The Scientist - USA (2019-12)

12.2019 | THE SCIENTIST 5

AGUSTÍN FOLGUEIRA; ARIEL SILBER; © GOLNAZ SHAHMIRZADI PHOTOGRAPHY

Department Contents

DECEMBER 2019

10 FROM THE EDITOR

Innovation Farming

Nurturing ideas to fruition, like

growing plants, is a complex process

that relies on a suitable substrate and

favorable growth conditions.

BY BOB GRANT

12 CRITIC AT LARGE

Cracking the Morphogenetic Code

Insights into non-neural bioelectricity

are helping researchers understand

organismal growth and form.

BY JOSHUA FINKELSTEIN, KELLY

McLAUGHLIN, AND MICHAEL LEVIN

14 FREEZE FRAME

Selected Images of the Day

from the-scientist.com

17 NOTEBOOK

Riding the Wind; Hot Cell; Polar

Naps; Lava Life

25 MODUS OPERANDI

CRISPR-Responsive Gels

A novel system for customizable

DNA-hydrogel manipulations

BY RUTH WILLIAMS

48 THE LITERATURE

Mitochondrial diversity across cell

types; Alzheimer’s drug for Chagas;

C. elegans development cell by cell

50 PROFILE

Exploring the Matrix

UCSF cell and molecular biologist

Zena Werb unveiled a role for

the breakdown of proteins in the

extracellular matrix in both healthy

and pathogenic cells.

BY DIANA KWON

53 SCIENTIST TO WATCH

Sergiu Pașca: Brain Builder

BY EMILY MAKOWSKI

54 CAREERS

The Language Question

Do English-only policies promote or

undermine inclusivity in the lab?

BY SHAWNA WILLIAMS

60 READING FRAMES

The Pragmatic Truth of

Scientific Claims

Studying the history of science’s

successes and failures can give us

much-needed perspective on the

pursuit of knowledge.

BY JAMES C. ZIMRING

64 FOUNDATIONS

Deathly Displays, circa 1662–

BY SUKANYA CHARUCHANDRA

IN EVERY ISSUE

9 CONTRIBUTORS

11 SPEAKING OF SCIENCE

62 THE GUIDE

CORRECTIONS:

In the November feature “A Tale of Two Genomes,” the illustration

incorrectly labeled the red copepods as coming from Santa Cruz instead of

San Diego. The Scientist regrets the error.

48

17

53

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