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Communications

 

Beware the ‘awestruck effect’

Charismatic business leaders can cause their followers to suppress emotions, which can harm companies over the long term, according to new research.

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Christmas Letters from a Second World War prison camp

Moving letters sent by the academic John Crook while he was a prisoner at the notorious Stalag Luft VIII-B camp in World War II reveal his indomitable spirit and brave resolve to remain positive for the sake of loved ones back home.

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Epigenetic discovery suggests DNA modifications more diverse than previously thought

The world of epigenetics – where molecular ‘switches’ attached to DNA turn genes on and off – has just got bigger with the discovery by a team of scientists from the University of Cambridge of a new type of epigenetic modification.

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Teaching machines to see: new smartphone-based system could accelerate development of driverless cars

Two technologies which use deep learning techniques to help machines to see and recognise their location and surroundings could be used for the development of driverless cars and autonomous robotics – and can be used on a regular camera or smartphone.

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Terme Boxer makes an entrance at the Museum of Classical Archaeology

A heavyweight addition has joined the ranks at the Museum of Classical Archaeology after a cast of the Terme Boxer was placed on display.

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How real is the science in Star Wars?

The anticipation is over: The Force Awakens is with us. To a self-confessed geek like Karen Yu from the Institute for Manufacturing, this is like all of her Christmases coming at once. It also raises some very important questions: what is the Force, how do you make a lightsaber – and does the new film finally put to rest...

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Opinion: How we built a robot that can evolve – and why it won’t take over the world

Fumiya Iida (Department of Engineering) discusses the "mother" robot he has built with his colleagues, and why reacting to developments in robotics with undue fear could stifle research and creativity.

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Stem cells likely to be safe for use in regenerative medicine, study confirms

Cambridge researchers have found the strongest evidence to date that human pluripotent stem cells – cells that can give rise to all tissues of the body – will develop normally once transplanted into an embryo. The findings, published today in the journal Cell Stem Cell, could have important implications for regenerative...

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‘Smoke detector’ enables fungal partnership that allowed plants to first survive on land

A protein that detects hormones in smoke has a much wider and more ancient role in the plant kingdom – detecting microscopic soil fungi which colonise plants and feed nutrients to their cells. This ancient symbiosis with soil fungi is thought to be how plants survived on land millions of years before they evolved roots.

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‘Virtual fossil’ reveals last common ancestor of humans and Neanderthals

New digital techniques have allowed researchers to predict structural evolution of the skull in the lineage of Homo sapiens and Neanderthals, in an effort to fill in blanks in the fossil record, and provide the first 3D rendering of their last common ancestor. The study suggests populations that led to the lineage split...

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