Life
- Brain
The color of body fat might affect how trim people are
Brown fat burns calories to keep us warm. Researchers are searching for ways to boost it to help fight obesity and diabetes.
- Life
Medicine Nobel honors discovery of how cells deal with oxygen
Three researchers figured out the chemical processes by which cells not only sense, but also cope with, differing levels of oxygen. This could lead to new medicines.
- Tech
This robot catches jellyfish with a gentle ‘hug’
A soft robotic hand gently catches jellyfish by trapping the creatures within its silicone fingers.
- Animals
Breeding has given different dogs distinct brain shapes
An analysis of the shapes of brains in different dog breeds shows how humans have altered the animals’ brain anatomy.
- Plants
Meat-eating pitcher plants feast on baby salamanders
Scientists didn’t think meat-eating plants in North America ate vertebrates. They now know differently.
- Animals
Cool Jobs: Poop investigators
Far from just being waste, poop is loaded with clues to the health, biology and behavior of whatever body produced it.
- Brain
Brain ‘ripples’ appear just before you remember something
Nerve cells in the brain’s hippocampus, a key memory center, fire together a second or two before people begin to recall an image, data now show.
- Animals
High-speed camera reveals the secrets of a legless larva’s leap
Research reveals how a blob of an insect can leap more efficiently than it crawls. Its body acts like a spring.
- Genetics
CRISPR enters its first human trials
A host of new human trials are using a gene-editing tool known as CRISPR to treat genetic diseases — from sickle cell and cancers to a blinding eye disorder.
- Life
Scientists Say: Zooxanthellae
Algae called zooxanthellae live in the tissue of coral and provide the coral with food and its color.
- Brain
Routine hits in a single football season may harm players’ brains
A group of college football players underwent brain scans after a season of play. The results suggest playing the sport could harm neural signaling.
- Animals
Scientists Say: Extinction
When the last member of a species dies, it’s gone forever. That species is extinct.
