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"For a long time, I thought becoming a scientist meant learning how to appear certain, composed, and knowledgeable. But the people I came to admire have held on to their willingness to ask questions and to be excited by what they did not yet know." #ScienceWorkingLife scim.ag/4rsIztb

An illustration of a man taking off a mask that looks like his own face. The headline reads: I thought ‘I don’t know’ signaled scientific incompetence. Now, I know different

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Dogs, like humans, may favor consonants over vowels when parsing continuous speech, according to a new Science study comparing brain activity in the two species. Learn more: scim.ag/4ryMGEo

(A) ITC values for humans and dogs, averaged over the three midline electrodes (humans: Fpz, FCz, and CPz; dogs: Fz, FCz, and Cz), and participants in the frequency spectrum between 0 and 9 Hz, including word frequency and its first three harmonics independent of syllable-level contributions (1.33, 2.67, 5.33, and 6.67 Hz), syllable frequency (4 Hz), and speech sound frequency (8 Hz). Comparable electrode placement between species is illustrated on schematic brains by the yellow dots at analogous cortical lobes, frontal (red), parietal (blue), temporal (orange), and occipital (green). (B) Estimated marginal means ± SE of word-level ITC for each condition in humans and dogs, derived from GLMMs.

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A “lab-on-a-contact lens” measures concentrations of #serotonin in tear fluid in animals and in humans in a pilot trial—offering a flexible and noninvasive tool to quantify a key marker of stress responses and behaviors. @ScienceTM scim.ag/46YzkYe

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CD1 proteins on so-called antigen-presenting cells display lipids from pathogens to T cells to drive protective immune responses, but they also trigger skin inflammation in response to some lipids. Learn more: scim.ag/47lWnMR

Illustration of an immune reaction to urushiol. The first panel shows an inflammatory rash on hands and forearms. An inset illustration shows a zoomed-in view of a T cell and an antigen-presenting cell making contact, while surrounded by smaller lipid molcules. Another inset zooms in on the contact between the cells, showing how a lipid fits into the CD1 protein on the antigen-presenting cell. A T cell receptor can be triggered by touching CD1 and the lipid it holds, but sometimes the lipid is hidden due to where it sits in the protein, so only CD1 makes contact.

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A reconfigurable helical brace can stabilize a telerobotic catheter or endoscope without obstructing blood flow, enabling telerobotic needle interventions such as drug delivery and fluid aspiration within the lungs in preclinical models. Learn more in #ScienceRobotics: scim.ag/4dMK2ow

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Science Magazine @science.org · 27/09/2026

A new initiative promises an Amazon-wide, regularly updated picture of what’s happening to plant and animal populations as development threatens one of the most species-rich parts of the world. Learn more: scim.ag/4yZbIio

Project will harness technology to track Amazon biodiversity in real time

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As the planet warms and forests burn, can we replant them with new trees that will thrive in the decades ahead? Learn more: scim.ag/3TPgT5p

Bar chart showing forest area burned in high-severity burns from 1984 to 2021. Each bar has a black dot with error bars, representing the estimated planting need and middle 50% of estimates. Since 2000, the average annual area burned in high-severity fires has increased fivefold, relative to 1984 to 1999.

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Science Magazine @science.org · 26/09/2026

Researchers suggest our ancient relatives intentionally crafted these 1.4-million-year-old spheres, perhaps for the sheer joy of creating symmetry. Learn more: scim.ag/4y6xFMt #ScienceMagArchives

Were these stone balls made by ancient human relatives trying to perfect the sphere?

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A devastating and mysterious algal bloom that hit the coast of South Australia last year, killing more than 600 different kinds of marine life, inflicted such severe damage that a famed population of the giant Australian cuttlefish might not recover. Learn more: scim.ag/4rrVhbz

One of nature’s greatest marine wonders may be about to vanish
An algal bloom has almost wiped out a unique population of giant cuttlefish—and their stunning mating swarms

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Acoustofluidic Cryo-EM is a new specimen preparation strategy that uses acoustic waves to enhance cryo-electron microscopy. Learn more in #ScienceAdvances: scim.ag/3Vuh4n7

Illustration of Acoustofluidic Cryo-EM (ACE), a specimen preparation strategy that uses acoustic waves to enhance cryo-electron microscopy. In developing ACE, Yang et al. integrated acoustofluidic manipulation into a conventional plunge-freezing workflow, preserving the structural integrity of samples while improving imaging quality. The sound waves eliminate contamination as no physical tools are needed, helping prevent damage when capturing images and ensuring a more uniform distribution of nanoparticles. ACE provides a method to improve specimen quality and imaging efficiency and expand structural studies of challenging biological systems.

Credit: Jun Huang, Ying Chen, and coauthors

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Can the new cutting-edge AI models feel pain? They at least behave as if they do, according to a recent study. The work, which has not been peer reviewed, has divided #AI researchers. scim.ag/4hHU6BA

Can an AI feel pain? It can at least act like it does
Study reignites debate over what, if anything, machines can feel

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Marine geologists have sampled and deployed sensors to the sea floor around Malta to learn what life would have been like on one of the island’s now-submerged land bridges. Learn more: scim.ag/46EFVqQ

Submerged land bridge may have helped people cross the Mediterranean

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Doing research that's crossing over into entrepreneurship? The BioInnovation Institute & Science Prize for Innovation recognizes bold researchers who are asking fundamental questions at the intersection of the life sciences and entrepreneurship. Apply by 1 November 2026: bit.ly/4y1aLWN

The image features the text "BII Science Prize for Innovation" on a white background.

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“Strengthening replication and reproducibility is not an expression of diminished confidence in science. It is an investment in science’s capacity to correct itself,” writes Jay Bhattacharya in a new #ScienceEditorial. scim.ag/3UZFXXT

"… discovery and independent verification are inseparable pillars of science." - Jay Bhattacharya, National Institutes of Health

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Learning over an extended childhood has been fundamental to survival during human evolutionary history. Researchers show how Sumatran orangutans use their 8 years of dependency to master a broad diet, necessary for independent survival. Read more in this week’s issue: scim.ag/4xDjOfh

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A new generation of radiotherapies promises a more targeted attack on cancer. Learn more on #WorldCancerResearchDay: scim.ag/3IwH8YW

An illustration shows how antibodies, peptides, and other molecules can be used to target the radioisotope to a specific type of cancer cell, which it kills by damaging its DNA. Alpha particle emitters affect a smaller number of cells (5 to 10 per particle) but do more damage, causing double-strand DNA breaks, whereas beta emitter particles affect a wider area (75 to 100 cells per particle) but cause only single-strand DNA breaks.

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Science Magazine @science.org · 23/09/2026

Thomas Jefferson’s genome has been sequenced to substantiate the idea that the president fathered children with Sally Hemings, a Black woman he enslaved. But one of Hemings’s descendants has criticized the work and withdrawn her participation in the study. Learn more: scim.ag/4iKdSxA

DNA analysis strengthens evidence that Thomas Jefferson fathered children with Sally Hemings

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The Thirty Meter Telescope has turned down Spain’s €1 billion offer to build the observatory on the island of La Palma, according to a statement from the Astrophysics Institute of the Canaries. Learn more: scim.ag/4iJOqIs

Giant telescope project rejects La Palma as backup site
U.S.-led Thirty Meter Telescope declines €1 billion Spanish offer to build the observatory on the Canary Islands

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Science Magazine @science.org · 23/09/2026

"For the first time, I realized sharing my fears and guilt didn’t mean I lacked resilience. It made the burden easier to carry." #ScienceWorkingLife scim.ag/4reDUeh

An illustration of a woman talking on the phone, with the headline: I used to keep my family life private in grad school. A natural disaster changed that

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This dolphin chased a fish until it puked—then ate the vomit. The surprising behavior, known as kleptoparasitism, marks one of the few well-documented examples of a cetacean stealing food. Learn more: scim.ag/4xDYsP7

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The new issue of #ScienceSignaling is out! Research reveals how Girdin binds to Dishevelled to promote the disassembly of cilia, experiments reveal how a T cell adaptor protein supports cytotoxic T cells by connecting with actin, and more. scim.ag/4dSEzN0

The cover shows H&E-stained ear tissue from mice.

Credit: Moore et al./Science Signaling

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Sustainable fuels and lean-burn engines can substantially reduce aircraft particulate pollution, a new #ScienceAdvances study finds. scim.ag/4y1LHi8

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The Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite is exposing humans’ effects on rivers—and challenging flood prediction models. Learn more: scim.ag/4rruNqT

Satellite reveals a world of ‘weird rivers’ shaped by humans

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"I realized I would need to figure out my postdoc personality on my own." #NationalPostdocAppreciationWeek scim.ag/4yb15sK

An illustration of man sitting at desk with scroll rising up and reflecting himself back, with text: I wasn’t sure how to be a postdoc. Here’s how I found my way

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The September 2026 issue of #ScienceRobotics is out! This month's cover depicts AthenaZero, a robot with humanlike mass and dynamic capabilities that enable it to throw, catch, and hit a baseball quickly. Learn about this research and more: scim.ag/4dzTZWg

The September 2026 Science Robotics cover. The cover image is a photograph of AthenaZero throwing a baseball.

Credit: Carolina Hubbard

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The standard immunosuppressant mycophenolic acid has unknowingly been driving the emergence of resistance mutations in the high-priority fungal pathogen #Pjirovecii for almost 2 decades across outbreaks worldwide, shows a new study in #ScienceTranslationalMedicine. scim.ag/3UUR83U

Transmission electron micrograph of a section of human lung alveolus containing Pneumocystis jirovecii.

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The first drug to lower the protein tau and slow cognitive decline created buzz earlier this year—despite puzzling data. Learn more on #WorldAlzheimersDay: scim.ag/4vGfB9K

Alzheimer’s trial results lend momentum to strategies targeting tau

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Science Magazine @science.org · 20/09/2026

AthenaZero, a robot that balances inertia and control authority, can perform dynamic tasks such as throwing, catching, and hitting a baseball with precision and power. Learn more in #ScienceRobotics: scim.ag/4j4LxSr

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In a 2025 study, researchers show the grass species felines eat tend to be jagged and covered in spikelike projections. That allows them to latch onto intestinal hairballs, the team proposes, potentially helping cats dislodge them. Learn more: scim.ag/4ntn8VB #ScienceMagArchives

Gold-covered hairballs may reveal why cats eat grass

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Science Magazine @science.org · 18/09/2026

In a new special issue, #ScienceAdvances celebrates the 100th anniversary of the 1925 paper by George Uhlenbeck and Samuel Goudsmit that proposed spin—a property of elementary particles that is responsible for the magnetic properties of matter. Learn more: scim.ag/3UXexBJ

Spheres represent the positions of atoms of strontium (violet), antimony (blue), and manganese (purple) in the crystal structure of a semimetal Sr1-y Mn1-z Sb2. The two gold cones touch at the Dirac point and represent the energy and momentum states of conducting electrons. Arrows represent the alignment of magnetic moments. The semimetal represents a class of quantum materials that can be used to create energy-saving electronics. This week’s special issue highlights similar advances in applications driven primarily by the magnetic moment spin exerts on elementary particles.

Image courtesy of Oak Ridge National Laboratory

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Science Magazine @science.org · 18/09/2026

New #ScienceAdvances research finds that Tyrannosaurus rex was warm-blooded, according to enamel isotopic data from three T. rex teeth. scim.ag/4AdOvKR

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California has reached the final stages of overhauling water policy for the entire San Francisco Bay delta for the first time in 30 years, and many stakeholders are unhappy. Learn more: scim.ag/4hxRAxL

California to spend billions on ‘visionary’ plan to boost fish habitat
But skeptics question whether effort to save San Francisco Bay delta region will work without allocating more water for nature

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"Actions that directly harm or destroy animals remain prohibited, but altering the places where they feed, shelter, or reproduce may no longer qualify as harm in the same way. This distinction makes little ecological sense," writes Charles C. Davis in a new #ScienceEditorial. scim.ag/4rpNmvG

"[Science’s] next advance will depend on … modeling how human actions shape biodiversity." Charles C. Davis, Harvard University

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An inherited genetic mutation may increase lung cancer risk among people who have never smoked, according to a new Science study. Learn more in this week’s issue: scim.ag/3Td6qQV

An inherited mutation in the EGFR gene (EGFR T790M) increases lung cancer risk. In this illustration, lungs merge with a map of the United States, reflecting the geographic enrichment of the EGFR T790M mutation. By tracing the ancestry of people carrying this mutation, researchers uncovered a shared genetic legacy extending back hundreds of years and concentrated in the southeastern United States.

Illustration: Oliver Uberti

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A new method of replacing much of the mouse cortex with human “organoids” enables studies of brain diseases in a living nervous system. Learn more: scim.ag/4cTfjGa

Human neurons flourish in mouse brains, offering a new view of neurodevelopmental disorders

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