Why do some students cheat? What's the link between artificial sweeteners and antibiotic resistance? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of Feb 22- 28 2021 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

In this week's bumper edition of the very best from science news around the world, explore the brain of a person with anxiety, find out about burnout and whether you may be suffering from it, and discover how the moon might be affecting your sleep. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• Why students cheat (after Brimble, 2016) by Dr. Mirjam S. Glessmer at Adventures in Oceanography and Teaching.

Sometimes, cheating might feel like it’s the only solution to survive and finish a course among competing priorities.
Credit: ccarlstead via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

• One flash of light, one vision: Carrots, colour and chemistry by Kat Day at The Chronicle Flask.
• People with anxiety show abnormal patterns of cortical thinning across development, study finds by Beth Ellwood for Psypost.
• Communicating while dreaming by Steven Novella for Neurologica.
• Our brains “See” beams of motion emanating from people’s faces towards the object of their attention by Sofia Deleniv for BPS Research Digest.
• What is burnout? 16 signs and symptoms of excessive stress by Alicia Nortje, Ph.D. for Positive Psychology.
• Having trouble sleeping? Look to the moon for answers by Anna Wernick for Massive Science.
• Artificial sweeteners may play role in spread of antibiotic resistance by Sci-News.com.
• Abortions can happen safely — and entirely — at home by Leah Coplon and Claire Brindis for Knowable Magazine.
• Rare disease day 2021: Gene therapy ups and downs, again by Ricki Lewis, PhD for DNA Science.
• New findings on two ways children become seriously ill from the Coronavirus by Pam Belluck for The New York Times.
• Researchers develop a new tool to quantify self-care during COVID-19 by Emma Okumura for Massive Science.
• How scientists identified the now iconic spike protein of the novel coronavirus by Andy Brunning for Compound Interest.
• Defective ribosomes leave proteins to build up in our cells by Joyce Yu for Massive Science.
• Using living bacteria to design self-growing engineering materials by Michael Berger for Nanowerk.
• Night owls or early birds: how being active at different times of day allows wildlife to coexist with people by Alina C. Fisher and Tanya Samman for Science Borealis.
• Is eight enough? New study throws planet nine into doubt, but can’t kill it by Ethan Siegel at Starts With A Bang.
• We've spotted a neutrino blasted out by a black hole shredding a star by Down Here on Earth.
• Radio signals from Proxima Centauri by Allison Kubo Hutchison at Physics Central.
• Podcast: BBC Radio 4 - More or Less: Behind the Stats, Why are US Covid cases falling? by Tim Harford, Derek Thompson, and Jennifer Dowd for More or Less: Behind the Stats.
• Podcast:Black in science: The legacy of racism in science and how Black scientists are moving the dial by Nicole Mortillaro for CBC Quirks.

To indulge your curiosity even more, follow us on Facebook or Twitter for honourable mentions of great posts that didn't quite make our #SciSeekPicks list this week. Want #SciSeekPicks to help satisfy your scientific curiosity every week? Sign up here for regular notification emails.

Check back next week for more great picks!

Might we have finally uncovered how antidepressants work? Can lucid dreamers talk meaningfully to scientists in their sleep? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of Feb 15 - 21 2021 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

In this week's best and brightest from the world of science news, explore the life of Hedy Lamarr, the silver screen actress who made waves in the physics world, and get interplanetary with the Mars rover's  newest shots from space. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• How antidepressants work, at last? by Derek Lowe at Science Translational Medicine.

A new paper may hold the key to uncovering how antidepressants work.
Credit:ninachildish via Flickr (CC BY ND 2.0)

• People can answer questions about their dreams without waking up by Krista Charles for New Scientist.
• Lessons I’ve learned from goin’ admin by Small Pond Science.
• A different early-bird special: Have vaccine, will travel by Debra Kamin for The New York Times.
• The range of microbes in your sourdough starter affect its smell and rise by Adam Fortais for Massive Science.
• What’s happening in Texas is climate nihilism by Dan Samorodnitsky for Massive Science.
• Adjusting scholarship expectations after the pandemic ends by Small Pond Science.
• Hedy Lamarr: The actress that made (frequency hopping) waves by Marie Poirot at EUSci: Edinburgh University Science Media.
• How to power implantable and ingestible electronics by Michael Berger for Nanowerk.
• SARS-like bat coronaviruses are not only in China by Vincent Racaniello in Virology Blog. 
• NASA releases “exhilarating” image of Mars rover just above the planet by Eric Berger for Ars Technica.
• Physicists need to be more careful with how they name things by Ian Durham, Daniel Garisto, and Karoline Wiesner for Scientific American.
• Allergy: How memory becomes trouble by YongGuang Jiang for ImmunoBites.
• Next stop: clinical hair regeneration  by Adam Phillips for It Ain't Magic.
• Don’t let Covid boost another killer by Mohan P. Joshi for Knowable Magazine.
• How to deal with boredom, digested by Emily Reynolds for BPS Research Digest.
• Surprise!! A surprise birthday party is a “touchy” subject during a global pandemic by Ariane Pessentheiner for NeuWrite San Diego.
• Sounding the alarm: How noise hurts the heart by Cypress Hansen for Knowable magazine.

To indulge your curiosity even more, follow us on Facebook or Twitter for honourable mentions of great posts that didn't quite make our #SciSeekPicks list this week. Want #SciSeekPicks to help satisfy your scientific curiosity every week? Sign up here for regular notification emails.

Check back next week for more great picks!

How do small disease-carrying animals adapt to human environments? Could wearing masks have detrimental effects on babies' development? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of Feb 8-14 2021 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

Welcome to this week's edition of the very best from the world of science news. This week, discover the newly uncovered state of matter; the swirlionic state (hint: it's swirly), and get the latest on the Chinese unmanned mission to Mars. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• Small animals that carry disease adapt well to our activities by Sriram Devata for Sciworthy.

Small animals from disturbed wild land are more likely to adapt to urban environments, and more likely to carry disease.
Credit: Florida Fish and Wildlife via Flickr (CC BY ND)

• Masks can be detrimental to babies' speech and language development by David J. Lewkowicz for Scientific American.
• Teaching online during a pandemic by Grant Golub for LSE Student life blog.
• Growing pains and trust by Amy Csizmar Dalal for This Is What A Computer Scientist Looks Like.
• How you make an adenovirus vaccine by Derek Lowe for Science Translational Medicine.
• Intestinal roundworm cells eat their own DNA as part of a healthy lifecycle by Sree Rama Chaitanya for Massive Science.
• Physicists take another step towards room temperature superconductivity by Thomas Mittiga for Massive Science.
• TWIST (The Week in Science & Technology): February 8-14, 2021 by Mikael Angelo Francisco for FlipScience.
• 10 space pictures that look so good you won’t believe they’re real by Ethan Siegel at Starts With A Bang.
• Blow your own bubble: Forensic application of the oral microbiome by Catherine Allen for Forensic Bites.
• China’s Tianwen-1 mission is now orbiting Mars ahead of landing by Leah Crane at Scientific American.
• Physicists discover new state of active matter by Sci-News.com.
• Weaving a good yarn: Artificial muscles one step closer with carbon nanotube discovery – Lab Down Under by Miklos Bolza for Lab Down Under.
• Extending magnetic manipulation of micromachines to non-magnetic materials by Michael Berger for Nanowerk.
• Energy Management: From Energy Generation to Production by Rohit Imandi for Energy.jo.

To indulge your curiosity even more, follow us on Facebook or Twitter for honourable mentions of great posts that didn't quite make our #SciSeekPicks list this week. Want #SciSeekPicks to help satisfy your scientific curiosity every week? Sign up here for regular notification emails.

Check back next week for more great picks!

How does your sourdough starter's place of origin affect its microbiome? What are the myths and truths about vaccine manufacture? Find out in ScienceSeeker's picks of the best posts for the week of Feb 1 - 7 2021 #SciSeekPicks #SciComm.

In this week's best and brightest from the world of science news, explore consciousness as researchers take a step towards finding its basis, and find out exactly why food sticks to the center of 'non-stick' pans. ScienceSeeker editors' favourite posts within their respective areas of interest and expertise also cover many other important and exciting topics. Why not have a read, inform yourself, and indulge your scientific curiosity?

• Podcast: Get to know your sourdough microbiome by Charles Bergquist and Erin McKenney for Science Friday.

Researchers found that on a global level, it was hard to tell the microbes in Parisian bread apart from those found in San Francisco or elsewhere. Sorry.
Image credit: jeffreyw via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

• Myths of vaccine manufacturing by Derek Lowe at Science Translational Medicine.
• Phage therapy is effective against the superbug Acinetobacter baumannii by Ashley Knox for Massive Science.
• An ecological trap exposes many bats to a deadly fungus by Sara Zlotnik for Massive Science.
• Do we finally know what makes us conscious? by Greg Fish at World of Weird Things.
• Farm protests in India are writing the Green Revolution’s obituary by Aniket Aga for Scientific American.
• New wastewater treatment method: Simple Cheaper Greener by Sudhriti at Bio in your Life.
• Hybrid supercapacitor may offer path to cheaper, safer, and cleaner energy storage by Miklos Bolza for Lab Down Under.
• Giant radio telescope reaches milestone en route to construction start by Daniel Clery for Science.
• The Uncensored Guide To ‘Oumuamua, Aliens, And That Harvard Astronomer by Ethan Siegel at Starts With A Bang  
• New study cracks the case of why food sticks to center of nonstick pans by Jennifer Ouelette for Ars Technica.
• Stay healthy when exercising outdoors by Kelly DiNardo for New York Times.
• Could the immune system be key to Alzheimer’s disease? by Esther Landhuis for Knowable magazine.
• Grape consumption protects human Skin from UV-Induced Photodamage by Sci-News.com.
• Podcast: 446 - Biofilm benefits bone braces by Jesse Noar at BacterioFiles.

To indulge your curiosity even more, follow us on Facebook or Twitter for honourable mentions of great posts that didn't quite make our #SciSeekPicks list this week. Want #SciSeekPicks to help satisfy your scientific curiosity every week? Sign up here for regular notification emails.

Check back next week for more great picks!

Call for Editors 2021

 Looking for a new challenge or opportunity in 2021?

When it comes to reporting science, the mainstream media can struggle, and often falls into sensationalism, undermining its message. ScienceSeeker is therefore an essential resource, enabling readers to access knowledge that helps make sense of the headlines. We aggregate the most comprehensive list of science blogs, written by a community including top scientists. Every week, our volunteer editors scour what’s been reported to distil it down to the most essential content. We’ve got a vibrant team - but we're still short in some areas.

Would you like to join us? E-mail sciseekers AT gmail DOT com if you're interested or have any questions. Read on for more details:

What is ScienceSeeker?

ScienceSeeker is a unique science blog aggregator that brings together over 2,500 blog sites (and growing!). It emerged as part of the ScienceOnline movement that has energized the science communication community in recent years. Although ScienceOnline is now defunct, ScienceSeeker continues on a sustainable basis thanks to the sterling effort of its volunteer supporters. For more details about what we do and who we are, see our 'About' page.

What does an editor do?

A ScienceSeeker editor commits to spending some of their valuable time reading science blogs or listening to science podcasts and selecting the newest developments in science every week. The commitment depends on circumstances. An especially busy person might be able to make selections from their general reading. An enthusiastic editor might dedicate three hours a week or more to select the most relevant content. Each editor usually focuses on a limited set of subject areas to restrict the time they have to invest, although there are opportunities to help build ScienceSeeker's platform. The goal of this recruitment exercise is to add to the team of editors so that the effort can be shared more broadly.

Who are we looking for?

We are currently interested in expanding the coverage on science discoveries in the areas of:

• Computer science
• Education
• Psychology
• Mathematics
• Oceanography
• Plant Science
• Geosciences
• Science videos

We also welcome help with curating and/or creating content for our YouTube channel. If you are fond of reading, listening to and/or watching science, it’s your chance to contribute to science outreach by highlighting those pieces you think the society needs to be aware of!

What’s in it for you?

At a general level, it’s rewarding to make an input into a community. In this case you’re helping create an authoritative voice on science that supplements and corrects conventional media coverage. You’re also boosting the reach of individual blogs that might not otherwise be read by many people.

At a personal level, being a ScienceSeeker editor is a relatively low-effort activity that looks good on your résumé. There are also great benefits that arise from the effort invested in reading ScienceSeeker blogs. For scientists and writers, ScienceSeeker blogs often showcase ideas, research and styles of communication that you might not otherwise have encountered that can prove useful in your paid work. And whoever you are, ScienceSeeker blogs are interesting and entertaining – reading them is not a bad way to spend time at all!

Is there a closing date?

No. The ScienceSeeker team is continually evolving, and as such we always welcome enquiries from prospective editors.