Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Microbes
Protecting the planet
Catharine “Cassie” Conley has the coolest job title at NASA: She’s the agency’s planetary protection officer. (The best title used to be “director of the universe,” but a reconfiguration a few years back eliminated that job description, she says.)
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- Genetics
Genetic mutations may explain a brain cancer’s tenacity
DNA damage may transform adult cells in glioblastoma, making the malignancy harder to kill.
- Neuroscience
Drug helps put bad memories to rest
A brain injection before sleep aids fearful mice — and might lead to a PTSD treatment strategy.
- Neuroscience
Teens can keep their cool to win rewards
An unexpected experimental result suggests adolescent impulsivity is not inevitable.
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- Animals
Early arthropod had a fancy brain
A 520-million-year-old fossil of a segmented animal shows that sophisticated central nervous systems are surprisingly ancient.
- Life
Research in cell communication system wins 2012 chemistry Nobel
G protein-coupled receptors relay messages from other cells and the environment into the cell's interior.
- Life
Pulsing blob makes memories sans brain
Slime molds create a GPS navigation system based on their own gooey trails.
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- Life
2012 medicine Nobel honors research on reprogramming adult cells
John Gurdon and Shinya Yamanaka share this year's prize.
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