Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript. Who were the Denisovans? Rich trove of fossils and tools paints new picture Objects found in a cave in southwestern China suggest that these enigmatic ancient humans were accomplished hunters. Featured Content Pick up the phone! Phone calls with tutors keep kids learning when schools shut down The low-cost intervention was trialled in five countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mohana Basu News 09 Sept 2026 Pick up the phone! Phone calls with tutors keep kids learning when schools shut down The low-cost intervention was trialled in five countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. OpenAI claims huge maths breakthrough on a famed ‘Millennium Problem’ The company says it has cracked the physics of fluids using artificial intelligence, solving one of the toughest puzzles in mathematics. Davide Castelvecchi News 08 Sept 2026 OpenAI claims huge maths breakthrough on a famed ‘Millennium Problem’ The company says it has cracked the physics of fluids using artificial intelligence, solving one of the toughest puzzles in mathematics. Davide Castelvecchi Ancient proteins identify various Denisovan remains from Southwest China Identification and proteomic analysis of bone fragments and teeth from an excavation in Southwest China provide insight into the evolution and phenotype of Denisovans and fill a geographical gap in their documented distribution. Huiyun Rao Song Xing Qiaomei Fu Article Open Access 09 Sept 2026 Ancient proteins identify various Denisovan remains from Southwest China Identification and proteomic analysis of bone fragments and teeth from an excavation in Southwest China provide insight into the evolution and phenotype of Denisovans and fill a geographical gap in their documented distribution. Daily briefing: Gene-therapy deaths put spotlight on trials in China The deaths of two children in separate gene-therapy trials could have a profound effect on China’s biomedical industry, say researchers. Plus, an AI system has formalized Fermat’s last theorem and the impact of Nancy Grace Roman. Flora Graham Nature Briefing 08 Sept 2026 Daily briefing: Gene-therapy deaths put spotlight on trials in China The deaths of two children in separate gene-therapy trials could have a profound effect on China’s biomedical industry, say researchers. Plus, an AI system has formalized Fermat’s last theorem and the impact of Nancy Grace Roman. Contents Subscribe Current Issue 10 Sept 2026 Use AI as a sparring partner, not an oracle As artificial-intelligence tools become crucial collaborators in science, universities must teach students to challenge such systems and assess their ability to do so. Marc Schmitt World View 09 Sept 2026 Use AI as a sparring partner, not an oracle As artificial-intelligence tools become crucial collaborators in science, universities must teach students to challenge such systems and assess their ability to do so. The Einstein test: what happens when AI tries to rediscover relativity? Philip Ball News Feature 09 Sept 2026 The Einstein test: what happens when AI tries to rediscover relativity? Why we need an International Panel on Inequality Joseph E. Stiglitz Adriana E. Abdenur Wanga Zembe-Mkabile Comment 09 Sept 2026 Why we need an International Panel on Inequality Joseph E. Stiglitz Adriana E. Abdenur Wanga Zembe-Mkabile Why the super-fun Ig Nobel prizes bring serious value to science Editorial 09 Sept 2026 Why the super-fun Ig Nobel prizes bring serious value to science AI model predicts which breast-cancer drugs work best Miryam Naddaf News 09 Sept 2026 AI model predicts which breast-cancer drugs work best Who were the Denisovans? Rich trove of fossils and tools paints new picture Dyani Lewis News 09 Sept 2026 Who were the Denisovans? Rich trove of fossils and tools paints new picture Hello Equal Earth: what the UN’s new world map will change Dhruv Shenai News 09 Sept 2026 Hello Equal Earth: what the UN’s new world map will change Latest Reviews & Analysis DNA-editing ‘pencils’ probe early human development A genome-rewriting approach known as adenine base editing offers a precise way to investigate gene function in early human embryos. Sherif Khodeer Vincent Pasque News & Views 09 Sept 2026 Uniform film formation helps tandem solar cells work better for longer When making mixed-halide perovskite films for use in solar cells, bromide-rich domains crystallize faster than iodide-rich ones do, leading to defects. Adding a molecule tuned to bind selectively to bromide-bound lead synchronizes the crystallization rates, yielding uniform films, better operating stability and a more-efficient perovskite–organic tandem. Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Combined satellite and news data capture unseen aspects of war Records of war extracted from news reports have shaped what researchers know about violence. Satellite images could transform that understanding — if access stays open. Hannes Mueller News & Views 09 Sept 2026 Phone-based tutoring improves learning during school closures One-to-one phone sessions substantially increased students’ numeracy test scores in low- and middle-income countries that experience emergencies that disrupt schooling. Felipe Barrera-Osorio News & Views 09 Sept 2026 Phone-call tutorials improve learning cost-effectively during education emergencies Across five randomized trials in India, Kenya, Nepal, the Philippines and Uganda, weekly 20-minute mobile-phone-call tutorials produced large learning gains for primary-school children during school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Governments can keep children learning through societal shocks using this approach, which combines low-cost, high-access mobile-phone technology with high-quality tutoring targeted to each child’s learning level. Noam Angrist Micheal Ainomugisha Tim Sullivan Policy Brief 09 Sept 2026 DNA-editing ‘pencils’ probe early human development A genome-rewriting approach known as adenine base editing offers a precise way to investigate gene function in early human embryos. Sherif Khodeer Vincent Pasque News & Views 09 Sept 2026 DNA-editing ‘pencils’ probe early human development A genome-rewriting approach known as adenine base editing offers a precise way to investigate gene function in early human embryos. Uniform film formation helps tandem solar cells work better for longer When making mixed-halide perovskite films for use in solar cells, bromide-rich domains crystallize faster than iodide-rich ones do, leading to defects. Adding a molecule tuned to bind selectively to bromide-bound lead synchronizes the crystallization rates, yielding uniform films, better operating stability and a more-efficient perovskite–organic tandem. Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Uniform film formation helps tandem solar cells work better for longer When making mixed-halide perovskite films for use in solar cells, bromide-rich domains crystallize faster than iodide-rich ones do, leading to defects. Adding a molecule tuned to bind selectively to bromide-bound lead synchronizes the crystallization rates, yielding uniform films, better operating stability and a more-efficient perovskite–organic tandem. Combined satellite and news data capture unseen aspects of war Records of war extracted from news reports have shaped what researchers know about violence. Satellite images could transform that understanding — if access stays open. Hannes Mueller News & Views 09 Sept 2026 Combined satellite and news data capture unseen aspects of war Records of war extracted from news reports have shaped what researchers know about violence. Satellite images could transform that understanding — if access stays open. Phone-based tutoring improves learning during school closures One-to-one phone sessions substantially increased students’ numeracy test scores in low- and middle-income countries that experience emergencies that disrupt schooling. Felipe Barrera-Osorio News & Views 09 Sept 2026 Phone-based tutoring improves learning during school closures One-to-one phone sessions substantially increased students’ numeracy test scores in low- and middle-income countries that experience emergencies that disrupt schooling. Felipe Barrera-Osorio Phone-call tutorials improve learning cost-effectively during education emergencies Across five randomized trials in India, Kenya, Nepal, the Philippines and Uganda, weekly 20-minute mobile-phone-call tutorials produced large learning gains for primary-school children during school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Governments can keep children learning through societal shocks using this approach, which combines low-cost, high-access mobile-phone technology with high-quality tutoring targeted to each child’s learning level. Noam Angrist Micheal Ainomugisha Tim Sullivan Policy Brief 09 Sept 2026 Phone-call tutorials improve learning cost-effectively during education emergencies Across five randomized trials in India, Kenya, Nepal, the Philippines and Uganda, weekly 20-minute mobile-phone-call tutorials produced large learning gains for primary-school children during school closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Governments can keep children learning through societal shocks using this approach, which combines low-cost, high-access mobile-phone technology with high-quality tutoring targeted to each child’s learning level. Micheal Ainomugisha Electric charge makes drops of water more destructive Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Family-based analyses show how children’s genetics shape key traits Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Genetic associations with the Big Five personality traits probed in one million people Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 ‘Superdark’ protein looks like a G-protein-coupled receptor — but shows unconventional behaviour Nil Casajuana-Martin M. Madan Babu News & Views 09 Sept 2026 Electric charge makes drops of water more destructive Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Electric charge makes drops of water more destructive Family-based analyses show how children’s genetics shape key traits Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Family-based analyses show how children’s genetics shape key traits Genetic associations with the Big Five personality traits probed in one million people Research Briefing 09 Sept 2026 Genetic associations with the Big Five personality traits probed in one million people

‘Superdark’ protein looks like a G-protein-coupled receptor — but shows unconventional behaviour Nil Casajuana-Martin M. Madan Babu News & Views 09 Sept 2026 ‘Superdark’ protein looks like a G-protein-coupled receptor — but shows unconventional behaviour Nil Casajuana-Martin Latest Research articles Highly efficient base editing at PCSK9 and normal human embryo development Stepan Jerabek Chanju Jung Dieter Egli Article 09 Sept 2026 Highly efficient base editing at PCSK9 and normal human embryo development Breaking timescales with generative sampling of conformational transitions A generative committor-guided path-sampling framework reconstructs rare biomolecular transition pathways and reveals the underlying thermodynamics and kinetics without using predefined collective variables or brute-force sampling, at an acceptable computational cost. Chenyu Tang Mayank Prakash Pandey Christophe Chipot Article 09 Sept 2026 Breaking timescales with generative sampling of conformational transitions A generative committor-guided path-sampling framework reconstructs rare biomolecular transition pathways and reveals the underlying thermodynamics and kinetics without using predefined collective variables or brute-force sampling, at an acceptable computational cost. Mayank Prakash Pandey Christophe Chipot Within-family effect of ancestry on complex traits in a Mexican population This study uses a within-family design to identify significant ancestry differences in complex traits such as height and type 2 diabetes in a genetically diverse population from Mexico City. Siqi Wang Jaime Berumen Peter M. Visscher Article Open Access 09 Sept 2026 Within-family effect of ancestry on complex traits in a Mexican population This study uses a within-family design to identify significant ancestry differences in complex traits such as height and type 2 diabetes in a genetically diverse population from Mexico City. Peter M. Visscher Neocortical long-range inhibition promotes cortical synchrony and sleep In mice, a sparse population of sleep-active long-range inhibitory neurons in the neocortex promote widespread cortical synchronization and sleep, revealing a cortical mechanism that contributes to the regulation of sleep. Jacob M. Ratliff Geoffrey Terral Renata Batista-Brito Article Open Access 09 Sept 2026 Neocortical long-range inhibition promotes cortical synchrony and sleep In mice, a sparse population of sleep-active long-range inhibitory neurons in the neocortex promote widespread cortical synchronization and sleep, revealing a cortical mechanism that contributes to the regulation of sleep. Jacob M. Ratliff Geoffrey Terral Renata Batista-Brito An operational perturbation proteomics-based virtual cell model Temporal protein-abundance measurements from systematically perturbed breast cancer cell lines were generated to develop ProteinTalks, a virtual cell model that functions as an operational tool for diverse drug discovery tasks. Rui Sun Liujia Qian Tiannan Guo Article 09 Sept 2026 An operational perturbation proteomics-based virtual cell model Temporal protein-abundance measurements from systematically perturbed breast cancer cell lines were generated to develop ProteinTalks, a virtual cell model that functions as an operational tool for diverse drug discovery tasks. Nanoscience and nanotechnology Trending - Altmetric Robust inference and correlates from genetic associations with personality Robust inference and correlates from genetic associations with personality Revealed: inside the US military's plan to tap huge sums from the NIH Revealed: inside the US military's plan to tap huge sums from the NIH Late-life semaglutide treatment slows ageing and extends lifespan in female mice Late-life semaglutide treatment slows ageing and extends lifespan in female mice The death of Jason Arday must prompt deep reflection The death of Jason Arday must prompt deep reflection Talent Recruitment Announcement at the College of Plant Science & Technology Gather Global Talents, Forge Great Achievements Wuhan, Hubei (CN) Huazhong Agricultural University (HZAU) Talent Recruitment Announcement at the College of Plant Science & Technology Gather Global Talents, Forge Great Achievements Wuhan, Hubei (CN) Huazhong Agricultural University (HZAU) Recruitment Announcement for High-Level Talent at the Center for Agricultural Microbiology Join HZAU's global faculty team to advance research with competitive benefits. Wuhan, Hubei (CN) Huazhong Agricultural University (HZAU) Recruitment Announcement for High-Level Talent at the Center for Agricultural Microbiology Join HZAU's global faculty team to advance research with competitive benefits. Wuhan, Hubei (CN) Huazhong Agricultural University (HZAU) Post-doctoral Fellows Call for NCWU-IIASA Joint Postdoctoral Fellows Applications: Prof. Junguo Liu, and Prof. Hans Joachim (John) Schellnhuber are jointly recruiting. Zhengzhou, China North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power Post-doctoral Fellows Call for NCWU-IIASA Joint Postdoctoral Fellows Applications: Prof. Junguo Liu, and Prof. Hans Joachim (John) Schellnhuber are jointly recruiting. Zhengzhou, China North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power Global Scientist Interdisciplinary Forum • Autumn 2026 Southern University of Science and Technology, School of Medicine & School of Public Health and Emergency Management Shenzhen, Guangdong, China Southern University of Science and Technology, School of Medicine Global Scientist Interdisciplinary Forum • Autumn 2026 Southern University of Science and Technology, School of Medicine & School of Public Health and Emergency Management Shenzhen, Guangdong, China Southern University of Science and Technology, School of Medicine Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Warmly Welcomes Talents Abroad Qiushi Chair Professor; Qiushi Distinguished Scholar; ZJU 100 Young Researcher; Distinguished researcher No. 3, Qingchun East Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang (CN) Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital Affiliated with Zhejiang University School of Medicine Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Warmly Welcomes Talents Abroad Qiushi Chair Professor; Qiushi Distinguished Scholar; ZJU 100 Young Researcher; Distinguished researcher No. 3, Qingchun East Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang (CN) Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital Affiliated with Zhejiang University School of Medicine Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily. 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