How mantis shrimps survive landing the world’s fastest punch

Hello Nature readers,
Today we learn what’s behind the mantis shrimp’s powerful punch, explore OpenAI’s ‘deep research’ tool and learn six ways to cultivate allyship for a diverse, equitable and inclusive academia.

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Mighty shrimp absorbs its own shockwaves

Peacock mantis shrimp (Odontodactylus scyllarus) might be small, but thanks to a specialized limb, they pack a mighty punch. Their jabs are strong enough to crack the shells of other crustaceans, and now researchers have worked out how they can do it without damaging their own body. The punching limb, called the dactyl club, has a multi-layered structure that allows it to absorb the shockwaves generated on impact. The findings could provide inspiration for the design of artificial materials with useful properties, says physicist and study co-author Maroun Abi Ghanem.

Nose bacteria can sneak drugs into the brain

Bacteria that colonize the nose have been engineered to ferry drugs to the brains of mice. Researchers examined bacteria in the nasal microbiome and identified the species Lactobacillus plantarum as both safe to use in treatment and able to bind to a molecule found on a nose membrane connected to the brain. They then engineered L. plantarum to produce and secrete three-appetite suppressing hormones. Obese mice that received a dose of the bacteria in their nose each day for eight weeks ate less and lost weight during the treatment period. The bacteria probably don’t enter the brain themselves, but carry the drug to the point where it can diffuse the rest of the way.

How useful is OpenAI’s ‘deep research’ tool

Tech giant OpenAI has unveiled a pay-for-access tool called ‘deep research’, which synthesizes information from dozens or hundreds of websites into a cited report. The tool’s ability to write literature reviews and identify gaps in knowledge has impressed many scientists, but others have noted that its output is not up to the standard you’d expect from a human. Its launch follows that of a similar tool from Google, also called Deep Research, released in December. Artificial-intelligence systems like these could be used to update human-authored reviews more regularly than is feasible for humans, say experts, although OpenAI admits the tool is currently prone to hallucinations and false citations.

How to be a good ally in academia

Members of advantaged groups can lighten the load of efforts to create a diverse, equitable and inclusive academia — a load that is often disproportionately shouldered by members of disadvantaged groups. It’s worth it: a simulation tool suggests that having even a small proportion of people in a network engaging in allyship actions can foster greater inclusion for those at risk of being marginalized. Behavioural scientist Hsuan-Che ‘Brad’ Huang, and social psychologists Lucy De Souza and Toni Schmader, offer six actionable steps for academics who want to step up to the plate for their colleagues.

Futures: Future legal

A cryogenically frozen man wakes up in a future that’s less welcoming than he’d hoped in the latest short story for Nature’s Futures series.

Five best science books this week

Andrew Robinson’s pick of the top five science books to read this week includes a roundup of innovations that changed the course of history and reflections from a poet and a space historian on humanity’s fascination with Mars.

Podcast: street smarts don’t help in class

Mathematics skills learnt in real-world situations might not translate to the classroom and vice versa. A team surveyed children in India who work in markets and found that, although the kids could quickly solve complex market-based problems in their heads, they struggled with calculations typically used in schools. The reverse was seen for schoolchildren who had no market-selling experience. The researchers hope this finding could help design curricula that bridge the gap between intuitive and formal maths. “What matters is that kids can systematically solve problems, not that they use the right algorithm,” says economist and study co-author Abhijit Banerjee.