Microbes
- Ecosystems
Cool Jobs: Science deep beneath the waves
These scientists probe the sea’s depths, its strange inhabitants, the movement of water and how life evolves in extremes.
- Life
Scientists Say: Biofilm
When times get tough, some microbes like to stick together. They form a mass stuck to a surface, called a biofilm.
- Health & Medicine
Your gut’s germs may decide whether white bread or whole wheat is best — for you
Surprise! Gut microbes may determine how your body responds to starches in the diet.
- Chemistry
World’s deepest zoo harbors clues to extraterrestrial life
Scientists have found a wide range of life deep below Earth’s surface. The discoveries could help inform our search for life on other planets.
- Animals
Scientists Say: Extremophile
Some species can survive high heat, freezing cold or other extreme environments. Scientists call these organisms extremophiles.
- Chemistry
New rules point scientists toward next-gen germ-killers
Shape and other features help germ-killing drugs make it through barriers to enter bacteria. Knowing how they do this could lead to more and better better antibiotics.
- Genetics
Cool Jobs: New tools to solve crimes
Future investigators may identify criminals by the microbes they leave behind or by using DNA-like evidence from strands of their hair.
- Health & Medicine
Plant extract mutes germs to fight infections
A plant extract prevents the aggressive behavior seen in some germs. Using it could fight the development of most bladder infections, a teen’s research suggests.
- Microbes
Tweaked germs glow to pinpoint buried landmines
Finding landmines could become much safer with a new technology. It uses genetically modified bacteria that glow under laser light.
- Animals
These killer whales exhale sickening germs
A group of endangered killer whales are exhaling disease-causing germs. Researchers worry these microbes could make the animals sick.
- Science & Society
Will we know alien life when we see it?
The hunt is on for extraterrestrials. But recognizing them may require some wiggle room in what we define as being alive.
- Earth
Keeping space missions from infecting Earth and other worlds
Scientists are always looking for ways to stop Earthly microbes from polluting other planets. The same goes for bringing bits of other planets back to Earth.
