All Stories
- Health & Medicine
Vitamin D supplements aren’t living up to their hype
Once seen as a supplement with a long list of benefits, vitamin D’s glow may be dimming.
- Anthropology
Dogs may have helped ancient Middle Easterners hunt small game
Jordanian finds point to pooch-aided hunting of small prey around 11,500 years ago, offering new clues into dog domestication in the Middle East.
- Animals
Male birds’ sexy songs may not advertise their brains after all
A biologist backs off an idea he studied for years that the mastery of birdsong is a sign of bird smarts.
- Health & Medicine
Lack of sleep is tied to increases in two Alzheimer’s proteins
In people and mice deprived of sleep, researchers found an increase in tau, a protein involved in Alzheimer’s disease, in the fluid bathing the brain.
- Neuroscience
Rocking puts adults to sleep faster and makes slumber deeper
People sleep better when their beds are gently rocked, a small study finds.
- Paleontology
Tiny eyes make a bizarre, ancient platypus-like reptile even weirder
An ancient oddball marine reptile had teeny-tiny eyes, suggesting it probably used senses other than sight to catch food.
- Earth
50 years ago, scientists tried to control earthquakes with earthquakes
In the 1960s, researchers proposed preventing a big earthquake by creating smaller ones. That hasn’t quite worked out.
- Animals
Young emperor penguins brave icy, winter waters in their first year
Young emperor penguins learn survival skills on their own, including how to navigate Antarctica’s icy winter ocean.
- Genetics
A CRISPR gene drive for mice is one step closer to reality
Researchers have made progress toward creating a gene drive for mice in the lab. Such genetic cut-and-paste machines have yet to be made for mammals.
- Tech
Ordinary cameras can now photograph out-of-sight objects
Thanks to a new photo-analyzing computer program, a photographer’s line of sight no longer has to be a straight shot.
- Neuroscience
The cerebellum may do a lot more than just coordinate movement
A study in mice finds that the cerebellum helps control social behavior, a result that has implications for autism and schizophrenia.
- Planetary Science
Ring ripples reveal how long a day lasts on Saturn
Clues in Saturn’s rings divulge the planet’s rotation rate: 10 hours, 33 minutes, 38 seconds.
