From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
- Health & Medicine
Explainer: What are proteins?
In the body, proteins act as biochemical machines to carry out the work of cells.
- Health & Medicine
Explainer: Taste and flavor are not the same
What’s behind a food’s flavor? More than what we taste, it turns out.
- Health & Medicine
Explainer: What is the vagus?
The vagus nerve runs from the brain all through the body. It controls many basic functions, including how fast the heart beats.
- Animals
Hunting hidden salamanders with eDNA
The Japanese clouded salamander is an elusive beast. To find a new population, three teens turned to high-tech methods.
- Environment
Restaurant diners may ingest extra pollutants
People who dine out have higher levels of certain potentially harmful pollutants in their bodies than do people who eat home-cooked meals, new data show.
- Health & Medicine
Scientists discover how norovirus hijacks the gut
Noroviruses make people vomit, but scientists didn’t actually know why. It now turns out that those viruses cause their misery by attacking special “tuft” cells in the gut.
- Genetics
Your DNA is an open book — but can’t yet be fully read
There are many companies that offer to read your DNA. But be prepared: They cannot yet fulfill all those promises you read in their ads.
- Animals
Orca snot leads to a whale of a science-fair project
DNA found in the mucus of orcas suggests that even though the traits of family pods may differ, these marine mammals all appear to belong to a single species.
- Health & Medicine
Owww! World’s hottest chili leads to days of severe headaches
A man ate one of the hottest peppers in the world. About a minute later, his head began pounding. See why they didn’t permanently disappear for days!
- Health & Medicine
Science-fair finding allows girl to sample a croissant
Some supplements claim they can help people with celiac disease, who cannot digest gluten. But do the pills work? One teen used science to find out.
- Materials Science
New black hair dye uses no harsh chemicals
Scientists have developed a new black-carbon-based hair dye. Instead of using damaging chemicals to dye hair, flexible flakes of carbon coat each strand.
- Chemistry
Banana plant extract can slow how fast ice cream melts
Food scientists now show that adding these tiny plant particles to ice cream may delay the rate at which this treat melts into a soupy mess.
