Just Plain WEIRD #2
The big challenge researchers face is finding ways to safely deliver the technique to human patients. Depositphotos By Chelsea Haney 2026 Jan 16– – Optogenetics has long been a powerful experimental tool, but a growing body of research suggests it may now be approaching …
Farmers during harvest season in Batad, Ifugao, Philippines. Paul Connor and the Ifugao Archaeological Project, CC BY – By Stephen Acabado, Professor of Anthropology, University of California, Los Angeles Published: 2026 Jan 15 – Indigenous communities have lived with changes to the climate …
Columbia University’s flexible-faced, lip-syncing EMO robot. Creative Machines Lab – By Ben Coxworth 2026 Jan 16 – When it comes to ultra-humanlike Westworld-style robots, one of their most defining features are lips that move in perfect sync with their spoken words. A new robot …
Approximately 58% of faculty interviewed in a national survey in 2024 reported self-censoring. PM Images/iStock/Getty Images – By Austin Sarat, William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Jurisprudence and Political Science, Amherst College Published: 2026 Jan 14 – Texas A&M University told philosophy professor Martin Peterson …
Scientists have developed engineered skin grafts that fluoresce green when certain biomarker chemicals are present in the bloodstream. Depositphotos – By Ben Coxworth 2026 Jan 14 – Blood sampling is painful and invasive, plus it only tells you what’s going on in the patient’s …
If we lose one sense maybe we can retrain other sensory pathways to pick up the lost information. Depositphotos – By Chelsea Haney 2026 Jan 12 – For millions of people, losing their sense of smell quietly reshapes daily life. Meals lose nuance, familiar …
Our solar system is mostly arranged along one plane in space, as in this not-to-scale artist’s diagram. NASA/JPL, CC BY – By Jeff Moersch, Professor of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences, University of Tennessee Published: 2026 Jan 12 Curious Kids is a series for …
A schematic illustration of Porphyromonas gingivalis bacteria (orange), the active compound in the toothpaste (blue) and a healthy microbiome at the transition between gum and tooth. PerioTrap – By Ben Coxworth 2026 Jan 09 – There could be new hope in the fight against …
Severe storms triggered flooding across the central and eastern U.S. in April 2025, including in Kentucky’s capital, Frankfort. Leandro Lozada/AFP via Getty Images – By Gary W. Yohe, Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies, Wesleyan University Published: 2026 Jan 10 – On 2026 Jan …
Po’pay’s statue in the U.S. Capitol, representing the state of New Mexico, was dedicated in 2005. Chris Maddaloni/Roll Call/Getty Images – By Peter C. Mancall, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences Published: 2026 Jan …
