What's up in
Biology
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What We Know About Monkeypox
Even though we’ve learned a lot about this relative of smallpox, some mysteries remain due to a lack of political will.
synthetic biology
Biologists Use Genetic Circuits to Program Plant Roots
Using inserted genetic circuitry, synthetic biologists controlled the growth of plant roots for the first time.
mathematical biology
How Do Fireflies Flash in Sync? Studies Suggest a New Answer.
Field research suggests a new explanation for the synchronized flashing in fireflies and confirms that a novel form of “chimeric” synchrony occurs naturally.
biomechanics
Record-Breaking Robot Highlights How Animals Excel at Jumping
Robots can surpass the limitations on how high and far animals can jump, but their success only underscores nature’s ingenuity in making the most of what’s available.
memory
A Good Memory or a Bad One? One Brain Molecule Decides.
When the brain encodes memories as positive or negative, one molecule determines which way they will go.
immunology
Bacteria’s Immune Sensors Reveal a Novel Way to Detect Viruses
A new study reveals that bacteria can fight viruses in a surprisingly elegant way that has no known counterpart in more complex life.
The Joy of Why
Why and How Do We Dream?
Dreams are subjective, but there are ways to peer into the minds of people while they are dreaming. Steven Strogatz speaks with sleep researcher Antonio Zadra about how new experimental methods have changed our understanding of dreams.
evolution
Electric Fish Genomes Reveal How Evolution Repeats Itself
By studying how electric organs arose in different lineages of fish, scientists gain new insights into a long-standing question of evolutionary biology.
aging
Epigenetic ‘Clocks’ Predict Animals’ True Biological Age
A statistical analysis of chemical tags on DNA may help unify disparate theories of aging.