Life

Health, science, climate, and society-focused reporting.

Briefing: North America 'heat dome' left winners and losers: Study

Strategic angle: A new study reveals the ecological impact of North America's 2021 heat wave, highlighting both catastrophic and unexpected consequences.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: TESS discovers a super-Earth exoplanet orbiting nearby star

Strategic angle: Astronomers have found a new super-Earth exoplanet using TESS, located 83 light years away.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Could a recently detected ultra-high-energy neutrino be linked to new physics?

Strategic angle: Neutrinos are extremely lightweight and electrically neutral particles that rarely interact with ordinary matter, potentially carrying information about high-energy cosmic events.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Notions of 'Christendom' often miss the mark: Medieval Europe's ideas about faith and power were not so simple

Strategic angle: Exploring the complexities of faith and power in Medieval Europe beyond simplistic notions of 'Christendom'.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: ATCA Observations Probe Peculiar Pulsar Wind Nebula Vela X

Strategic angle: Astronomers utilize the Australia Telescope Compact Array to explore the enigmatic Vela X pulsar wind nebula.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: The financial crisis that quietly stunted a generation

Strategic angle: The Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s had lasting impacts on children's health in Indonesia.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Good news for wastewater irrigation: Three crops store pharmaceutical byproducts in their leaves

Farmers in water-scarce areas can safely use treated wastewater for irrigation, as certain crops can absorb and store pharmaceutical byproducts.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Scientists discover ALS protein that links DNA repair to cancer and dementia

Strategic angle: A protein tied to ALS and dementia may have a much bigger role in disease than scientists realized.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Hidden deep-sea proteins could supercharge disease tests

Strategic angle: Scientists discover resilient DNA-binding proteins in extreme environments, promising advancements in disease testing.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: A donut-shaped protein breaks apart to start bacterial cell division

Strategic angle: Researchers uncover the mechanism behind bacterial cell division involving the MraZ protein.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: NASA launches twin spacecraft to solve the mystery of Mars’ lost atmosphere

Strategic angle: Mars didn’t always look like the barren world we see today. Over billions of years, the Sun’s solar wind stripped away much of its atmosphere.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: NASA’s Curiosity rover investigates strange spiderweb ridges on Mars

Strategic angle: Curiosity rover explores unique formations that may uncover Mars' watery past.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Scared of spiders? Scientists say the real nightmare is losing them

Strategic angle: Spiders and insects are crucial for ecosystem health, yet 90% of North America's species lack conservation status.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Bird losses are accelerating across North America, particularly in farming regions where agriculture is most intensive

Strategic angle: Since the 1970s, the U.S. has lost billions of birds, with losses accelerating in areas of intensive human activity.

editorial-staff Mar 15

Life

Briefing: Crocodiles can have extra growth cycles in a year: Why this matters for estimating the age of dinosaurs

Strategic angle: New research reveals that crocodiles may experience additional growth cycles annually, impacting how we estimate the age of dinosaurs.

editorial-staff Mar 14

Life

Briefing: Not one ring but many: Antioxidant enzyme family can assemble in far more diverse ways than previously thought

Strategic angle: New research reveals the complex assembly of peroxiredoxins, crucial enzymes in managing oxidative stress.

editorial-staff Mar 14

Life

Briefing: How we turned plastic waste into vinegar: A sunlight‑powered breakthrough

Strategic angle: A groundbreaking method transforms plastic waste into vinegar using sunlight, addressing a major environmental challenge.

editorial-staff Mar 14

Life

Briefing: Deep-sea natural compound targets cancer cells through a dual mechanism

Strategic angle: A collaborative research team has uncovered a previously unknown mechanism of action of yaku'amide B, a natural product derived from deep-sea sponge.

editorial-staff Mar 14

Life

Briefing: Alaska's glacial lakes are expanding, increasing the risk of destructive outburst floods

Strategic angle: Residents near Juneau are on high alert as rising water levels signal potential flooding from glacier-dammed lakes.

editorial-staff Mar 14

Life

Briefing: Eaton fire sent a pollution wave across Los Angeles, study shows

Strategic angle: A new study reveals the 2025 Eaton fire significantly increased carbon monoxide and particulate matter levels in Los Angeles.

editorial-staff Mar 14