Science NewsSome of 2025’s scientific discoveries broke recordsLongest lightning, the first AI-generated genomes and biggest black hole smashup were among this year’s top science superlatives.Dec 31, 2025
Science NewsIn a first, orcas and dolphins seen possibly hunting togetherNew footage shows orcas and dolphins coordinating hunts, hinting at interspecies teamwork to track and catch salmon off British Columbia.Dec 31, 2025
Science NewsThese fossil finds shed new light on the past in 2025The year's top paleontological wonders ranged from a 540-million-year-old penis worm to a decades-old rodent impression.Dec 30, 2025
Science NewsAgainst the odds, a burbling lava planet retains an atmosphereThe James Webb Space Telescope detected an atmosphere on a lava-covered exoplanet, evidence that small planets close to stars can have atmospheres.Dec 30, 2025
Science NewsCrush explores how gravity shapes life as we know itJames Riordan’s new book will help readers wrap their heads around this mysterious, fundamental force of nature.Dec 29, 2025
Science NewsScience taught us a few new tricks about our pets in 2025Are we reading our dog’s moods right? Does TV really comfort them when we’re away? These pet stories were catnip to us this year.Dec 29, 2025
Science NewsThese medical breakthroughs and advances gave patients new hope in 2025Advances delivered what may feel like medical miracles, including the first bladder transplant, a lifesaving personalized gene therapy and more.Dec 26, 2025
Science NewsHave a taste of our favorite food stories from 2025This year, researchers took a bite out of culinary innovation. Check out some of our favorite food-related stories from 2025.Dec 24, 2025
Science NewsResearch hailing the benefits of the COVID-19 shot keeps comingThere was more good health news about the COVID-19 vaccine for infants, kids and adults in December. There’s still time to get the shot this winter.Dec 23, 2025
Science NewsThese space stories made us look up in 2025Space is always inspiring and 2025 was no exception, with finding Betelgeuse’s buddy, debuting a prolific survey telescope and more.Dec 23, 2025
Science NewsTwo more antibiotics have been approved in the U.S. to treat gonorrheaThe bacteria behind the sexually transmitted disease gonorrhea is known for developing antibiotic resistance. Now there are two new treatment options.Dec 23, 2025
Science NewsThese are our favorite animal stories of 2025From clever cockatoos to vomiting spiders, these cool critters captivated us this year.Dec 22, 2025
Science NewsAn underwater volcano off Oregon didn’t erupt in 2025 after all. Why not?Data from Axial, the most-monitored underwater volcano, are helping geophysicists hone eruption predictions. For Axial, 2026 is their next bet.Dec 22, 2025
Science NewsWatch a cancer cell evade captureBy moving around, some cancer cells force attacking immune cells to just nibble at the edges rather than engulf them completely.Dec 22, 2025
Science NewsLife in all of its complexityEditor in Chief Nancy Shute talks about life’s complexities, from its evolution on Earth as a single cell to complex human behavior.Dec 20, 2025
Science NewsAn asteroid could hit the moon in 2032, scattering debris toward EarthResearchers are keeping an eye on the building-sized asteroid 2024 YR4, which has a 4 percent chance of hitting the moon seven years from now.Dec 19, 2025
Science NewsHe made beer that’s also a vaccine. Now controversy is brewingAn NIH scientist’s maverick approach reveals legal, ethical, moral, scientific and social challenges to developing potentially life-saving vaccines.Dec 19, 2025
Science NewsBreaking Ground CrosswordSolve the crossword from our January 2026 issue, in which we take a crack at geological principlesDec 19, 2025
Science NewsNew Hubble images may solve the case of a disappearing exoplanetA massive collision between two asteroid-sized bodies around a nearby star offers a rare look at the violent process of planetary construction.Dec 18, 2025
Science NewsThis newfound cascade of events may explain some female gut painGut problems like irritable bowel syndrome are often worse in women. A mouse study reveals a pain pathway involving estrogen, gut cells and bacteria.Dec 18, 2025
Science NewsAs gambling addiction spreads, one scientist’s work reveals timely insightsPsychiatrist Robert Custer spent his life convincing doctors that compulsive gambling was not an impulse control problem. Today, his research is foundational for diagnosis and treatment.Dec 18, 2025
Science NewsA new hunt for an Earth analog beginsThe Terra Hunting Experiment will track the wobbles of dozens of stars nightly for years in the most focused hunt yet for an Earth twin.Dec 17, 2025
Science NewsPolar plunges aren’t just for the daringBragging rights and an adrenaline rush aren’t the only reasons to start the year with a frigid swim. A dip in icy water builds resilience.Dec 17, 2025
Science NewsThis giant microbe organizes its DNA in a surprising way3-D microscopy shows that the giant bacterium Thiovulum imperiosus squeezes its DNA into peripheral pouches, not a central mass like typical bacteria.Dec 17, 2025
Science NewsA quantum trick helps trim bloated AI modelsMachine learning techniques that make use of tensor networks could manipulate data more efficiently and help open the black box of AI models.Dec 16, 2025
Science NewsAncient DNA rewrites the tale of when and how cats left AfricaCats were domesticated in North Africa, but spread to Europe only about 2,000 years ago. Earlier reports of “house” cats were wild cats.Dec 16, 2025
Science NewsHow to levitate objects sans magicIt’s possible to defy gravity using sound waves, magnets or electricity, but today’s methods can’t hoist heavy items high in the sky.Dec 15, 2025
Science NewsDark matter ‘nuggets’ could explain the Milky Way’s mysterious glowA mysterious excess of far-ultraviolet light seen across the Milky Way could come from the annihilation of clumpy dark matter.Dec 15, 2025
Science NewsMosquitos use it to suck blood. Researchers used it to 3-D printA mosquito proboscis repurposed as a 3-D printing nozzle can print filaments around 20 micrometers wide, half the width of a fine human hair.Dec 12, 2025
Science News‘Black Religion in the Madhouse’ examines psychiatry and race post-Civil WarIn the aftermath of slavery, white psychiatrists diagnosed Black people with “religious excitement” and claimed they were unfit for freedom.Dec 12, 2025
Science NewsEarly Earth’s belly held onto its waterWhen the early Earth’s magma ocean crystallized 4.4 billion years ago, the deep mantle trapped an ocean’s worth of water, scientists say.Dec 11, 2025
Science NewsHow these strange cells may explain the origin of complex lifeThe tiny pantheon known as the Asgard archaea bear traits that hint at how plants, animals and fungi emerged on Earth.Dec 11, 2025
Science NewsBats might be the next bird flu wild cardFinding that vampire bats along Peru’s coast carried H5N1 antibodies raises concerns that multiple bat species could become reservoirs for the virus.Dec 10, 2025
Science NewsNeandertals mastered fire-making tools 400,000 years agoArchaeologists found flint, iron pyrite to strike it and sediments where a fire was probably built several times at an ancient site in England.Dec 10, 2025
Science NewsFrom viruses to elephants, nature thrives on tiled patternsA compilation of 100 examples of biological tilings shows how repeated natural motifs enhance strength, flexibility and other key functions.Dec 10, 2025
Science NewsTrucked-in honeybees may edge out bigger bumblebee foragersThe finding could guide beekeepers to keep hives out of most vulnerable areas of the Irish heathlands.Dec 10, 2025
Science NewsA look under the hood of DeepSeek’s AI models doesn’t provide all the answersA peer-reviewed paper about Chinese startup DeepSeek's models explains their training approach but not how they work through intermediate steps.Dec 09, 2025
Science NewsSome irritability is normal. Here’s when it’s notIrritability is a normal response to frustrations, but it can sometimes signal an underlying mental health disorder, like depression or anxiety.Dec 09, 2025
Science NewsHuge relatives of white sharks lived earlier than thoughtLamniform sharks such as great whites and tiger sharks are famous for their size. The first such giants evolved 15 million years earlier than thought.Dec 08, 2025
Science NewsGLP-1 drugs failed to slow Alzheimer’s in two big clinical trialsTantalizing results from small trials and anecdotes raised hopes that drugs like Ozempic could help. Despite setbacks, researchers aren’t giving up yet.Dec 08, 2025
Science NewsDrought may have doomed the ‘hobbits’ of FloresStalagmite data suggest Homo floresiensis faced prolonged drought that stressed both them and their prey, contributing to their disappearance.Dec 08, 2025
Science NewsA CDC panel has struck down universal newborn hepatitis B vaccinationA reshaped vaccine committee voted to scale back newborn hepatitis B shots despite decades of data showing the birth dose is safe, effective and vital.Dec 05, 2025
Science NewsBig Neandertal noses weren’t made for coldTiny cameras threaded inside a Neandertal skull provide evidence that their big noses were not an adaptation to cold climates.Dec 05, 2025
Science NewsHow male seahorses tap into their mothering sideBy studying the genes responsible for the seahorse’s brood pouch, researchers uncovered a new route to “motherhood.”Dec 05, 2025
Science NewsNanotyrannus is still not a teenage T. rexNanotyrannus wasn’t a juvenile T. rex but a petite adult of a separate species, a new study of fossil hyoid bones finds, bolstering a recent report.Dec 04, 2025
Science NewsHow a bacterial toxin linked to colon cancer messes with DNAA closeup look at colibactin’s structure reveals chemical motifs that guide its mutation-wreaking “warheads” to specific stretches of DNA.Dec 04, 2025
Science NewsChatbots spewing facts, and falsehoods, can sway votersChatbots that dole out fact-laden arguments can sway voters. Those facts don’t have to be true.Dec 04, 2025
Science NewsA volcanic eruption might have helped bring the Black Plague to EuropeA volcanic eruption may have triggered a deadly chain of events that brought the Black Plague to Europe in the 14th century.Dec 04, 2025
Science NewsAncient DNA reveals China’s first ‘pet’ cat wasn’t the house catThe modern house cat reached China in the 8th century. Before that, another cat — the leopard cat — hunted the rodents in ancient Chinese settlements.Dec 03, 2025
Science NewsAncient southern Africans took genetic evolution in a new directionAn ancient, shared set of human-specific genes underwent changes in a geographically isolated population after around 300,000 years ago, scientists say.Dec 03, 2025
