Rising CO2 in lakes could keep water fleas from raising their spiky defenses
Rising CO2 in freshwaters may change how predators and prey interact in lakes.
- Health & Medicine
Not all strep infections are alike and it may have nothing to do with you
Add-on genes in some bacteria shape the way strains interact with the immune system.
- Neuroscience
Protein helps old blood age the brains of young mice
Increased levels of one protein in old blood may contribute to its aging effects on the brain, a mouse study suggests.
- Microbes
A new gel could help in the fight against deadly, drug-resistant superbugs
An antibacterial ointment breaks down the defenses of drug-resistant microbes such as MRSA in lab tests.
- Life
Readers wrangle with definition of ‘species’
Readers asked about the definition of "species," a new atomic clock and how a neutron star collision produces heavy elements.
- Materials Science
This artificial cartilage gets its strength from the stuff in bulletproof vests
One of the key ingredients in this artificial cartilage is a nanoversion of the synthetic fiber in body armor.
