Life

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Life

    Early RNA may have used isolation strategy to defeat useless mutants

    Temporary barriers help RNA escape shorter, faster-replicating parasites

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  2. Neuroscience

    Health official calls on neuroscience to fight mental illness

    When it comes to mental health, all countries are developing countries, WHO official says, appealing to neuroscience for help.

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  3. Animals

    Why crested penguins lay mismatched eggs

    After long migratory swims, crested penguins lay one small and one larger egg.

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  4. Life

    Having an extra chromosome has a surprising effect on cancer

    Extra chromosome copies may protect against, not cause, cancer.

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  5. Ecosystems

    Losing tropical forest might raise risks of human skin ulcers, deformed bones

    Bacteria that cause Buruli ulcer in people flourish with tropical deforestation.

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  6. Neuroscience

    Brain waves show promise against Alzheimer’s protein in mice

    Flickers of light induce brain waves that wash amyloid-beta out of the brain, mouse study suggests.

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  7. Animals

    Why a mountain goat is a better climber than you

    For the first time, scientists have analyzed how a mountain goat climbs a cliff. Big muscles in the shoulder and neck help a lot, they find.

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  8. Life

    Cell distress chemicals help embryos quickly heal

    The chemicals trigger drawstring-like structures that help close wounds.

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  9. Life

    Bird plus goggles equals new insight into flight physics

    Slow-flying parrotlet produces vortices that explosively break up.

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  10. Animals

    First spider superdads discovered

    Male spiders first known to give up solitary life for offspring care, often as a single parent.

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  11. Neuroscience

    Gut microbe mix may spark Parkinson’s

    Parkinson’s disease symptoms might be driven by gut microbes

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  12. Chemistry

    Enzyme forges carbon-silicon bonds with a little human help

    A few tweaks to an enzyme help it link carbon to silicon — a match not found in nature.

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