Babies in daycare share microbes

In this episode of Science Quickly, we dive into Google DeepMind’s new artificial intelligence model AlphaGenome, which could help researchers better understand how noncoding DNA shapes gene expression. We also look at how doctors pulled off a medical marvel when they kept a man alive without lungs for two days. Plus, we learn how researchers cracked an evolutionary puzzle involving a peculiar flower.

Recommended Reading:

Google DeepMind unleashes new AI to investigate DNA’s ‘dark matter’

Doctors keep patient alive using ‘artificial lungs’ for two days

Babies who attend daycare share ‘good’ germs, too

E-mail us at sciencequickly@sciam.com if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!

Discover something new everyday: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for our daily newsletter.

Science Quickly is produced by Kendra Pierre-Louis, Fonda Mwangi, Sushmita Pathak and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura, with fact-checking by Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck. Our theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices