Life
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Health & MedicineWill chicken cologne guard you from malaria?
Mosquitoes that carry malaria are repelled by the smell of chickens. In malaria country, that could make these birds a human’s best friend.
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EarthOxygen-rich air emerged super early, new data show
Scientists had thought animals were slow to emerge because they would have needed oxygen-rich air to breathe. A new study finds that plentiful oxygen may have developed early. So animals may have been late on the scene for another reason.
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Health & MedicineZika can damage the brains of even adults
The Zika virus can damage a developing baby’s brain. The infection can also kill off an important type of cells in adult brains, a new mouse study finds.
By Meghan Rosen -
ChemistryGot milk? Roach milk could be a new superfood
Scientists have just figured out the recipe for cockroach milk. And that could be a first step toward making it part of the human diet. Yum!
By Dinsa Sachan -
ArchaeologyThe first farmers were two groups, not one
The humans that began farming 10,000 years ago in the Fertile Crescent may have been two cultures living side-by-side.
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GeneticsWolf species shake-up
A genetic study says red wolves and eastern wolves may really be mixtures of coyotes and gray wolves, not distinct species.
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GeneticsHow fake sugar can lead to overeating
Scientists have found that fruit flies and mice eat more after consuming food laced with a popular fake sugar.
By Dinsa Sachan -
EnvironmentSomething in plastics may be weakening kids’ teeth
The body can confuse some pollutants for a natural hormone. Researchers in France now find such pollutant exposures in childhood may lead cells to make defective tooth enamel.
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EnvironmentNon-scents: Pollution can confuse pollinators’ sniffers
New research uses computers to predict how much longer it takes bees and other pollinating insects to sniff out lunch in a polluted environment.
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LifePlants, animals adapt to city living
Cities have turned into experiments in evolution for both plants and animals, from the taste of clover to the stickiness of lizards’ toes.
By Susan Milius -
GeneticsScientists Say: DNA sequencing
All of us have our own individual DNA. Now, scientists can determine what each individual strand is made of — a process called DNA sequencing.
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Health & MedicineEnd of Latin America’s Zika epidemic is in sight
A computer simulation suggests the Zika epidemic in Latin America is peaking and may not strike hard again for up to three decades.
By Meghan Rosen