Science’s Breakthrough of the Year 2020: shots of hope in a pandemic-ravaged world
Swiftly developed vaccines may curb COVID-19, even as second pandemic of misinformation rages
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Read our COVID-19 research and news.
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Podcast: Breakthrough of the Year, top online news, and science book highlights
On this week’s show: We round up the best of science and science books from this year -
A Breakthrough (of the Year) crossword puzzle
Test your knowledge of general science facts and Science’s current and past top 10 annual advances -
Chemist Nancy Goroff eyes national stage despite losing race for Congress
Stony Brook University professor is leaving academia for bigger role as science advocate -
Shrine of decapitated heads suggests violence against foreigners in ancient Mexico
Victims may have been sacrificed because they were outsiders -
The coronavirus may sometimes slip its genetic material into human chromosomes—but what does that mean?
Unexpected evidence that SARS-CoV-2 can integrate its genetic material could explain puzzling diagnostic tests in recovered COVID-19 patients -
China lands its Moon rocks in Inner Mongolia
Chang’e-5’s Moon samples, first since the 1970s, will improve age dating in the Solar System -
How many scientists are LGBTQ? Federal survey delays frustrate researchers
Scientists call for National Science Foundation’s workforce surveys to tally sexual and gender minorities -
Watch a swarm of drones fly through heavy forest—while staying in formation
Approach could speed up search and rescue missions and forest surveys -
Messenger RNA gave us a COVID-19 vaccine. Will it treat diseases, too?
Targeting mRNA to organs and minimizing side effects still pose challenges to drug development -
Fossilized lightning bolts reveal when ancient storms struck
New geological dating system could show when glaciers retreated -
U.S. agency sidesteps listing monarch butterflies as endangered
Despite severe declines in their numbers, insect will not get federal protection—yet -
COVID-19 is 10 times deadlier for people with Down syndrome, raising calls for early vaccination
Extra chromosome carries key genes that may work against them -
As COVID-19 vaccines emerge, a global waiting game begins
Rich countries snapped up limited supplies, so protection will lag for others -
Mars lander spots deep layers beneath the surface, offering clues to the planet’s formation
Despite lack of large marsquakes, InSight team fixes size of crust, mantle, and core -
Watch these ‘beetlebots’ keep flying, even after crashing into poles
Beetle-inspired robot proves nimble and durable in flight -
Geoengineers inch closer to Sun-dimming balloon test
Flight in Sweden would set stage for release of small amounts of chalky dust -
3300-year-old baboon skull may tell of mysterious ancient kingdom
East African artifact may be first known treasure recovered from the “fantasy land” of Punt -
North Korea is about to exhaust its tuberculosis drug supply, experts warn
Nation already suffers from high rate of bacterial disease -
Researchers decry Trump picks for education sciences advisory board
Critics point to lack of relevant knowledge for eight members of long-ignored panel -
The Paris climate pact is 5 years old. Is it working?
Nations gather Saturday to assess progress and make new pledges -
Watch roots from different plants compete for prime real estate underground
Mathematical modeling and greenhouse studies show complex interactions keep roots productive -
Protein found in fingertip ‘capsules’ may be critical to our sense of touch
People without usherin can’t feel small texture differences -
Development of unique Australian COVID-19 vaccine halted
Unexpected immune response to HIV protein fragment in vaccine produced antibodies that could confuse screening tests for the AIDS virus -
FDA panel backs Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, paving way for emergency use in the United States
Despite a few misgivings,the advisory body said the vaccine’s strong efficacy clearly made its benefits greater than its risks
