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Early multicellular organisms had two distinct types of photoreceptor cells, apparently with different functions. How these cells combined to form modern eyes turns out to be a complicated story.
The direct observation of highly localized, stable, nonlinear excitations — known as discrete breathers — at the atomic level underscores their importance in physical phenomena at all scales.
The information encoded in our genes must be copied into messenger RNAs, which will programme the protein-synthesis machinery. New results support an intriguing mechanism for ending the copying process.
The future of electronics may rest on devices that integrate other semiconductors with silicon. A means of creating tiny semiconductor pillars on a silicon surface is now demonstrated.
The discovery of a protein that stimulates cell migration and survival in damaged mouse hearts suggests a potential new approach to the treatment of heart attacks.
A small subpopulation of cells, ‘brain-cancer stem cells’, has been identified in humans. They have the exclusive ability to drive tumour formation, and could prove an effective target for therapies.
The ability to predict and modify the rate-determining steps in chemical reactions would be a boon in designing better catalysts. Technical innovations in computer simulations bring that goal closer.
Large blue butterflies are notable for their rarity and ability to dupe ants, and they are endangered. A genetic reconstruction of how social parasitism evolved among them will overturn conservation priorities.
Pure, perfectly regular crystals were believed to be essential for the efficient operation of nonlinear optical devices. Surprisingly, it now seems that disordered materials might actually perform better.
Insight into how membrane ion pumps work requires structural snapshots of various stages of their catalytic cycle. Now a fifth freeze-frame image of a calcium pump in action adds to a striking body of work on this protein.
When a break occurs in the DNA double helix, it must be dealt with rapidly. The structure of one of the cellular machines responsible is now revealed, offering insights into its impressive speed and flexibility.
Where two oppositely magnetized regions meet, there is a so-called domain wall. Under the right conditions, this wall can be made to oscillate like a pendulum, suggesting a new approach to electronics.
Will global warming cause northern forests to spread into arctic tundra? A study of black spruce suggests that the answer is complex and varies according to latitude and altitude.
In paper wasps, facial markings are cheap ‘status badges’ that would seem to be susceptible to cheating. But wasps punish those whose markings lie. Social competition is, it appears, a strong selective force.
RNA interference — RNAi for short — might provide a way to silence disease-associated genes, but problems of delivery have hampered progress. Those problems may have been solved, at least in animal studies.
How does variation in ocean-floor rocks arise from differences in the temperature of their mantle source? A new angle on the question comes from painstaking work on one of the geological wonders of the world.
