Science NewsWhy some chaos-seekers just want to watch the world burnA political scientist explains how a confluence of personality traits and perceived status loss can encourage some people to generate chaos as a solution to their woes.Feb 21, 2025
Science NewsThe butts of these blowfly larvae mimic termite facesThe young of a mysterious blowfly species look — and smell — like the termites they hide among.Feb 21, 2025
Science NewsBuried Treasure CrosswordSolve our latest interactive crossword. We'll publish science-themed crosswords and math puzzles on alternating months.Feb 20, 2025
Science NewsBiological sex is not as simple as male or femaleA recent Trump executive order defines sex based on gamete size. But the order oversimplifies genetics, hormones and reproductive biology.Feb 20, 2025
Science NewsFog collection could alleviate water stress in desert citiesWater harvesting from foggy air provided up to 5 liters of water a day in a yearlong Chilean desert experiment.Feb 20, 2025
Science NewsSquishy materials reveal new physics of static electricity The charge transferred when identical objects touch depends on their history, scientists find.Feb 19, 2025
Science NewsEarth had new, temporary radiation rings last yearTwo bands of radiation called the Van Allen belts encircle Earth. After a May 2024 solar superstorm, two more showed up between those belts.Feb 19, 2025
Science NewsA weird ice that may form on alien planets has finally been observedHigh-pressure experiments generated the first direct observation of plastic ice, which has qualities of both crystalline ice and liquid water.Feb 18, 2025
Science News‘It felt like dread.’ Hear what severe depression can do to peopleIn the second episode of The Deep End, listeners hear what it’s like to live with severe depression and the backstory of an experimental treatment.Feb 17, 2025
Science NewsGiant camel-like creatures lived thousands of years longer than onceFossilized teeth from two ancient megafauna suggest they roamed Brazil 3,500 years ago. The find “opens the door to rewrite South American history.”Feb 17, 2025
Science News‘Uncertain, anxious, fearful.’ That’s the mood at 2025’s first big U.S. science meetingScientists are losing funding and even their jobs under the new Trump administration. Researchers at the AAAS meeting shared fears and coping strategies.Feb 16, 2025
Science NewsWho are the indirect costs of NIH research? We talked to 3The funding agency aims to cap “indirect costs” in biomedical research grants. But this behind-the-scenes work is crucial to making research happen.Feb 14, 2025
Science NewsHow a mushroom coral goes for a walk without legsTime-lapse video shows how a mushroom coral polyp pulses and inflates, flinging its soft body into micro-hops to slowly move itself to a new location.Feb 14, 2025
Science NewsEven epic rainfall may not be enough to refill SoCal’s aquifersMore than a dozen atmospheric rivers dumped rainfall on California in 2023 but replenished only 25 percent of the water lost from aquifers since 2006.Feb 13, 2025
Science NewsIn a first, zebra cams reveal herds on the move with giraffesSix zebras wore video cameras attached to collars, capturing the equines’ daily life. Sticking with giraffes may let the two species protect each other.Feb 13, 2025
Science NewsWhy a norovirus vaccine isn’t available — yetNorovirus is highly infectious and causing a lot of illness this winter. Several vaccine candidates are making their way through clinical trials.Feb 13, 2025
Science NewsA pancreatic cancer blood test called PAC-MANN could spot the disease early The test relies on a magnetic nanoparticle linked to fluorescent molecules to detect pancreatic cancer proteins.Feb 12, 2025
Science NewsA bacteria-based Band-Aid helps plants heal their woundsRecent research into bacterial cellulose patches may speed plants' recovery, improve grafting and help with preservation.Feb 12, 2025
Science NewsOzempic’s key ingredient may reduce the desire to drink alcoholIn the first clinical trial of its kind, people taking semaglutide drank less alcohol, adding to its promise of fighting addiction.Feb 12, 2025
Science NewsA cosmic neutrino of unknown origins smashes energy recordsA deep-sea detector glimpsed a particle with 220 million billion electron volts of energy — around 20 times as energetic as any neutrino seen before.Feb 12, 2025
Science NewsMigrating whale sharks make pit stops at oil and gas rigsHuman-made structures act as artificial reefs, luring plankton and, in turn, Earth’s largest fish. That could put whale sharks at risk of ship strikes.Feb 12, 2025
Science NewsHistorical writings reveal how people weathered the Little Ice AgeRecords from 500 years ago document floods, famine and death in 16th century Transylvania due to wild weather swings during the Little Ice Age.Feb 12, 2025
Science NewsJust a small rise in global temperatures could be deadlyAs early as mid-century, an area of land that adds up to the size of the U.S. could hit temperatures hazardous for human health.Feb 11, 2025
Science NewsWiggling ears may have once helped us hearThese ancient ear muscles may provide a readout of a person's hearing efforts.Feb 11, 2025
Science NewsBreaking negative thought patterns could ward off anxiety, depressionGetting stuck in a negative loop is part of many mental health disorders. A new therapy focuses more on these thought patterns than the thoughts themselves.Feb 11, 2025
Science NewsSpooky floating lights in South Carolina could be earthquake fartsGases that rise from the earth during earthquakes could explain strange sightings of floating balls of light.Feb 11, 2025
Science NewsA fungus named after Sir David Attenborough zombifies cave spidersThe new fungus species Gibellula attenboroughii forces reclusive cave spiders to exposed areas, likely to benefit spore dispersal.Feb 10, 2025
Science NewsA man volunteered to get brain implants for depression. Hear his storyIn the first episode of The Deep End Podcast, we meet Jon Nelson, who shares why he volunteered to get brain implants for his relentless depression.Feb 10, 2025
Science NewsA fast radio burst from a dead galaxy puzzles astronomersA blast of radio waves from the outskirts of an ancient galaxy challenges theories about what creates such bursts.Feb 10, 2025
Science NewsReaders discuss an unsung scientist, a mutant bacterium named Chonkus, Science News’ new lookLife of the party Margaret S. Collins, the first Black female entomologist in the United States to earn a Ph.D., overcame racism and sexism to become a field biologist and termite expert, life sciences writer Susan Milius reported in...Feb 08, 2025
Science NewsA daring plan to hold back the seaEditor in chief Nancy Shute discusses the audacious ways scientists are considering to combat Earth's rising sea levels.Feb 08, 2025
Science NewsCuttlefish ink may overwhelm sharks’ sense of smellThe main component of common cuttlefish ink — melanin — strongly sticks to shark smell sensors, possibly explaining why the predators avoid ink.Feb 07, 2025
Science NewsThis bird’s eye view of a shark hunt won a photo contestA snapshot of blacktip reef sharks hunting hardyhead silverside fish won the 2024 Royal Society Publishing Photography Competition.Feb 07, 2025
Science NewsA second version of bird flu is infecting cows. What does that mean?While the risk to humans of exposure from cows or milk remains low, this new flu spillover from birds into cows raises the need for continued surveillance.Feb 06, 2025
Science NewsHow mantis shrimp deliver punishing blows without hurting themselvesA mantis shrimp's punch creates high-energy waves. Its exoskeleton is designed to absorb that energy, preventing cracking and tissue damage.Feb 06, 2025
Science NewsSleeping pills may have unexpected effects on the snoozing brainAs scientists unravel how sleep benefits the body, a study in mice is highlighting the potential pitfalls of using Ambien and other sleep aids.Feb 06, 2025
Science NewsThe best way to cook an egg, according to scienceIt’s hard to cook both the white and the yolk of the egg to the right temperature. Scientists have found a new method, called periodic cooking.Feb 06, 2025
Science NewsExtinct moa ate purple trufflelike fungi, fossil bird droppings revealDNA analysis reveals the big, flightless moa birds ate — and pooped out — 13 kinds of fungi, including ones crucial for New Zealand’s forest ecosystem.Feb 06, 2025
Science NewsCan geoengineering plans save glaciers and slow sea level rise?As climate change melts West Antarctica’s glaciers, scientists are proposing bold ideas to avoid devastating sea level rise. Will they work?Feb 05, 2025
Science NewsEarth’s first waterfowl may have lived in Antarctica 69 million years agoA few fossilized body parts hinted at an enigmatic bird's close ties to waterfowl like ducks and geese. A newfound skull may bolster that idea.Feb 05, 2025
Science NewsWill the Endangered Species Act survive Trump?President Trump has already begun to introduce changes that weaken the Endangered Species Act, a cornerstone of U.S. conservation law.Feb 05, 2025
Science NewsAre AI chatbot ‘personalities’ in the eye of the beholder?Defining AI chatbot personality could be based on how a bot “feels” about itself or on how a person feels about the bot they’re interacting with.Feb 05, 2025
Science NewsQuantum mechanics was born 100 years ago. Physicists are celebratingQuantum physics underlies technologies from the laser to the smartphone. The International Year of Quantum marks a century of scientific developments.Feb 04, 2025
Science NewsThe moon’s two grand canyons formed in less than 10 minutesTwo gargantuan canyons on the moon were carved by a hailstorm of rocks — and that’s good news for future lunar astronauts.Feb 04, 2025
Science NewsToxic dangers lurk in LA, even in homes that didn’t burnUrban wildfires like LA’s make harmful chemicals from burning plastics and electronics that can make indoor air dangerous for months.Feb 04, 2025
Science NewsA new book explores the evolutionary romance between plants and animalsRiley Black’s new book, When the Earth was Green, uses the latest research to envision the ancient worlds of our favorite prehistoric animals.Feb 04, 2025
Science NewsMath puzzle: imagine there’s no zeroSolve the math puzzle from our February 2025 issue, based on the number system of mathematician James Foster.Feb 03, 2025
Science NewsPlastic shards permeate human brainsA study of microplastics and nanoplastics in brains shows an astonishing increase over time.Feb 03, 2025
Science NewsWelcome to The Deep End, a new podcast about brain implants and depressionThis new six-part podcast follows the lives of people with severe depression who volunteered for deep brain stimulation.Feb 03, 2025
Science NewsAn African strontium map sheds light on the origins of enslaved peopleWhile genetic tests can reveal the ancestry of enslaved individuals, strontium analysis can now home in on where they actually grew up.Feb 03, 2025
