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Editorial Mission

As Online, Open Access, and Outreach Journal, we promote the democratization of scientific literature to foster dialogues and interest over the most recent scientific advances. Discover our mission.

Journal content

We publish short lay-summaries ("breaks") of scientific research. Our authors are scientists involved in the field of the summarized research. Our readers are academics and laypeople likewise. Learn more.

Latest

Sensors deployed down boreholes offer a glimpse into Earth's subsurface properties. This article presents the first step towards a new generation of borehole deployable quantum gravity sensors based on cold atoms. Sensors, which once developed, have the potential to reveal Earth's hidden depths with unparalleled precision.

Collaborations

Trending now

Decoding the genome of a jackfruit that grows all year round

Jackfruit is the world’s largest edible single fruit but short growing periods and cross-pollination restrict the commercialization of the its cultivation. Decoding the genome of a year-round and high-yielding jackfruit variety will lay the foundation for biotechnological improvements and the sustainable commercialization of this highly nutritious tropical and sub-tropical multi-purpose fruit.

Sep 6, 2023 | 3.5 min read
Mutations in the germline: How the mother repairs the father’s damaged genome

Germline mutations can have a severe impact on genetic diseases, genome evolution and the fate of a species. The vast majority of inheritable mutations are passed on by the paternal genome. We discovered how paternal DNA damage is repaired by maternal repair leading to the inheritance of structural variants.

Oct 30, 2023 | 4 min read
The fate of a century-old partnership between humans and dolphins

Aligning human interests and wildlife protection requires a deep understanding of human-wildlife interactions. Behavioral tracking and demographic surveys show that foraging synchrony is key to generate short- and long-term benefits for human fishers and wild dolphins. We used simulations to describe the conditions under which this cooperation can turn into another human-wildlife conflict.

Sep 4, 2023 | 4 min read
Smaller, faster, more complex? Watching a phase transition with X-ray eyes

Whenever a material changes phase, by melting, crystallizing, or changing symmetry, it always begins at the nanoscale. With a new ultrafast X-ray microscope we’ve taken the first video of this elusive process, revealing a surprising simplicity underlying solid-to-solid transitions in quantum materials excited by lasers.

Sep 18, 2023 | 3 min read
The loss of our glaciers over the 21st century: a future we can control

The loss of glaciers affects sea level, water availability, and natural hazards resulting in socioeconomic impacts for communities around the world, even for those located far from these icy giants. Our study found that limiting future increases in global mean temperature to +1.5°C will still cause the loss of more than 25% of their current mass but would prevent widespread ice-loss in many high-mountain regions.

Sep 29, 2023 | 4 min read
Writing cell memory: how Histones play a role in Epigenetic Memory

Our cells remember their cell type-specific functions during their lifetime using modifications on histones, the proteins packaging DNA. Such epigenetic memory is challenged during DNA replication when histones are evicted from DNA. We reveal new evidence that cells recycle histones H2A-H2B to replicated DNA with their modifications, hereby providing epigenetic memory across cell division.

Oct 4, 2023 | 4 min read