All Stories
- Health & Medicine
New definition of ‘full term’ narrows on-time arrival window
Until now, babies born at any time during a wide five-week window were considered fully cooked. Now, a panel of clinicians says otherwise.
- Physics
Top 10 scientific supers
From supersonic to supernova, superego and supersymmetry, a roundup of science’s super superlatives.
- Chemistry
Water squishes into stable shapes, no container required
Nanoparticles lock together to hold water in place for more than a month.
- Life
Scorpion venom kills pain in mice
Toxin works with nerve proteins to block distress signals’ journey to brain.
- Physics
Four atoms make a material
A new experiment gives physicists clues about when to describe atoms as individuals and when to describe them as acting as a group.
- Humans
What makes a face go round
Genetic enhancers acting far away from their intended genes can help shape a face during development.
- Health & Medicine
Inactive HIV poses even greater barrier to cure
The reservoir of dormant virus strains is larger than scientists estimated, a finding that could make the virus harder to combat.
- Animals
Maybe Britain shouldn’t kill its badgers
A study on badger social networks shows that isolated badgers are the ones that most often carry TB and cause infections among — but not within — groups.
- Animals
Common pesticides change odds in ant fights
Species’ combat success can rise or fall after repeated exposure to a common neonicotinoid insecticide.
- Psychology
Groups recall travel details better than loners
Small teams of people can recite key information from public announcements better than any one person.
- Paleontology
An ammonite adventure on the Jurassic Coast
This region is special because fossils are easy to find. They wash out of the cliffs and onto the beach where they are free for anyone to collect, as long as you follow the rules.
- Life
The reason to avoid poop coffee isn’t what you think
Beans from civet feces have become so popular that abuse and fraud are common.
