Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Animals
These beetle larvae lure in bees by mimicking flowers
These parasitic beetle larvae lure in bees with complex floral aromas before hitching a ride back to their nests and eating their eggs.
- Artificial Intelligence
AI models spot deepfake images, but people catch fake videos
A new study finds that humans and AI spot different kinds of deepfakes — hinting at the need to team up to fight them.
- Neuroscience
A study hints positive thinking could strengthen vaccine immunity
Thinking positive increased a specific brain region's activity and might have heightened immune response after a shot.
- Animals
Canadian humpback whales thrive with a little help from their friends
Humpback whales are teaching each other a feeding technique called bubble netting, and it's helping a Canadian population recover from whaling.
- Genetics
AI tool AlphaGenome predicts how one typo can change a genetic story
The tool helps scientists understand how single-letter mutations and distant DNA regions influence gene activity, shaping health and disease risk.
- Health & Medicine
The brain’s response to a heart attack may worsen recovery
In mice, blocking heart-to-brain signals improved healing after a heart attack, hinting at new targets for cardiac therapy.
- Animals
Spider silk-making organs evolved due to a 400-million-year-old genetic oops
An ancient ancestor of spiders and relatives doubled its genome about 400 million years ago, setting the stage for the evolution of spinnerets.
- Animals
Some vaccines are making progress in protecting vulnerable species
Vaccines can be a crucial conservation tool. But getting shots to wildlife, and developing them in the first place, is tough.
- Animals
How Greenland sharks defy aging
When it comes to bucking the biological ails of aging, humans could learn something from Greenland sharks.
- Health & Medicine
It masquerades as malignant. But this bone-covered tumor is benign
Scientists have described a novel, yet benign bone-covered growth's characteristics for doctors, so patients don't receive unnecessary chemotherapy.
- Neuroscience
A spot in the base of the brain has a love of language
Brain scans show a spot in the cerebellum attuned specifically to words, expanding on studies that point to the region's importance for language.
- Animals
Animals experience joy. Scientists want to measure it
Scientists have long focused on quantifying fear and other negative emotions in animals. Now they’re trying to measure positive feelings — and it’s a challenge.
