For more than 15 years, scientists have worked to build a complex cell with an entire genome built from scratch. This week they announced a major milestone: They've created synthetic versions of the 16 chromosomes in a yeast cell and successfully combined some of them in one cell.
Why it matters: The feat is revealing new information about fundamental processes in cells, and it is a key step toward some scientists' vision of creating programmable cellular factories to produce biofuels, materials, medicines and other products.
Why it matters: There is ample evidence that climate change significantly shifted the odds of temperature extremes during this period.
The big picture: A Climate Central analysis shows not only how warming is loading the dice for more frequent and severe heat extremes, but also the disproportionate impacts worldwide.
A biotech startup aiming to bring back the woolly mammoth is partnering with an elephant conservation organization to use drones and AI to track African elephants and study their behavior.