Highlights

ASTROPHYSICS

Signs of new worlds

Gravitational waves could be used to detect exoplanets in close orbit around their parent star

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OCEANOGRAPHY

Sources of methane under the sea

Two thousand craters releasing greenhouse gas found off the Brazilian coast

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HEALTH

Early-term births on the rise

In 2015, 40% of babies were born before reaching biological maturity, partly because of elective cesarean sections

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EVOLUTION

A theory in motion

Research that looks beyond the gene suggests new directions for understanding how species diversify

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Publications

A wider target audience

Major publisher’s acquisition of manuscript submission system makes waves in scientific journals market

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ENVIRONMENT

Life goes on

Environmental legislation helps reconnect Atlantic Forest fragments in agricultural regions across Brazil

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Funding

Reaping dividends

Investment in research has increased farm productivity in São Paulo and generated economic returns for the state

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INTERVIEW

Antonio Sérgio Petrilli: A multifaceted physician

Pediatric oncologist Antonio Sérgio Petrilli describes how he built and now runs one of Brazil’s leading centers for research and treatment of childhood cancer

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COVER

Pesticides in the balance

Debate stirs over proposed regulations on pesticides—the mainstay of large-scale farming but a hazard to the environment and the health of rural communities

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Archaeology

Neanderthal mother, Denisovan father

A 13-year-old girl who lived 90,000 years ago in what is now southwestern Siberia is the first described case of a direct descendant of two distinct archaic human groups

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Geology

Continuous expansion of the Amazon River

The Amazon River is still expanding as it captures water from the Orinoco River, which flows through Colombia and Venezuela

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Arts

The evolution of painting according to physics

A computer algorithm has provided a numerical quantification of the changing visual characteristics in paintings over the last thousand years

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UV radiation

When visiting the Atacama Desert, use sunscreen

Ultraviolet radiation in the Atacama Desert is higher than anywhere else on Earth

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Genetics

The quest for a universal flu vaccine

Sections of DNA are equal across all strains of the virus, making them good candidates for a potential vaccine against all varieties of influenza

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Economy

US investment in research grows in 2017

In 2017, the United States government invested US$118.3 billion in research and development

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