Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Neuroscience
Brain patterns of haunting memories
Some fearful experiences stick with us forever. Others we brush off easily. The difference could be in which neuronal patterns are activated in our brains.
- Life
Gene makes old cells act young again
Turning on a gene called Lin28a in old, damaged tissue may help the cells heal quicker.
- Plants
In dry times, these trees invest in ants
The insects provide adequate defense by ganging up on leaf-eating caterpillars and biting their undersides until the herbivores fall off the tree.
- Life
Immune system follows circadian clock
Mice with jet lag have boosted supply of cells linked to inflammation.
- Life
Getting to know the real living dead
A look at the bacteria inside bloated cadavers finds the dead are teeming with life.
- Animals
Pink armadillos ain’t your Texas critters
It’s a real animal, the smallest armadillo species in the world. At about 100 grams, it would fit in your hands.
- Neuroscience
Monkeys control two arms in virtual reality
A new brain-computer interface has enabled movement of two virtual limbs at the same time.
- Microbes
Bacteria starved in space grow better
Given limited resources microbes in microgravity make more new cells than their counterparts on Earth.
- Paleontology
Oldest known T. Rex relative found in Utah
Researchers say the animal — named the gore king of the southwest — was an early member of the tyrannosaur family.
- Life
Newborns’ weak immunity may allow helpful bacteria to gain a foothold
Though infant immune systems raise risk of infection, they also allow good microbes into the body, study in mice shows.
- Neuroscience
Autism may be detectable in baby’s first months of life
Infants later diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder lose tendency to gaze at others’ eyes during first half-year, researchers find.
- Animals
Birds avoid the sounds of roads
The sound of cars driving down a road is enough to deter many bird species from an area.
