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Missing Mutations Suggest a Reason for Sex
Sex might help natural selection purge excessive mistakes from our genes.
Cell Atlases Reveal Biology’s Frontiers
New techniques expose unexpected diversity within seemingly uniform tissues.
How Nature Solves Problems Through Computation
The evolutionary biologist Jessica Flack seeks the computational rules that groups of organisms use to solve problems.
Can Microbes Encourage Altruism?
If gut bacteria can sway their hosts to be selfless, it could answer a riddle that goes back to Darwin.
Moonlighting Genes Evolve for a Venomous Job
An unexpected mechanism allows wasps to rapidly co-opt genes for new toxic functions.
The Thorny Truth About Spine Evolution
A definitive explanation for why plants evolved spines remains elusive, and human biases compound the problem.
Sylvia Earle Is Not Done Exploring
The legendary marine biologist discusses why she’s excited about the coming era of ocean science, the shortsightedness of maritime exploitation and diving in the Arctic in her 80s.
Wanted: More Data, the Dirtier the Better
The computational immunologist Purvesh Khatri embraces messy data as a way to capture the messiness of disease. As a result, he’s making elusive genomic discoveries.
A Theory of Reality as More Than the Sum of Its Parts
New math shows how, contrary to conventional scientific wisdom, conscious beings and other macroscopic entities might have greater influence over the future than do the sum of their microscopic components.