NIH letters asking about undisclosed foreign ties rattle U.S. universities
Investigation prompted by fears that other countries are exploiting open-door policies in the United States".
Metallurgy, Chemicals
Warming oceans are hurting seafood supply—and things are getting worse
Fisheries’ productivity has plummeted by as much as 35% in some places".
Corn and other important crops can now be gene edited by pollen carrying CRISPR
Syngenta’s new method could transform difficult-to-edit plants".
CRISPR offshoot still makes mistakes editing DNA, raising concerns about its medical use
A “base editor” that has great promise needs an upgrade".
Vaccine opponents attack U.S. science panel
Meetings of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine committee have become the latest front in a national battle over immunization".
Measuring earthquake damage with cellphone sensors and determining the height of the ancient Tibetan Plateau
On this week’s show: cheap sensors that can monitor a building’s structural integrity after an earthquake, and a new method to determine the paleoelevation of the Tibetan Plateau".
There’s an arms race going on in this bird nest. Scientists are uncovering how each side fights back
Deadbeat birds duke it out with cuckolded parents".
Humans are wiping out chimpanzee cultures
Great ape groups living with more human influence show fewer distinct behaviors".
How a school of fish is like a rubber band
A simple experiment describes animal swarms as materials".
Q&A: Why Iranian conservationists are facing ‘ludicrous’ spying charges
Ecologist David Laylin urges release of eight jailed colleagues".
The war on ‘prediabetes’ could be a boon for pharma—but is it good medicine?
A third of Americans are considered prediabetic—but many may be better off without treatment".
The Black Death may have transformed medieval societies in sub-Saharan Africa
New evidence questions the assumption that plague bacterium didn’t cross the Sahara".
U.S. Senate Republicans hold rare climate hearing, and more might be coming
Global warming gets bipartisan recognition from leaders of energy panel".
Amoebalike creatures form digestive ‘fronts’ to consume their prey
Communal eating may help Placozoa feast faster".
Has a second person with HIV been cured?
“London patient” also has long-term disappearance of virus after stem cell transplant".
Q&A: New light pollution tracking tool is a physicist’s bright idea
Christopher Kyba wants to enable anyone to easily analyze changes in night light".
Clues that the medieval plague swept into sub-Saharan Africa and evidence humans hunted and butchered giant ground sloths 12,000 years ago
On this week’s show: how the Black Death may have transformed medieval societies in sub-Saharan Africa, and evidence for human involvement in the extinction of megafauna like giant sloths".
Men get larger first NIH grants, but is the news all bad for female scientists?
Differences shrink for awards that directly support an investigator’s own research projects".
Genetically engineered immune cells wipe out lupus in mice
Chimeric antigen receptor–T cell therapy—already approved for some cancers—might help human patients with the autoimmune disorder".