Science
How plants evolved a molecular switch to cope with heat
As climate change drives more frequent and intense heat waves, plants face growing challenges to survive and remain productive. Researchers at VIB, Ghent University, KU Leuven and…
Hidden switch in cell division may point to new cancer treatments
When a cell gets ready to divide, it shuts down its gene-reading machinery almost entirely. For decades, the mechanism behind that shutdown was only partially understood. A new st…
Australia's lizards and snakes disappearing faster than previously thought
Australia's lizards and snakes are facing a far more precarious future than previously understood, with a new review led by Monash University researchers revealing that around 127…
Unexpected source of genetic diversity found in human sperm
Scientists have identified an unexpected source of genetic variation in human sperm that occurs earlier in sperm development than previously thought. Published in Nature, research…
From spy satellite to space telescope: The unlikely origins of NASA's Roman Space Telescope
At the heart of this next-gen space telescope lies the parts of old spy satellites.
Machine learning methods move self-driving labs closer to materials discovery at scale
Machine learning doesn't replace human intelligence, but it can outlast human endurance, which makes it a helpful tool for chemistry and materials discovery. Scientists know machi…
Africa's herbarium collections are a scientific treasure. They need to be digitized before more biodiversity is lost
Universities and biodiversity institutes have hidden treasures: their collections of pressed plant specimens. These plants have been flattened, dried and mounted on special cardbo…
Thermal anomaly discovered below Mars' south pole
Researchers have discovered a thermal asymmetry deep beneath the surface across Mars' southern hemisphere. Based on gravitational measurements that provide clues to the Red Planet…
AI designs new antibodies that pass blinded laboratory tests
Researchers affiliated with UTHealth Houston, competing under the team name Novamab AI, placed among the top five teams in the international AIntibody Challenge, a blinded, prospe…
Dry seeds preserve fully formed mitochondria, unlocking rapid energy at germination
The majority of plant seeds have the special ability to almost completely dry out and yet remain viable. While most living cells die with a 90% loss of water, cells in seeds enter…
Building Foresight for Earth Science, featuring Lindsey Jacobson
NASA’s Earth-observing satellite missions track dozens of features of a changing planet — aerosols, sea levels, land cover, cloud cover — over years and decades. Sustaining that r…
For Legionella bacteria, taking over a cell means playing by its rules
When it comes to invading healthy cells, Legionella bacteria rely on blending in rather than breaking in. New research from Van Andel Institute scientists demonstrates how a prote…
Roman telescope aims to directly image exoplanets 1,000 times fainter than current limits
The Roman Space Telescope is designed to directly image exoplanets using complex optomechanical systems developed by the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy
Roman Space Telescope Travels to SpaceX Hangar
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, encapsulated in its payload fairing, travels from the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility to the SpaceX hangar at Launch Complex 39A at …
Liquid gallium experiment confirms key flow regime inside rapidly rotating stars and planets
Since we cannot look into the interiors of stars and planets, we rely on lab experiments to replicate the physical processes that occur there. Led by the University of California,…
Genetic traces reveal river residents: 1,072 species in a bucket of water
Can DNA traces in just two liters (0.5 gallons) of water reveal how a river's biodiversity changes over the course of a year? A study by the University of Duisburg-Essen using the…
Observing the vibrations of neighboring atoms with an atomic-scale double slit
Efficiently controlling heat generation has become a major challenge as the semiconductors used in smartphones, computers and similar devices have become higher-performing and mor…
When fruits and veggies are scarce, monkeys hunt for meat
Capuchin monkeys hunt prey when fruits and vegetables become scarce, potentially mirroring the habits of human ancestors, according to a study published in PLOS One by Susana Carv…
In Chicago ERs, Extreme Heat’s Toll Goes Far Beyond the Obvious
CHICAGO—Extreme heat is filling up emergency rooms, and not just with heat stroke victims. Periods of extreme heat in Chicago in recent years were linked to more emergency depart…
Astronomers discover hot watery exoplanet destined to be swallowed by its star
A newly discovered water dominated exoplanet is in hot-water literally and figuratively, it orbits so close to its parent star it is headed to a fatal collision that will see it d…
Chagas parasite's survival trick offers antimalarial-style target
Researchers at the University of Cincinnati have identified a potential new target to prevent the spread of Chagas disease. The parasitic infection is transmitted through the bite…
Buried underwear shows land use is key to soil health
Soil is the foundation of our food supply. It stores water, carbon and nutrients and is home to a large share of the world's biodiversity. More than half of global biodiversity is…
NASA Johnson Pilots Chase Moon’s Shadow for Eclipse Science
During the Aug. 12 total solar eclipse over Europe, scientists aimed to study a long-standing mystery: why the Sun’s outer atmosphere, the corona, is far hotter than its visible s…
Did ocean motion carve Enceladus's tiger stripes?
Saturn's moon Enceladus sports a thick shell of ice surrounding a liquid water ocean. As though scraped by an enormous claw, four parallel cracks slash across its south pole. Each…