All Stories

  1. A photo of a big blue octopus hovering in the water with several of its tentacles curled up around its body.
    Animals

    Scientists have now recorded brain waves from freely moving octopuses

    The data reveal some unexpected patterns, though it’s too early to know how octopus brains control the animals’ behavior, a new study finds.

    By Nora Bradford
  2. An image of a black hole
    Math

    Here’s a peek into the mathematics of black holes

    The universe tells us slowly rotating black holes are stable. A nearly 1,000-page proof confirms it.

    By Rachel Crowell
  3. image of a circular lock of Beethoven's hair attached to an old piece of paper with something written in cursive script
    Genetics

    DNA from Beethoven’s hair hints at what killed the composer

    Many historians suspect Beethoven died from liver failure. A new analysis shows he had a heightened genetic risk for liver disease, researchers say.

    By Freda Kreier
  4. An astronaut in a space suit stands with their back to the camera and looks out at inflatable domes as part of a habitat on Mars.
    Space

    ‘Off-Earth’ asks how to build a better future in space

    As humans prepare to live in space someday, ethics should be as much of guide as science and technology, an astrophysicist argues in a new book.

    By Lisa Grossman
  5. photo of a mouse standing on its hind legs in a glass bowl and peering over the edge
    Health & Medicine

    A hormone shot helped drunk mice sober up quickly

    Drunk mice injected with the hormone FGF21 woke up and regained their balance faster than inebriated mice that did not receive the shot.

    By Freda Kreier
  6. A photo take of the asteroid Ryugu. A light gray circular shape in the center on a deep black background.
    Space

    A crucial building block of life exists on the asteroid Ryugu

    A sample from Ryugu collected by Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft contains uracil, a component of RNA, which is found in all living cells.

    By Allison Gasparini
  7. photo of Wilfried Mutombo Kalonji looking at a slide under a microscope as another scientist stands in the background
    Health & Medicine

    Sleeping sickness is nearing elimination. An experimental drug could help

    Clinical trials of acoziborole are under way in sub-Saharan Africa, where sleeping sickness is endemic.

    By Meghan Rosen
  8. An illustration of Candida auris. Appears as purple bubbles on a dark blue background.
    Health & Medicine

    U.S. cases of a deadly fungus nearly doubled in recent years

    Though numbers are still small, clinical cases of Candida auris in the jumped 95 percent from 2020 to 2021, a CDC survey finds.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  9. A collection of lens set up in front of a drawn portrait of Christiaan Huygens.
    Astronomy

    The mystery of Christiaan Huygens’ flawed telescopes may have been solved

    The discovery of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, may have come despite its discoverer, Christiaan Huygens, needing eyeglasses.

    By Emily Conover

  10. Readers ask about bird droppings, Ice Age cave art and more

    By Science News Staff

  11. Where does plastic go when we’re done with it?

    Editor in chief Nancy Shute discusses the ubiquity of microplastics in food, water, air and the body.

    By Nancy Shute
  12. An illustration of several Essexella sitting on the ocean floor.
    Paleontology

    310-million-year-old fossil blobs might not be jellyfish after all

    An ancient animal called Essexella may have been a type of burrowing sea anemone, a new study proposes.

    By Meghan Rosen