Humans
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Health & Medicine
Screen time: Most U.S. teens overindulge
Too many 12- to 15-year olds spend hours each day doing little more than pushing buttons on the TV remote or a computer’s keyboard, a government survey finds.
By Janet Raloff -
Genetics
High-altitude help from extinct ancestors
The Tibetan plateau is high in altitude but low in oxygen. An unusual version of one gene in Tibetans' DNA helps them survive this environment. And that gene appears to have been passed along from Denisovans, a Neandertal-like ancestor.
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Brain
Choosing shocks over contemplation
Some people think being alone is unpleasant. In one new study, some found choosing to get a painful shock helped them endure being alone for 15 minutes.
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Fossils
Newly dated footprints: Oldest human tracks?
These footprints, found nearly a half-century ago, may be almost four times older than first thought, scientists now report.
By Bruce Bower -
Health & Medicine
Young blood: The elixir of youth?
Old mice show improved memory when blood from young mice circulated through their brains, a new study finds. Other studies suggest one ingredient in that young blood might be all it takes to deliver benefits.
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Microbes
The war on superbugs
Doctors and scientists are exploring ways to stem the growing global crisis of antibacterial resistance.
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Microbes
Explainer: What you can do to fight antibiotic resistance
Doctors and scientists are not the only people who can help preserve the effectiveness of life-saving antibiotics. Even patients have a role to play, as these tips show.
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Microbes
The HIV cure — that wasn’t
Immediate and aggressive drug treatment of a baby born with HIV appeared to have cured the girl. In fact, a follow-up shows, she still has the disease.
By Janet Raloff -
Microbes
Superbugs: A silent health emergency
Have antibiotics become too popular? Overusing these medicines fuels resistant germs that pose a global health threat.
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Microbes
Explainer: Where antibiotics came from
A mold proved the source of the first known antibiotic: penicillin. But chemical dyes would lead to the first antibiotics used in treating people.
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Health & Medicine
Sunlight makes pleasure chemical in the body
A day on the beach might deliver more than a tan (or sunburn). It may also release potent brain chemicals that leave people with a pleasurable feeling.
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Archaeology
Neandertal ancestor?
Fossils found in a Spanish cave have features that are a combination of Neandertals and other species. The mix suggests Neandertal roots go back even farther than scientists had suspected.