Weekly Headlines (excerpts)

1. Proposed lithium mine in Serbia triggers publication dispute

Mining company scientists demand retraction of paper claiming environmental contamination

BY CATHLEEN O’GRADY  30 AUG 2024 

2. Earthworms have ‘completely scrambled’ genomes. Did that enable their ancestors to leave the sea?

Chaotic rearrangements of chromosomes may have helped leeches swim into fresh water and other worms wriggle onto land

BY CHRISTIE WILCOX  30 AUG 2024 

3. New, scientist-run virus database vows to be transparently run and simple to use

Pathoplexus is starting with sequences for Ebola strains and two other risky viruses

BY JON COHEN  29 AUG 2024 

4. Bacteria use ‘crazy molecular mechanism’ to fight viruses

Made-to-order gene could be so toxic that cells only assemble it in emergencies

BY MITCH LESLIE  29 AUG 2024 

5. News at a glance: AI’s racist bias, ice core viruses, and elusive dark matter

The latest in science and policy

BY SCIENCE NEWS STAFF  29 AUG 2024 

6. An ancient gene gives spiders their teeny waistlines

Researchers identify gene responsible for the arachnids’ signature hourglass shape

BY PHIE JACOBS  29 AUG 2024 

7. Head-banging bumble bees bite flowers to shake loose more pollen

Slow-motion videos reveal how chomping down on flowers helps buzzing bees transmit vibrations

BY ALICE SUN  29 AUG 2024 

8. Can dumping seaweed on the sea floor cool the planet? Some scientists are skeptical

BY WARREN CORNWALL  29 AUG 2024 

9. Russia set to cut research spending by 25%

As government spending on Ukraine war surges, other areas suffer

BY EUGENE GERDEN  29 AUG 2024 

10. New NSF rule requires tribal approval for research affecting their interests

Many see the change as long overdue but expect new burdens on researchers and tribes

BY JEFFREY MERVIS  28 AUG 2024 

11. AI makes racist decisions based on dialect

Large language models strongly associated negative stereotypes with African American English

BY CATHLEEN O’GRADY  28 AUG 2024 

12. Bumble bees lose their sense of smell after heat waves

As temperatures rise, this phenomenon could threaten crops that rely on these pollinators

BY RODRIGO PÉREZ ORTEGA   27 AUG 2024 

13. Alaskan snow crab fishery, walloped by climate change, may never fully recover

After the valuable fishery’s dramatic collapse, a new analysis suggests an uncertain future

BY ERIK STOKSTAD  27 AUG 2024 

14. For men only? Lack of women winners for million-euro science prize draws protests

Critics says the new Frontiers Planet Prize for research to keep Earth habitable perpetuates old inequities

BY MEREDITH WADMAN  27 AUG 2024 

15. When maize screams, beans listen: How the Three Sisters crop trio repels pests

Scientists are teasing out the benefits of intercropping, but getting the right mix of plants is key

BY ELIZABETH PENNISI  27 AUG 2024 

16. Hunt for dark matter particles bags nothing—again

The massive LUX-ZEPLIN detector leaves few hiding places for hypothetical particles called WIMPs

BY ADRIAN CHO  26 AUG 2024 

17. Confused about the mpox outbreaks? Here’s what’s spreading, where, and why

With three virus variants on the move in different populations, “it keeps getting more complicated by the day”

 BY KAI KUPFERSCHMIDT  24 AUG 2024