Long before humans cultivated crops or sailed between continents, a group of plant viruses was already evolving among wild plants in Eurasia. According to a new international study, the ancestors of modern tymoviruses likely emerged before the last Ice Age, reshaping scientists’ understanding of the vast evolutionary history of plant disease.

A new study finds that the more a state’s budget relied on sales tax revenue, the more likely it was to shorten stay-at-home orders during the early stages of the COVID pandemic. The findings suggest that state public-health decisions may have been influenced by unexpected budgetary constraints imposed by public-health restrictions.