WASHINGTON -- Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Australian National University have developed new technology that aims to make the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) even more sensitive to faint ripples in space-time called gravitational waves.

Scientists at Advanced LIGO announced the first-ever observation of gravitational waves earlier this year, a century after Albert Einstein predicted their existence in his general theory of relativity. Studying gravitational waves can reveal important information about cataclysmic astrophysical events involving black holes and neutron stars.

When it comes to autonomous cars, people generally approve of cars programmed to sacrifice their passengers to save others, but these same people are not enthusiastic about riding in such "utilitarian" vehicles themselves, a new survey reveals.

Offering insights into a long-standing and mysterious bias in biology, a new study reveals how and why mitochondria are only passed on through a mother's egg - and not the father's sperm. What's more, experiments from the study show that when paternal mitochondria persist for longer than they should during development, the embryo is at greater risk of lethality. Harbored inside the cells of nearly all multicellular animals, plants and fungi are mitochondria, organelles that play an important role in generating the energy that cells need to survive. Shortly after a sperm penetrates an egg during fertilization, the sperm's mitochondria are degraded while the egg's mitochondria persist. To gain more insights into this highly specific degradation pattern, Qinghua Zhou et al.

Expression of a single gene can convert cells lining the seminal vesicle in the pelvis into prostate cells, a new study shows. The results provide a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms controlling the development of seminal vesicle and prostate tissues, which could provide valuable insights as to why cancer arises frequently in the latter but only rarely in seminal vesicles. Previous studies have found that loss of the gene Nkx3.1 results in impaired prostate differentiation in mice, prompting Aditya Dutta et al. to study the gene in greater detail. First, they confirmed that lack of Nkx3.1 in prostate cells results in reduced expression of a number of genes associated with prostate differentiation.

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- What if lost limbs could be regrown? Cancers detected early with blood or urine tests, instead of invasive biopsies? Drugs delivered via nanoparticles to specific tissues or even cells, minimizing unwanted side effects? While such breakthroughs may sound futuristic, scientists are already exploring these and other promising techniques.

But the realization of these transformative advances is not guaranteed. The key to bringing them to fruition, a landmark new report argues, will be strategic and sustained support for "convergence": the merging of approaches and insights from historically distinct disciplines such as engineering, physics, computer science, chemistry, mathematics, and the life sciences.

In this Policy Forum, Phillip Sharp, Tyler Jacks and Susan Hockfield discuss the need for better integration of engineering, physical, computational, and mathematical sciences with biomedical science, as they publish a report this week outlining key recommendations in this space. Convergence of physics and engineering in the 20th century led to a wealth of advancements - radios, telephones, cars, planes, computers, the internet - and, if the correct investments and commitments are in place, the biomedical field is poised for similar advancements, these authors say. However, only 3% of the principal scientists currently receiving research grants from the U.S. National Institutes of Health - the major source of research funding for biomedical science in the U.S.