What's up in
sex
Q&A
Catherine Dulac Finds Brain Circuitry Behind Sex-Specific Behaviors
Catherine Dulac is overturning preconceptions about “male” and “female” instincts and opening new avenues to treating postpartum depression.
Insights puzzle
How to Design (or at Least Model) Mixed Dog Breeds
Readers simulated the genetics of dog breeding to solve a puzzle about mixed breed percentages and sexual reproduction.
Insights puzzle
How to Breed a Pomsky and Other Questions About Dogs and Sex
Solve a puzzle about mixed dog breeds, sexual reproduction and the COVID-19 pandemic.
evolution
Why Sex? Biologists Find New Explanations.
Why did sex evolve? Theories usually focus on the diversity of future generations, but some researchers find compelling explanations in the immediate benefits to individuals.
Abstractions blog
Why Evolution Reversed These Insects’ Sex Organs
Among these cave insects, the females evolved to have penises — twice. The reasons challenge common assumptions about sex.
Abstractions blog
Why Nature Prefers Couples, Even for Yeast
Some species have the equivalent of many more than two sexes, but most do not. A new model suggests the reason depends on how often they mate.
genetics
Choosy Eggs May Pick Sperm for Their Genes, Defying Mendel’s Law
The oldest law of genetics says that gametes combine randomly, but experiments hint that sometimes eggs select sperm actively for their genetic assets.
Insights puzzle
Solution: ‘Why Are There Two Sexes?’
The mathematical concept of parity and the fatal flaw of serial multiplication can help explain why having two sexes usually works better than having one or three.
molecular biology
Missing Mutations Suggest a Reason for Sex
Sex might help natural selection purge excessive mistakes from our genes.