An Unknown Creature Found in Utah

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150 million years ago, an unknown creature dwelt in what is now utah. Scientists may now be able to figure out its identity based on its vomit. The tiny lump of vomit was deposited into a pond and subsequently fossilized. Despite only measuring around one centimeter square in size, the fossil is densely packed with more than 20 undigested bones,. Other items that may be soft tissues or part of the vomit material.

00:46 Synthetic cells made from bacterial bits

For years researchers have been interested in creating artificial cells, as they could be useful for manufacturing compounds and understanding how life works. Now a new method shows how this can be accomplished using polymer droplets that integrate components of burst bacteria. The synthesised cells are able to perform translation and transcription and have several features that resemble real cells, like a proto-nucleus and a cytoskeleton.

Research article: Xu et al.

News and Views: Life brought to artificial cells

09:33 Research Highlights

A mysterious ancient creature identified from its vomit, and the combination of immunity, diet and bacteria that could protect from metabolic disorders.

Research Highlight: The Jurassic vomit that stood the test of time

Research Highlight: A sugary diet wrecks gut microbes — and their anti-obesity efforts

11:42 Briefing Chat

We discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, research on the safety of three-person embryos, and the gene that gave our ancestors an edge over neanderthals.

Nature News: Embryos with DNA from three people develop normally in first safety study

Nature News: Did this gene give modern human brains their edge?

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