An exciting discovery in physics turns out to be merely a case of mistaken identity.

Researchers devise a way to use magnets to make cells self-destruct.

A deadly virus can spread through the air from pigs to monkeys.

If human health were a comic book, radiation would be a villain — and vitamins would be good guys. But in a recent study on laboratory mice, scientists got some topsy-turvy results. Low doses of radiation actually improved the health of animals born with a gene that can make them sick. And normally beneficial vitamins such as C and E undermined radiation’s benefits. “Nobody wants to think that low-dose radiation could be advantageous and the stuff you put in your vitamin pill would be bad,” said Randy Jirtle of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. This is why Jirtle, who led the ne...

A bullet fired into a disk of polyurethane — a type of plastic — may not burst out the other side. In some instances, the bullet will stop in its tracks, frozen by the plastic and sealed inside. How a simple plastic can do this had left researchers scratching their heads. Until now.Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full story: How to stop a speeding bullet

Two nights before Halloween, as kids were putting the finishing touches on their costumes, an immense hurricane called Sandy crashed into New Jersey. It came ashore near Atlantic City. The storm, which had already killed 69 people as it powered through the Caribbean Sea, pummeled nearly one-third of the eastern United States. It caused tens of billions of dollars worth of damage and killed more than 100 additional people. A number of unusual conditions contributed to Sandy becoming so destructive.Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full story: Evolution...

Shoulder blades are the triangular bones that stick out of your back like small wings. Also known as scapulas, they connect different parts of the body. Without these bones, you couldn’t climb a tree. The surprising orientation of these bones in a now-extinct humanlike species suggests it may have been a tree climber. Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full story: Shoulder bones fuel debate

A new light-detection technique will allow scientists to spot light from all stars in their field of view and going back to early in the formation of the universe. “[This way of looking] provides us with a review of the entire history of cosmic star formation, including the very first epochs of star formation in the very early universe,” says Volker Bromm of the University of Texas at Austin. Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full story: Twinkle, twinkle oldest stars

For some animals, two wings just won’t do — as was the case for a four-winged dinosaur that lived 130 million years ago. Fossils of the creature were unearthed in China about 10 years ago. Since then, scientists have puzzled over how this dino used its two bonus wings. Now researchers report a likely answer.Visit the new Science News for Kids website and read the full story: Four-winged dinosaur