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Credit: Sumana Shrestha
Brain-cell bouquet captures imaging prize
This image — captured using confocal microscopy — shows embryonic stem cells that are destined to become brain cells. The cells arrange themselves into flower-like rings or ‘neural rosettes’ — with columns protruding outwards. In a developing embryo, these structures ultimately go on to generate the brain and spinal cord. Sumana Shrestha, a PhD student at the Institute of Cancer Research in London, took the image — which was selected as the supporters’ favourite at the ICR’s annual science and medical imaging competition. Rosettes are involved in the development of some brain tumours, and understanding them could pave the way for new brain cancer drugs.
See more of the month’s sharpest science shots, selected by Nature’s photo team.
Your guide to Plan S
Plan S, the open-access initiative shaking up science publishing by removing journal paywalls, officially started this year. Discover what the initiative means for scientists and journals — and some of the controversies that will play out in 2021 and beyond.
Ant portraits put a spotlight on tiny marvels
A new collection of photographs illustrates the striking diversity of ants — from the inquisitive gaze of West Africa’s Dorylus mayri to the spiky armour of the Daceton armigerum in South America. We share our world with at least 15,000 species of ants. Whole ecosystems are built around these insects, and many species, from plants to beetles to birds, are “ant obligates” whose survival depends entirely on their relationships with ant colonies. The portraits by photographer Eduard Florin Niga take an intimate look at the often overlooked complexity of these tiny marvels. “To answer the question posed by an ant’s form is to begin to untangle the intricate relationships that scaffold our world,” writes entomologist Eleanor Spicer Rice.
Features & opinion
Tell us if we’re arguing with a machine
As artificial intelligence (AI) systems become better at framing persuasive arguments, should it always be made clear whether you’re engaging in discourse with a human or a machine? A Nature editorial argues that a debate-winning AI highlights the need for more transparency to avoid manipulation and harm.
Futures: Made out of muscle and oil
Author Douglas DiCicco considers the debt-bondage systems immortalized in the classic song ‘Sixteen Tons’ in the latest short story for Nature’s Futures series. “In a future where employment requires not only specialized equipment but specialized bodies, it is all too easy to see how this particular form of exploitation could resurface,” says DiCicco.
Five best science books this week
Andrew Robinson’s pick of the top five science books to read this week includes a physicist taking on academic racism; green economic growth; and Stephen Hawking’s self-promotion.
Where I work
Sofia Polo is an engineer with the Gothenburg department of sustainable waste and water in Sweden.Credit: Jim De Block for Nature
“This storm-water pond, which collects runoff from nearby Gothenburg, is part of a larger effort to help the Swedish city live up to its billing as the ‘Greenest City on Earth’,” says engineer Sofia Polo. But despite the bucolic appearance, “it’s not a wilderness experience”, she says. The pond is near a main road, and its role is to filter out heavy pollutants before water reaches the sea. (Nature | 3 min read)
