In biology textbooks and beyond, the human genome and DNA therein typically are taught in only one dimension. While it can be helpful for learners to begin with the linear presentation of how stretches of DNA form genes, this oversimplification undersells the significance of the genome's 3D structure. [...]
A new microchip invented by Scripps Research scientists can reveal how a person's antibodies interact with viruses—using just a drop of blood. The technology offers researchers faster, clearer insights that could help accelerate vaccine development and antibody discovery. [...]
A team of researchers in France are building on fundamental experimental research undertaken in the Ukrainian Chornobyl exclusion zone with a new project in the Japanese Fukushima Prefecture to further our understanding of what it means for animals to live and reproduce in radioactive environments. [...]
Despite a warming climate, bone-chilling winter cold can grip parts of the U.S. In a study appearing in Science Advances, researchers found that two specific patterns in the polar vortex, a swirling mass of cold air high in the stratosphere, steer extreme cold to different regions of the country. One pattern drives Arctic air into the Northwest U.S., the other into the Central and Eastern areas. [...]
Cleaning products, candles, cribs, and cosmetics are just a few of the common household items that emit formaldehyde, a colorless, odorless chemical that, when present in the air at levels higher than 0.1 parts per million, has been found to be a risk to human health. [...]
Spreading wildfires forced the evacuation on Friday of part of the famed Grand Canyon, with the US National Park Service appealing for visitors to stay calm. [...]
The histories of sled dogs and humans in the Arctic have been intricately linked for thousands of years, so it is no surprise that the migration patterns of these dogs mirror those of humans through the Arctic. Sled dogs have assisted humans with the difficult tasks of traversing through harsh environments and transporting heavy materials and food, ultimately playing an important role in survival. However, many breeds of sled dog, like the Siberian husky, Alaskan malamute and Samoyed, have now mostly transitioned out of their traditional roles and into the role of pets and are often mixed with other breeds. [...]
When the news started to spread on July 1, 2025, about a new object that was spotted from outside our solar system, only the third of its kind ever known, astronomers at Michigan State University—along with a team of international researchers—turned their telescopes to capture data on the new celestial sighting. [...]
In an ideal world, every piece of food we eat would be free of pathogens at all times. In the real world, though, where 600 million people contract a foodborne illness every year, this just isn't the case. In fact, it's impossible—microbes are just too ubiquitous, and food systems are too complex to eliminate them entirely. [...]
A new Europe-focused study reveals that polyethylene (PE), the most widely used packaging material in Europe, has lower life cycle global warming potential (GWP)—often used to assess greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—than conventional packaging alternatives, such as paper, metals, and glass, in most applications. The finding arrives as the European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) came into force in February 2025, offering policymakers valuable insights for work on delegated acts that could directly or indirectly lead to the substitution of plastic packaging by alternatives. [...]
Certain migratory species of sharks may remain swimming and feeding in Atlantic Ocean waters in areas of the northeast coast for longer periods of time later into fall before they head toward southern waters. Led by researchers in the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) at Stony Brook University, the study tracked six shark species over five years by way of tagging them and acoustically tracking their movement. [...]
An international research team has deciphered a mechanism of the evolutionary arms race in human cells. The findings provide insights into how mobile elements in DNA hijack cellular functions—and how cells can defend themselves against this in order to prevent conditions such as tumor formation or chronic inflammation. [...]
Many of us have wondered what a landscape we see in a modern photograph might have looked like centuries ago. This question is especially intriguing when we know that the scenery has been radically transformed by human intervention over the past centuries. [...]
A new report from the California Policy Lab at UCLA shows promising early results from Los Angeles County's Homelessness Prevention Unit (HPU). The report found that people in the HPU program were 71% less likely to enter a homeless shelter or have contact with street outreach teams within 18 months, compared to similar high-risk people who didn't enroll. [...]
The European Space Agency (ESA) successfully established a transmission-reception optical link with NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment onboard its Psyche mission, located 265 million kilometers away, using two optical ground stations developed for this purpose in Greece. [...]
Wildfires have spread across the planet for millennia, but they are increasing as the climate warms. Decimated forests, depleted crops, and destroyed buildings are the hallmark of wildfire devastation. Another is the effect on air quality and even the entire climate system. Researchers at Georgia Tech offer solutions for not only surviving—but also benefiting from—fire. [...]
A groundbreaking analysis of 750,000 household records by Heriot-Watt University reveals Black families accepted as statutorily homeless are less than half as likely to gain social housing as their white counterparts. [...]
New research has found increasing levels of artificial sweeteners in wastewater treatment plants, with downstream impacts on the environment. [...]
In many countries, there is an academic cheating crisis with students misusing artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT to write essays, dissertations and other assignments. According to new research, certain personality traits make some students more likely to pass off AI-generated work as their own. [...]
The ATLAS collaboration finds evidence of Higgs-boson decays to muons and improves sensitivity to Higgs-boson decays to a Z boson and a photon. [...]
Neutrinos are elementary particles that are predicted to be massless by the standard model of particle physics, yet their observed oscillations suggest that they do in fact have a mass, which is very low. A further characteristic of these particles is that they only weakly interact with other matter, which makes them very difficult to detect using conventional experimental methods. [...]
A new journal article by a researcher at the University of Manchester offers insight into how artificial intelligence (AI) is portrayed in leading newspapers worldwide, revealing a more nuanced and critical approach than previously assumed. [...]
On July 11, 2022, the James Webb Space Telescope finished its commissioning and commenced science operations. In the three years since, the powerful infrared space telescope has delivered on its promise. It's looked back in time and surprised us with the galaxies it found. It's directly-imaged exoplanets and studied the atmospheres of others. Among this and all of its other science, it's delivered a stream of stunning images. [...]
The story of Great Lakes whitefish is not a happy one, state fish biologist Stephen Lenart warned on July 10, but it needs to be told as their numbers decline. [...]
Coordination nanosheets are a unique class of two-dimensional (2D) materials that are formed by coordination bonds between planar organic ligands and metal ions. These 2D nanomaterials are increasingly utilized in energy storage, electronic devices, and as electrode-based catalysts due to their excellent electronic, optical, redox properties, and catalytic activity. [...]
Plant phototropism—directional growth in response to light—serves as a key adaptive mechanism, optimizing photosynthesis and development. Central to this process is phototropin 1 (phot1), a primary blue light photoreceptor that mediates light perception and subsequent phototropic responses. While downstream signaling pathways of phot1 have been well characterized, the upstream regulators of its kinase activity in light responses have remained elusive—until now. [...]
NASA has selected three instruments to travel to the moon, with two planned for integration onto an LTV (Lunar Terrain Vehicle) and one for a future orbital opportunity. [...]
Artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT are notorious for being power-hungry. To tackle this challenge, a team from the Center for Optics, Photonics and Lasers (COPL) has come up with an optical chip that can transfer massive amounts of data at ultra-high speed. As thin as a strand of hair, this technology offers unrivaled energy efficiency. [...]
A new study by an international team of researchers has revealed the huge role Indian Ocean fisheries play in feeding the world and supporting nutritional security. [...]
Have you ever stopped by the grocery store on your way to a dinner party to grab a bottle of wine? Did you grab the first one you saw, or did you pause to think about the available choices and deliberate over where you wanted your gift to be from? [...]
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