Neuroscie
Umbilical Cord DNA May Predict Future Metabolic Health Risks
Summary: DNA changes in umbilical cord blood may help predict which children are at higher risk for future health issues like diabetes, liver disease, and stroke. Researchers analyzed chemical tags…
Infant Social Skills Thrive Despite Hardship
Summary: A large international study finds that babies living in insecure conditions, including as refugees, display key social skills on par with children raised in more stable environments. Using eye-tracking…
AI Still Falls Short in Understanding Human Social Interactions
Summary: Humans significantly outperform AI models in interpreting dynamic social interactions, a skill critical for technologies like autonomous vehicles and assistive robots. In a new study, participants reliably judged short…
Oxytocin Powers Altruistic Responses via Parallel Brain Circuits
Summary: A new study reveals that mice instinctively display rescue-like behaviors toward anesthetized peers, offering powerful evidence that prosociality may be hardwired in mammals. Researchers identified oxytocin as a key…
Life
Nature
Newfound bat skeletons are the oldest on record
Two fossilized bat skeletons unearthed in western Wyoming represent a new species and are the oldest set of bat bones yet discovered, researchers say. The incredibly complete fossils of Icaronycteris…
Astronomy
Multi-spacecraft radio observations trace the heliospheric magnetic field
Overview of a type III burst observed by four spacecraft. (a) Dynamic spectra. (b) Time profiles at four frequencies with intensity scaled to 1 au. (c) Intensity peaks from panel…
NASA’s EZIE mission captures ‘first light’
This artist’s concept shows the three CubeSats of NASA’s EZIE mission flying in formation to study electrical currents in Earth’s atmosphere associated with auroras. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL NASA’s EZIE…
The sun’s natural gravitational lensing is more powerful than you thought
A collection of gravitational lensing taken with the Euclid telescope. Credit: ESA Let’s turn the sun into a telescope. In fact, we don’t have to do any work—we just have…