Carl Zimmer

Here's a new kind of virus that scientists have generated with AI. And here's my story about what it means for us to have gotten to this remarkable moment: https://nyti.ms/4bBhoWB (Gift link)

Scientists are drawing the map of autism-linked proteins in search of treatments. Here’s a story from me and Azeen Ghorayshi on an ambitious new study. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4wWPZpM

The lab is a mysterious place--where some people have "magic hands," and some experiments just won't work. Here's my story about the unspoken knowledge of science, and the struggle to uncover it. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/3UccF7Z

Meet SpudCell, a synthetic cell made from lifeless ingredients that feeds, grows, divides, and experiences selection. If it doesn't have all the hallmarks of life, it has a lot! Here's my story. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4vCbTih

Plague bacteria may have caused lethal epidemics 5500 years ago among hunter-gatherers--almost 5000 years before the Black Death. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/3SdK8hb

Can buildings fight airborne diseases the way they fight fires? I went to Washington to meet scientists showing off their works in progress. Here's my report (gift link): https://nyti.ms/3SijML2

Bruce is a New Zealand parrot missing his top beak. It’s a serious disability, but he has managed to become the alpha of his group, through creativity. Here’s my story about Bruce and the mostly mysterious natural history of disability. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4cwVGT5

When scientists used CRISPR to edit the DNA of human embryos, it made catastrophic mistakes. But now they've used a newer tool to make far more precise edits. Here's my story about how this changes the germline engineering debate. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4uiBLOH

The latest outbreak of Ebola disease has surpassed 1,000 cases since April. We have almost no idea of where Bundibugyo virus came from. Here's my story on the search for the disease's reservoirs. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4eHK2pO

As the Bundibugyo outbreak continues to grow, researchers are scrambling to start clinical trials of antivirals and monoclonal antibodies to see if any work against the virus. Here's my story on this race, with Stephanie Nolen. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4eEZHqR

You may recognize names like "Hantavirus" and "Ebola virus." But "Andes virus" & "Bundibugyo virus" may not ring a bell. I wrote about how recent outbreaks highlight virus diversity, and our difficulty putting names on it. Yet our survival depends getting names right. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4dzRPqn

I first met Neil Shubin 30 years ago when he was digging for fossils of our fishy ancestors in Pennsylvania road cuts. Now he's becoming president of the National Academy of Sciences. We talked about taking the helm of the 163-year-old organization at this fraught moment. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4giD3FX

Scientists are scrambling to test vaccines and drugs that can work against the Bundibugyo virus. Here's my story on some of their prime candidates. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4u7cN4A

I wrote today about a big study on replication--and why it's so hard to know if a study will hold up or not. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4sNu3MF

A three-decade long study of chimpanzees has revealed a primate version of a bloody civil war. It's now at risk of getting eliminated due to cuts at the National Science Foundation. My story here (gift link): https://nyti.ms/4mhr5NQ

Until now, scientists have identified only a few dozen variants of genes that went through natural selection in humans in the past 10,000 years. A new study claims to find hundreds--maybe thousands. Here's my story on the provocative research, and the mixed reception it's getting. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4tSJH9G

The US government is entering a partnership to store frozen cells and other biological samples from endangered and threatened species with Colossal, a private company best known for claiming to "de-extinct" dire wolves. Story by me & Catrin Einhorn Gift link: https://nyti.ms/43Rzhfw

Neanderthals, modern humans, and the rules of attraction. Here's my story on a tantalizing study on mating preferences as far back as 250,000 years ago. Gift link: https://nyti.ms/4bcNzvy