Opinion: As human–AI interdependence deepens, could they form an integrated evolutionary individual, subject to collective selection? Explore this perspective in PNAS Front Matter: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #AI #evolution #singularity #ChatGPT #LLM #MajorEvolutionaryTransition

Bats are known for using echolocation to navigate and hunt, but they can also see. A study explores how bats integrate echo information with visual information to hunt more efficiently than possible with either sense alone. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Meet “flexicles,” self-propelling particles made up of rod-shaped colloids confined within flexible vesicles. Flexicles could form the basis of cell-like robots that could act as individuals or as a collective. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

#Genes offer clues about how the ability to pay #attention differed among ancient #hominins. In PNAS Journal Club: www.pnas.org/post/journal... #hominin #Neanderthal #Denisovan #brain #amygdala #thalamus #AttentionSpan

The Spotted Ratfish, Hydrolagus colliei, is one of a group of fishes called chimaeras whose males sport a unique facial feature: the tenaculum, a club-shaped, cartilaginous appendage covered in teeth. A study investigates these extraoral teeth. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Mosquitoes—and humans—hear distortion products when perceiving two tones at different frequencies simultaneously. Male mosquitoes use distortion products to find mates, and the tones could also be used to improve technological signal detection. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

In this issue: Migration and senescence in greater flamingos, how the stretchiness of worms could point to treatments for human kidney disease, and early Holocene barley foraging in Central Asia. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Reducing poverty requires global collaboration and evidence-based solutions. Discover interdisciplinary research from @pnas.org and PNAS Nexus that advances global poverty reduction and equitable growth. Explore the SDG Goal 1 Research Collection: www.pnas.org/topic/sdg-1-...

One of the most-viewed PNAS articles in the last week is “9,000-year-old barley consumption in the foothills of central Asia.” Explore the article here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... For more trending articles, visit ow.ly/Me2U50SkLRZ.

From #ClimateChange & #AI to #PublicHealth, #Sustainability & #SocialSciences, @pnasnexus.org publishes open-access, interdisciplinary research with global impact. 🌍 Explore urgent questions at the science–society intersection: academic.oup.com/pnasnexus #OpenAccess #ScienceForSociety

During the Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event, around 183 million years ago, the oceans lost oxygen and the climate warmed rapidly, causing widespread extinction. A model suggests one cause: microbes releasing at least 4,700 gigatons of methane. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Elemental abundances in rocks are often used as proxies for atmospheric oxygen levels, but a study of the history of uranium in the 2.06-billion-year-old Kuetsjärvi Volcanic Formation in Russia complicates the story. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

In squash, the nick shot is nearly impossible to return—the ball hits the corner and doesn’t bounce. 🎾 In a new Science Sessions episode, Roberto Zenit explains the physics behind it and its surprising link to safety gear. Listen: www.pnas.org/post/podcast...

PNAS 2026 subscription rates are here! Get year-round access to 32,000+ pages of groundbreaking research, Special Features, and the full archive back to 1915. Subscribe today: www.pnas.org/post/update/subscription-rates-2026

One of the most-viewed PNAS articles in the last week is “Radiocarbon dating of Jerusalem’s Siloam Dam links climate data and major waterworks.” Explore the article here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... For more trending articles, visit ow.ly/Me2U50SkLRZ.

Explore the impacts of #ClimateChange with @pnasnexus.org. Dive into illuminating research on planetary and societal challenges: academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/pa... Interested in contributing your research on this topic? Explore the submission process: academic.oup.com/pnasnexus/pa...

A study of 225,780 animal bones from France, spanning the past 8,000 years, shows that wild and domestic animals grew larger or smaller together, as conditions changed—until about 1000 AD, when livestock began to bulk up due to breeding. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

A delicious win-win: Oyster farming helps sequester carbon, not just because the bivalves lock CO2 in their shells but even more so because the oysters promote primary production and organic carbon sedimentation in the sea around them. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Honoring Brian Larkins (1946–2025), a pioneering plant molecular biologist whose work on maize endosperm and storage proteins improved the nutritional quality of maize. A devoted mentor and leader, he leaves a lasting legacy. Read his PNAS Retrospective: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

The 2025 Lasker~DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award honors Michael Welsh, Jesús Gonzalez, and Paul Negulescu for breakthroughs in cystic fibrosis treatment. Explore their work in @pnas.org: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #Lasker2025 #LaskerLaureate @laskerfdn.bsky.social

Opinion: How can we preserve #biodiversity in the #Amazon? The #BelémDeclaration seeks to prevent collapse—but success hinges on structured, collaborative action. 🌿 Learn how: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #AmazonRainforest #conservation #deforestation #sustainbility #StructuredDecisionmaking

Every year the Panama Pacific upwelling provides cool, nutrient-rich waters to the Gulf of Panama—except this year, it didn’t. A study documents the anomaly, which may cause coral bleaching and declines in economically important fish stocks. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Three skull fossils likely came from Denisovans, an extinct group of hominins once mainly known from DNA and a few small bones and teeth. The crania were identified by scanning fossils for morphological features predicted by Denisovan DNA. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

We’re proud to partner with @laskerfdn.bsky.social to honor the 2025 #LaskerLaureates! 🏅 Explore articles celebrating their groundbreaking contributions to science, medicine, and humanity. In @pnas.org: www.pnas.org/topic/2025-l... #Lasker2025

Read highlights in this week’s issue of PNAS: We explore deep marine oxygenation in the Devonian Period, analyze soil microbial diversity in a warming climate, and investigate why hollow bones appeared in pterosaurs before they took flight. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

How will warming affect #FreshWater stores? Less #snow in the #mountains and more #rain could have major implications for regions worldwide. Most are not prepared. In PNAS Front Matter: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #snowpack #groundwater #flood #ClimateChange #SNOTEL #floodplains

Logging changes the composition of the organic matter in nearby streams, making the organic matter more reactive. According to the authors, these changes are enough to flip logging from a carbon-sink to carbon-neutral or even a carbon-source. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

Obituaries capture the best in people. An analysis of 38 million obituaries from the United States found that many focused on the values of tradition and benevolence. Major events shape obits: The COVID-19 pandemic has eroded benevolence. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...

How the stretchiness of #worms could point to treatments for human #KidneyDisease. In PNAS Journal Club: www.pnas.org/post/journal... #BasementMembrane #CElegans #fibulin1 #DevelopmentalBiology #KidneyDisease

Honoring excellence with the 2025 #LaskerAward! 🏅 Basic: Dirk Görlich & Steve McKnight Clinical: Michael Welsh, Jesús (Tito) Gonzalez & Paul Negulescu Achievement: Lucy Shapiro Discover their work in @pnas.org: www.pnas.org/post/update/... #Lasker2025 #LaskerLaureate @laskerfdn.bsky.social

From #ClimateChange & #AI to #PublicHealth, #Sustainability & #SocialSciences, @pnasnexus.org publishes open-access, interdisciplinary research with global impact. 🌍 Explore urgent questions at the science–society intersection: academic.oup.com/pnasnexus #OpenAccess #ScienceForSociety

Researchers asked AI to generate 100 short stories from the same prompt and found the same plot elements showing up again like echoes, even across different LLMs. The collective creativity of online content is at risk, the authors say. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Focused ultrasound combined with nanobubbles can open the blood-brain-barrier at specific brain regions. Delivery of monoclonal antibodies into the lateral habenula significantly alleviated depression-like symptoms in mice for two weeks. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

In this issue: Extreme symbiosis and mimicry tie pygmy seahorses to coral hosts, vitamin B2 metabolites and malaria susceptibility, and radiocarbon dating of Siloam Dam in Jerusalem. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

A new study shows a genetic change after humans split from Neanderthals/Denisovans reduced ADSL enzyme activity, raising brain purine levels. In mice, the same mutation made females seek water more often. 🧠 @cnn.com: www.cnn.com/2025/08/22/s... 📄 PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

A flash flood in ancient Arizona preserved a diverse Triassic ecosystem, including the continent’s oldest known pterosaur. Discover how researchers uncovered this rare fossil site in the latest Science Sessions episode: www.pnas.org/post/podcast...

One of the most-viewed PNAS articles in the last week is “The radiation and geographic expansion of primates through diverse climates.” Explore the article here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... For more trending articles, visit ow.ly/Me2U50SkLRZ.

A study uncovers genes behind an extreme symbiosis: Pygmy seahorses perfectly mimic the gorgonian coral they live within, are resistant to the coral's venom, and are protected from infection by the coral’s antimicrobial compounds. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

A study of residents of Ferrara, Italy, where malaria was once endemic, and Huye, Rwanda, where it still is endemic, found a small proportion of people genetically deficient in flavins—a deficiency that protects red blood cells from malaria. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Opinion: While research often projects future #ClimateChange impacts, our past climate—with its quirks and extremes—already shapes #HumanHealth and #wellbeing. 🌍 www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #GreenhouseGas #floods #drought #WeatherExtremes

@pnas.org and @laskerfdn.bsky.social partner to celebrate this year's remarkable #LaskerAward winners as we spotlight groundbreaking contributions to medical research. Read the announcement: www.pnas.org/post/update/... #Lasker2025 #LaskerLaureate

One of the most-viewed PNAS articles in the last week is “An information-theoretic foreshadowing of mathematicians’ sudden insights.” Explore the article here: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... For more trending articles, visit ow.ly/Me2U50SkLRZ.

Life expectancy has increased in high-income countries over the past century, but mortality forecasting methods suggest people living today won’t see dramatic gains. Even people born in 2000 are unlikely to reach a life expectancy of 100. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Migration comes with tradeoffs. Flamingoes that migrate don’t live as long as their resident cousins—their lifespan is 6.7 years shorter on average—but nonmigrating flamingoes see accelerated mortality and reproductive declines later in life. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Evolutionary ecologist Sharon Y. Strauss shares how she integrates ecology and evolutionary history to study how plants adapt—or fail to adapt—to climate change. Strauss is a professor emeritus at @ucdavis.bsky.social and a member of @nasonline.org. Read more: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Read highlights in this week’s issue of PNAS: We explore spatial and numerical learning in monkeys, analyze the magnitude of a glacial melt in Svalbard, and examine diminished biomass under prolonged climate warming. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

As signatories of the UN SDG Publishers Compact, PNAS and PNAS Nexus champion research that advances all 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Discover how science is driving global progress: www.pnas.org/sustainable-...

An expanded Eurasian range for early agriculture: People harvested wild barley with stone sickles in the foothills of Central Asia some 9,200 years ago, according to findings at the Toda-1 Cave in the Surkhan Darya Valley of Uzbekistan. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

A meta-analysis of 102 studies finds that climate change is reducing the diversity of bacteria and fungi in soil by an average of 16.0% and 19.7%, respectively, which will reduce the ability of soil to store carbon—which could accelerate warming. In PNAS: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

Future #winters promise less #snow in the #mountains and more #rain. That shift could have major implications for #WaterSupplies in regions around the world. In PNAS Front Matter: www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #snowpack #flood #ClimateChange #SNOTEL #floodplains