Nature Briefing

We learn that our friends, and our friends’ friends, have an influence on our gut microbiome and revisit the work of a once-influential behavioural researcher.

Innovative, low-cost programmes are filling the gaps in mental healthcare in Africa. Plus, what car-driving rats can tell us about the pleasure of anticipation.

We learn that fat cells carry a ‘memory’ of obesity and hear how fun it is to win an Ig Nobel prize.

We consider what might be in store for the US National Institutes of Health and explore efforts to keep talks on track at COP29.

We explore efforts to tap Earth for its heat energy. Plus, trust in scientists is slowly recovering in the United States.

A genetic tweak can make big tomatoes much sweeter. Plus, how smartphone signals can help map the upper atmosphere

We meet the elephant using a hose to shower and her jealous rival. Plus, can AI review the scientific literature?

We hear that the code for AlphaFold3 is finally out in the open and learn why Donald Trump’s shadow looms large over the COP29 climate conference.

We hear from a scientist who treated her own cancer with viruses she grew in the lab and discover the multitude of microbe-based climate solutions.

Remains recovered from plaster casts of five people who died in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius have overturned some old assumptions about who they were. Plus, mitochondria can split into two different forms under stress.

A satellite made of wood has been sent to the International Space Station, where it’ll later be released into orbit. Plus, we learn that snapshots of atomic nuclei smashing together can show us what shape they were.

We hear from scientists around the world in response to the US presidential election. Plus, how deep healing sleep helps recovery from heart attacks.

Meet the sleuth hunting fraudulent organizations selling phoney degrees. Plus, we imagine how Ozempic-type drugs might transform societies.

Consuming a lot of sugar as a child heightens a person’s risk of diabetes as an adult. Plus, we hear from the researcher who tamed GLP-1.

Chemists have synthesized a molecule the rules said couldn’t exist. Plus, we enjoy the month’s best science shots.

An mpox virus variant appears to be spreading between humans in Central Africa. Plus, we delve into what makes the human brain so special.

Studies conducted after recent floods in Brazil offer lessons on how to help people facing mental-health challenges after a climate disaster. Plus, laser technology has uncovered a hidden Maya city in the Mexican jungle.

Therapy using digital avatars could help people with psychosis hear fewer voices. Plus, we explore the growing field of RNA editing.

People who receive donor stem cells don’t seem to have an increased risk of developing cancer-causing mutations. Plus, Wikipedia users demonstrate three unique styles of curiosity.

We meet a new species of tardigrade and learn that feeding babies born by caesarian section milk containing their mother’s poo boosts their microbiome.