How nature, nurture and sheer randomness combine to make a unique you
9 December 2020
We’re slowly beginning to unpick the complex interplay of genes, environment and experience that make you who you are – and like no one else who ever existed
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Premium
How defining women as baby-makers backfired spectacularly on science
26 August 2020
In Guynecology, Rene Almeling argues that moving away from gendered ideas about reproduction could improve our health and transform our societies
New Scientist 50 years ago: The first test-tube babies, sort of
31 October 2018
It was still 10 years before IVF would be used successfully in humans – and that wasn’t on our radar when we reported on the first lab conceptions using mice
Fewer baby boys were born after three major earthquakes in Japan
20 July 2018
A lower proportion of boys were born nine months after Japan’s three worst earthquakes in recent history, suggesting stress makes it harder to conceive males
The cancer-fighting multi-organ: 9 ways the placenta is amazing
30 May 2018
From helping us conquer the world to curing cancer, here are nine reasons why the placenta deserves our appreciation
Changes in your sperm reveal if you’ve had a difficult life
23 May 2018
Men carry chemical clues to childhood traumas in their sperm, and these might be passed down to their sons – but we don’t know what effects these have yet
Ape ‘midwives’ spotted helping female bonobos give birth
18 May 2018
When female bonobos went into labour, other females gathered around to keep them safe, swatting away flies and even seemingly trying to catch the baby as it emerged
Male fruit flies feel pleasure when they ejaculate
19 April 2018
Male insects have been genetically engineered to climax on command, and it seems they get a real buzz out of it – perhaps even a fly orgasm
Malfunctioning fertility clinic tanks may put eggs at risk
13 March 2018
Thousands of frozen eggs and embryos may have been damaged after temperatures rose in two malfunctioning tanks at fertility clinics in California and Ohio
Biggest ever family tree shows when cousins stopped having sex
1 March 2018
A family tree of 13 million people has been built using data from an ancestry website, and it reveals when and why people started avoiding marrying close relations
