Mice turning tiny steering wheels to move shapes on a screen have helped scientists produce the first brain-wide map of decision-making at single-cell resolution in a mammal. In two Nature papers published Sept. 3, an international team of 22 groups, co-led by three Princeton University neuroscience labs, charted the activity of more than 600,000 neurons as mice performed a decision-making task. The resulting dataset offers an unprecedented view of how distributed neural networks work together across the brain to guide behavior.

University of Oklahoma researcher Dr. Alexandra Bentz has received a prestigious National Science Foundation Early Career Award to investigate how mother birds use testosterone to chemically "communicate" environmental conditions to their unborn offspring, potentially preparing them for their future environments.

A powerful new particle detector, sPHENIX, just passed a critical test in its goal to decipher the ingredients of the early universe. The detector made a key measurement that proves it has the precision to help piece together the primordial properties of quark-gluon plasma.

New research from Michigan State University reveals that photorespiration – long considered a wasteful process – is essential for producing a crucial nutrient for preventing birth defects.

For the first time, scientists have measured how much carbon flows through photorespiration to make folates, a class of compounds that includes vitamin B9 – known for its importance as a prenatal vitamin. According to the study, led by MSU researcher Berkley Walker, about 6 percent of the carbon absorbed by plants is used to make folates. That number plummets by fivefold when photorespiration is suppressed.  

These findings, published in Nature Plants, could help scientists engineer plants to boost production of the nutrient important for human health. They also shed light on how a high-carbon dioxide world caused by climate change could make plants less nutritious.

Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve, a popular Hawai’i snorkeling destination that attracts nearly a million annual visitors, underwent a remarkable and rapid recovery when tourism ceased during the 2020 pandemic.

In the world’s cold and snowy regions, shorter and warmer winters are one of the most conspicuous consequences of climate change.

Rice University biosciences professor Matthew Bennett has received a $1.99 million grant from the National Science Foundation to lead research on engineered bacterial consortia that could form the basis of biological computing systems. The four-year project will also involve co-principal investigators Kirstin Matthews, Caroline Ajo-Franklin and Anastasios Kyrillidis from Rice along with Krešimir Josić from the University of Houston. The research team aims to develop platforms that integrate microbial sensing and communication with electronic networks, paving the way for computing systems constructed from living cells instead of traditional silicon-based hardware.

A new MIT study in Cell of 3.5 million cells from more than 100 human brains finds that Alzheimer’s progression—but also resilience to disease—depends on preserving epigenomic stability.

The Kavli Foundation and the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) have announced the latest recipients of funding under their joint initiative to explore how nervous systems function and evolve in dynamic natural environments. These projects will study how brains adapt to a changing world—linking genes, cells, behavior & ecosystems. This marks a continued commitment to supporting bold, interdisciplinary research at the intersection of neuroscience, biology, and ecology.