Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 21 August 2026 · From issue 25

Advances in small area population estimation in the absence of national census data

New computer models can estimate local populations without a full national census.

Andrew J. Tatem, Gianluca Boo et al.

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Also in issue 25 15 papers

Grocery swap suggestions made online shopping carts healthier or lower carbon, depending on the suggestion type.
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In a model, tropical American and south China primates face the highest future climate risk.
Science Advances
In worms, many different long-life tricks turn on the same set of genes.
eLife
In lab-grown human brain cells and mice, restless energy factories inside brain cells destabilize signals linked to bipolar disorder.
Nature Communications
Soft gel particles stretched sound-driven water jets up to 44% longer before breaking.
Nature Communications
Stronger daily activity rhythms linked to lower odds of faster biological aging.
Nature Communications
AI sharpens blurry ground telescope galaxy photos to near space telescope quality.
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Aging tests based on DNA marks react most strongly to drugs and lifestyle changes.
Nature Medicine
Ancient gene duplications, before grasses existed, built the chemical tools that made grasses special.
Science
In a model, a new noise filter lets a detector spot the sun's neutrino switch within 10 years.
Physical Review Letters
In lab cells, losing one shielding protein let hidden RNA set off inflammation.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
A scientist's career shows how crop gene maps led to studying why tubers evolved many times.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
In mice, two brain proteins build separate circuits that control different behaviors.
Science Advances
In lab tests, a porous liquid turned carbon dioxide into ethanol using light.
Science Advances

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