Take a small sample of human intestine, grind it up and soak it in a digestive enzyme solution, pipette the mixture onto a polymer scaffold and implant it into the abdominal cavity of a mouse. A few weeks later, you’ll have a tiny segment of fully functioning human gut. Image: euthman
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Is evolution possible without reproduction? Bacteria living hundreds of metres below the seafloor carry more genetic changes than their peers nearer the surface – even though the deep microbes are unlikely to reproduce and undergo natural selection in its traditional sense. Image: cesarharada.com
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A spell of severe global warming 55 million years ago was triggered by not one but two injections of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere—and the rate of increase suggests that the ancient warming event may hold important lessons for what to expect with today’s climate change. Image: NASA Earth Observatory
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Predators may have played a big role in many of the biggest leaps forward in the history of life, from the origin of animals to the evolution of skeletons. Predation may even have helped shape the evolution of humanity itself, driving us to become ever more intelligent. Image: uravms
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It’s not just great minds that think alike. Dozens of the genes involved in the vocal learning that underpins human speech are also active in some songbirds. And knowing this suggests that birds could become a standard model for investigating the genetics of speech production – and speech disorders. Image: Adrian S Jones
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