Payal Dhar (she/they)

More than one in ten Indian households could get a financial boost large enough to move up one economic class by quitting tobacco, finds a new study. This could mean more resources for everyday essentials like education and health, better savings, and fewer medical expenditures for over 20 million families.

Artificial intelligence–designed “smart” proteins can be programmed to turn on when they detect a certain target. This feature allows them to work as biological switches from inside living cells, potentially acting as biosensors for medical, environmental, or biotech applications.

Scientists have created a comprehensive map of smell receptors in the mouse nose, revealing a few surprises about this fundamental sense. Smell receptors, or olfactory receptors, were previously thought to be randomly distributed within the lining of the nasal cavity. But the new map shows that they are highly organized, with different types separated into tight bands.

When bacteria infect humans, they aren’t always free-floating in the body. They often clump together and form biofilms—sticky masses with gel-like coatings that can block drugs from accessing the infection site. In a new study, scientists have developed ultrasound-activated nanoparticles that penetrate bacterial biofilms and release antibiotics on demand. These nanoagents can destroy 90% of the bacterial biofilm.

California is abundant in two things—almonds and wine. In a new study, researchers have found a way to use waste from one to make the other more green. Almond shell powder (ASP) is a natural adsorbent of phenolic compounds, making for a low-cost option for the treatment of winery wastewater.

Polluted air is bad for your lungs. That dirty air might also be why many kids need glasses, new data show. This observation comes from a study of vision in about 30,000 school-age children. Kids had better eyesight when air pollution levels were lower, scientists found.

A mosquito’s proboscis — the long, thin bit that pierces the skin — makes an excellent nozzle for fine 3-D printing. The proboscis’ unique geometry and mechanics make it well-suited for the task. The scientists call this “3-D necroprinting.” The term comes from necrobotics, a field that uses animal parts in high-tech machines — for example, spider legs repurposed into robotic grippers.

Large language models should not be used to weed out retracted literature, a study of 21 chatbots concludes. Not only were the chatbots unreliable at correctly identifying retracted papers, they spit out different results when given the same prompts.

Sound travels in waves of vibrating air molecules that bump into each other. Microphones work by picking up these vibrations. Scientists had wondered if they could make microphones that see those vibrations rather than hear them. Now researchers in China have built such a device. The new gadget photographs tiny disturbances made as sound waves subtly quake the surface of an object. A computer then turns those images back into sound. This means the microphone can work even when it isn’t able to “hear.” For instance, when a glass barrier dampens or blocks sound waves.

Large language models, or LLMs — the artificial intelligence systems that power chatbots like ChatGPT — are increasingly being used as sources of quick answers. But in a new study, people who used a traditional search engine to look up information developed deeper knowledge than those who relied on an AI chatbot, researchers report.

A repurposed glue gun has helped repair broken bones in rabbits. Instead of a regular glue stick, it melts a material that helps bones heal.

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a versatile biomaterial produced naturally by certain bacteria species, including Komagataeibacter xylinus. Scientists have considered it as an alternative to synthetic textiles, but research into producing colored BC has been limited. The use of petroleum-based dyes and toxic reagents for coloring still persists.

Researchers have demonstrated how to print features smaller than a millionth of a meter on tiny electronic components called thin-film transistors (TFTs) used in displays. Using recyclable, carbon-based inks could make displays more environmentally friendly.

When Jacob Glanville first spoke to Tim Friede, he said, "I'd love to get my hands on some of your blood." As CEO of the biotech company Centivax, Glanville was developing a universal snakebite treatment. And Friede is a self-taught herpetologist with hyperimmunity to some of the world's deadliest snake toxins. Over the past two decades, Friede has had over 800 snakebites and "self-immunizations" with the venom of cobras, taipans, black mambas, rattlers and more.

A handheld device can apply synthetic bone grafts directly at the site of a defect or injury without the need for prior imaging or fabrication. Researchers demonstrated the technology by modifying a hot glue gun to 3-D print the material directly onto bone fractures in rabbits. Instead of using a regular glue stick, they employed a specially made “bioink.”