Evolution

Grandparents are a majority of the pandemic’s death toll

A related lineage’s explosive growth leaves just one descendant today

The sea squirt relative demonstrates that sometimes less is more: losing genes can be adaptive

Our much maligned cousins made sophisticated ornaments and probably had language

Yet the unfit creatures survive, challenging our long-held view of evolution

For billions of years Earth was quiet. Then life got loud

The synchronized dance of sulfur mollies is not only mesmerizing to watch but also confusing to predators

A common solution is emerging in two different fields: developmental biology and neuroscience

Habitat degradation, low genetic variation and declining fertility are setting Homo sapiens up for collapse 

The Miller-Urey experiment showed that the conditions of early Earth could be simulated in a glass flask. New research finds the flask itself played an underappreciated, though outsize, role.

It may force energy shifts to repair and maintenance, which could slow aging and make us more available to care for younger generations

Synapse genes help cells to communicate in a sponge’s digestive chambers