Science

Side by side of mouse embryos. The one on the left appears to be developing normally, but the one on the right has an extra pair of legs.
Genetics
How turning off one gene causes mice to grow 6 legs
A study of embryo development in mice led to the creation of a mutant mouse fetus with an extra pair of legs in place of genitals.
Kristin Houser
A man in a suit stands next to a robotic arm with computer-brain interfaces on a stage under blue lighting.
Big Tech
In a future with brain-computer interfaces like Elon Musk’s Neuralink, we may need to rethink freedom of thought
In a future with more “mind reading,” thanks to computer-brain interfaces, we may need to rethink freedom of thought.
Parker Crutchfield
Oceans
Artificial reef designed by MIT engineers could protect marine life, reduce storm damage
An MIT team is hoping to fortify coastlines with “architected” reefs engineered to mimic the wave-buffering effects of natural reefs.
Jennifer Chu | MIT News Office
Two photos of thylacines and a dingo.
CRISPR
CRISPR is helping “de-extinct” the Tasmanian tiger
Kristin Houser
A water-saving cliff.
Climate Crisis
What Arizona and other drought-ridden states can learn from Israel’s pioneering water strategy
Sharon B. Megdal and Clive Lipchin and Gabriel Eckstein
A series of images showing different parts of the human body including human organs.
Biology
Scientists grow “human-ish” organs in pigs for the first time
Kristin Houser
A swarm of wild bees on the trunk of a tree.
Animals
The underappreciated benefits of wild bees
Ula Chrobak | Knowable Magazine
a close up of astrocytes, shown as red streaks, in the brains of mice
Neuroscience
Scientists discover a new kind of brain cell
Kristin Houser
An ant is sitting on a piece of glass, attracted by honey.
Biology
Australian ant honey inhibits tough pathogens, new research shows
Nural Cokcetin and Kenya Fernandes and Danny Ulrich and Andrew Dong and Dee Carter
The first clock on display in a museum.
Physics
The physics of why the first clock in America failed
Ethan Siegel
Aerial view, Great Barrier Reef
Oceans
2023 report on Great Barrier Reef: “The story is more complicated than the headlines.”
David Wachenfeld and Daniela Ceccarelli and Mike Emslie
A white toilet with a blue background, featuring a slippery toilet bowl.
3D Printing
Ultra slippery toilet bowl stays clean forever
Kristin Houser
A picture of a rice plant and a picture of a rice plant.
Biology
Scientists bioengineer plants to have an animal-like immune system
Peter Rogers