RED-LIGHT DISTRICT Levels of a brain reward compound increased in male fruit flies genetically engineered to ejaculate when exposed to red light when the insects were bathed in the rosy hue.
Avi Jacob/BIU microscopy unit
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Magazine
In the April 14 SN: Killer heat, mass insect migrations, the latest Saturn updates, rethinking the Nobel Prize, tectonics on Venus, the science of mass shootings, ancient tool trends and more.
IN HOT WATER Staghorn coral (Acropora millepora) may be able to last 100 to 250 years thanks to its ability to adapt to warming waters. Here, a healthy staghorn grows off Magnetic Island in the central part of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
M. Matz et al/PLOS Genetics 2018
WOMEN IN SCIENCE Progress has been made on closing the gender gap in science-related fields, but it may be decades or even centuries before some disciplines have equal numbers of men and women, a new study suggests.
Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
GREENHOUSE GASSED In a long-running field experiment in Minnesota, scientists are studying the effects of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide levels on plots of grassland.
Jacob Miller, Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Science News
News
The first penis-scrotum transplant is the latest to go beyond lifesaving
Advances that give patients new faces, hands and more aim to improve quality of life
Science & the Public
1 week ago
For Daily Use
Private web browsing doesn’t mean no one is watching
Many people misunderstand what private web browsing actually is. Web browsers’ explanations don’t help.
Sponsor Message
News in Brief
Genetically modified plant may boost supply of a powerful malaria drug
Using a DNA study and genetic engineering, researchers tripled the amount of an antimalarial compound naturally produced by sweet wormwood plants.
News in Brief
Uranus smells like rotten eggs
Planetary scientists detected hydrogen sulfide in Uranus’ upper clouds — the same compound that gives rotten eggs their terrible smell.
News in Brief
Young galaxies are flat, but old ones are more blobby
A survey of hundreds of star systems precisely links the shape of a galaxy to the ages of its stars.
Science Visualized
Closing the gender gap in some science fields may take over 100 years
In some STEM fields, the gender gap won’t disappear for decades or even centuries, a new study suggests.
News
Heat waves are roasting reefs, but some corals may be resilient
The latest research on coral reefs clarifies the devastation of heat waves and looks at how coral might be able to adapt to warming waters.
The Name Game
Celebrity names now mark places on Pluto’s moon Charon
Pluto’s largest moon, Charon, now has 12 new names for its topological features.
News in Brief
Larger spleens may help ‘sea nomads’ stay underwater longer
The Bajau people of Southeast Asia have a gene variant associated with larger spleens, boosting their oxygen while breath-hold diving, researchers say.
News
Rising CO2 levels might not be as good for plants as we thought
A 20-year experiment spots a reversal in the way two kinds of plants take up extra carbon from the atmosphere.
News in Brief
Male fruit flies enjoy ejaculation
Red light exposure made some genetically engineered fruit flies ejaculate, spurring a surge of a brain reward compound — and less desire for booze.
News in Brief
A hole in an ancient cow’s skull could have been surgery practice
Before performing skull operations on people, ancient surgeons may have rehearsed on cows.
Mystery Solved
How ravens caused a LIGO data glitch
Ravens pecking at frosty pipes caused a glitch in gravitational wave data.
News
This meteorite’s diamonds hint that it was born in a lost planet
Bits of metal nestled inside diamonds suggest the space rock could have formed in a Mars-sized protoplanet in the early solar system.
News
Why touch can be such a creepy sensation in VR
Touch sensation in VR can go from immersive to unnerving as the feeling gets more realistic, if you can’t see the source.
News
Masses of shrimp and krill may play a huge role in mixing oceans
Hoards of migrating shrimp and krill can cause large-scale turbulence in the ocean, a new study suggests.
News
These seals haven’t lost their land ancestors’ hunting ways
Clawed pawlike forelimbs help true seals hunt like their land-dwelling ancestors.
News
This ancient Maya city may have helped the Snake King dynasty spread
A rural hub in an ancient Maya state gets its due with some laser help.
News
Here’s why putting a missile defense system in space could be a bad idea
Expanding missile defense capabilities could put the world on a slippery slope to space warfare.
Teaser
A new plastic film glows to flag food contaminated with dangerous microbes
Plastic patches that glow when they touch some types of bacteria could be built into food packaging to reduce the spread of foodborne illness.
News
Dogs lived and died with humans 10,000 years ago in the Americas
Dogs unearthed at sites in Illinois were older than originally thought.
News
Lasers squeezed iron to mimic the conditions of exoplanet cores
In the first experiment to measure what exoplanets might be like on the inside, scientists hit iron with 176 lasers at once.
Reviews & Previews
‘Weird Math’ aims to connect numbers and equations to the real world
The book Weird Math attempts to make chaos theory, higher dimensions and other concepts more relatable.
News
The Facebook data debacle may not change internet behavior
In the wake of the Facebook data breach, personal privacy experts say there’s little individuals can do to control their personal information online.