19 March 2021
Preserved DNA from animals that lived over 2400 years ago suggests that present-day llamas and alpacas are descended in part from an extinct population of camelids called guanacos
23 January 2019
Humans once mated with Neanderthals so are we hybrids? How we see ourselves and the rest of nature is changing, raising the question of whether species even exist
24 October 2018
Two new books make big claims, but prove only that reports of the death of Darwinism have been greatly exaggerated
24 May 2018
Some chimpanzee populations gained useful DNA from interbreeding with bonobos, and one may even have become more gentle and “bonobo-like” in its brain structure and behaviour
15 May 2018
Many scientists suspect life began with a molecule called RNA, but there has long been a big problem with this idea. Now there is a solution
7 March 2018
The discovery that some animals thrive despite hugely mutated DNA hidden in their genome is forcing us to rethink some basics of evolution
5 July 2017
CRISPR gene editing has delivered on its every scientific promise. Jennifer Doudna and Samuel Sternberg's book gives a generous account of this towering achievement
4 July 2017
Analysis of DNA from a fossilised Neanderthal bone suggests modern human ancestors entered Europe and interbred with locals more than 219,000 years ago
