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Genomics
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Shrinking Bat DNA and Elastic Genomes
Species gain and shed startling amounts of DNA as they evolve, and even genomes that look stable churn furiously. What does it mean?
A Map of Human History, Hidden in DNA
The computational biologist John Novembre uses our genetic code to rewrite the history of humanity.
Evolution Runs Faster on Short Timescales
Examine evolution over the course of years or centuries, and you’ll find that it progresses much more quickly than it does over geologic time.
Why Some Genetic Miscues Are Helpful
A new look at the reasons why organisms missing pairs of genes sometimes do much better than normal.
Genetic Architects Untwist DNA’s Turns
Researchers have used the gene-editing tool CRISPR to manipulate the way that DNA coils up inside the cell — another step in the quest to understand how the genome’s 3-D structure impacts its function.
Giant Genetic Map Shows Life’s Hidden Links
In a monumental set of experiments, spread out over nearly two decades, biologists removed genes two at a time to uncover the secret workings of the cell.
In Newly Created Life-Form, a Major Mystery
Scientists have created a synthetic organism that possesses only the genes it needs to survive. But they have no idea what roughly a third of those genes do.
Below Our Feet, a World of Hidden Life
The soil teems with billions of hidden microbes. Researchers have begun to catalog how these organisms are changing the world.
Networks Reveal the Connections of Disease
Disease is the result of failure somewhere along the line in a complex dance of biological components. Now statistical physicists are using enormous databases of medical records to study connections between illnesses.