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Cover Story
Genomes Gone Wild
Megan Scudellari | Jan 1, 2014 | 10+ min read
Weird and wonderful, plant DNA is challenging preconceptions about the evolution of life, including our own species.
Features
Plant Talk
Dan Cossins | Jan 1, 2014 | 10+ min read
Plants communicate and interact with each other, both aboveground and below, in surprisingly subtle and sophisticated ways.
The Bright Side of Prions
Randal Halfmann | Jan 1, 2014 | 10+ min read
Associated with numerous neurological diseases, misfolded proteins may also play decisive roles in normal cellular functioning.
Contributors
Contributors
Contributors
Meet some of the people featured in the January 2014 issue of The Scientist.
Editorial
Stranger than Fiction
Stranger than Fiction
Plant biology: You can't make this stuff up.
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
January 2014's selection of notable quotes
Notebook
Green Gold
Green Gold
It’s been decades since researchers confirmed the presence of gold in plants, but biogeochemical prospecting has yet to catch on.
A Ribbeting Tale
A Ribbeting Tale
A famous frog-hopping contest yields data that challenge previous lab estimates of how far a bullfrog can jump.
Flapless Flight
Flapless Flight
New research increases the understanding of how albatrosses fly effortlessly by harvesting energy out of thin air.
Farmer Fungi
Farmer Fungi
Researchers uncover an unprecedented relationship between morels and bacteria. But can it be called agriculture?
Critic at Large
Elder Pharmacology
Elder Pharmacology
Studying and treating the chronic diseases associated with aging needs serious revamping.
Recognizing Basic Science Contributions
Recognizing Basic Science Contributions
A “basic bibliography” for new drugs would provide scientists with soft incentives and acknowledge the value of basic biomedical research.
Modus Operandi
Exit Strategy
Exit Strategy
Scientists come up with a better way to watch cells leave blood vessels.
The Literature
Bacterial Persisters
Bacterial Persisters
A bacterial gene shuts down the cell's own protein synthesis, which sends the bacterium into dormancy and allows it to outlast antibiotics.
Avoiding Salt
Avoiding Salt
In a newly identified tropism, plant roots steer clear of salinity.
Neurons On Demand
Neurons On Demand
Astrocytes in the adult mouse brain can be reprogrammed into neuronal precursors, then neurons, in vivo.
Profile
Drawn to Controversy
Drawn to Controversy
By digging through dusty storerooms and reading dead people’s mail, science historian and philosopher Michael Dietrich keeps biologists attuned to the past and mindful of the present.
Scientist to Watch
Benjamin tenOever: Going Viral
Benjamin tenOever: Going Viral
Professor, Microbiology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Age: 36
Lab Tools
Lights, Camera, Action
Lights, Camera, Action
A guide for doing in vivo microscopy on neurons in the mammalian brain
Automation on a Budget
Automation on a Budget
Solutions for partially automating your cell culture set-up
Bio Business
Outwitting the Perfect Pathogen
Outwitting the Perfect Pathogen
Tuberculosis is exquisitely adapted to the human body. Researchers need a new game plan for beating it.
Reading Frames
Evolution’s Stowaways
Evolution’s Stowaways
Terrestrial mammals, carnivorous plants, and even burrowing reptiles have spread around the globe by braving the seven seas. These chance ocean crossings are rewriting the story of Earth’s biogeography.
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
Are Dolphins Really Smart?, Newton's Football, Outsider Scientists, and We Are Our Brains
Foundations
Fantastical Fish, circa 1719
Fantastical Fish, circa 1719
A collection of colorful drawings compiled by publisher Louis Renard sheds light on eighteenth-century science.