Cutting-edge news & reports from PNAS, one of the world's most-cited scientific journals, sibling journal of @PNASNexus & an official journal of @theNASciences.
In this issue: Bipedalism may have had a more circuitous evolutionary route than previously thought, polar regions shaped mammal evolution, and shellfish harvesting by Neanderthals. In PNAS: ow.ly/bVy850Z7bex
Researchers challenged longhorn crazy ants and humans with the same task: maneuvering a T-shaped object through two consecutive open doorways. Single humans always outperformed single ants, but ant groups could beat human groups. In PNAS: ow.ly/5vat50UwZAo
A recent PNAS study found that high-performing women have one thing in common: they have a tight-knit circle of other women who help them with “gender-specific private information and support. @Refinery29ow.ly/jNyK30nIu9F Article source: ow.ly/3jVe30nIu7j
Legalization of same-sex marriage resulted in dramatic decreases in anti-gay bias across the US, suggesting that government legislation can inform attitudes even on religiously and politically entrenched positions. In PNAS: ow.ly/Azpf50qSO9S
PNAS will cease producing the print edition of the journal as of January 2019. The end of print is part of a larger effort to make the submission and publication process easier for authors. Our last print issue is Vol. 115, issue 52
Brazil’s soy boom comes with a grim cost: Significant increases in pediatric deaths from acute lymphoblastic leukemia, likely driven by contamination of the water supply by pesticides. In PNAS: ow.ly/f4a250Q5CXp
Increased complexity and heterogeneity in agricultural landscapes is associated with greater #biodiversity, according to a study. In PNAS: ow.ly/3Ymb50KIu6y
Faculty at prestigious institutions are more productive and prominent than their peers. New research suggests that their work environment, not their training, explains their success. In PNAS: ow.ly/GfY450tWGum#academictwitter#withaphd
Recent tweets that went out from @PNASNews about the paper, “An experimental test of the ovulatory homolog model of female orgasm,” were inappropriate and offensive. We have taken the tweets down. We apologize and are reviewing the decision-making with those involved.
15 individuals in a 5,000-year old mass grave in Poland were brutally killed with blows to the head, but buried with great care. Genomic sequencing shows that they were members of a large family, but not related to neighboring groups. In PNAS: ow.ly/cUYr50u1XgT
On 7/1/19, PNAS will eliminate the strict page limits and the Plus article category. The preferred length of articles will remain at 6 pgs; flexible length limits up to 12 pgs will be allowed. To make this feasible, PNAS will cease producing the print edition as of 1/19.
The tendency of scientists to favor generalized, bolder claims in their research may sacrifice precision and could potentially have the unintended consequence of spreading misinformation, according to a new study. In PNAS: ow.ly/hnp450wgkYG
Transplanting gut microbes from people with social anxiety disorder (SAD) into mice made the mice more sensitive to fear conditioning during social interactions, compared with mice who received healthy human microbiome transplants. In PNAS: ow.ly/3TQH50QmxW2