All Stories
-
PaleontologyHow to tell if a T. rex is expecting
A “pregnancy” test for tyrannosaurs relies on chemical analyses of medullary bone, a reproductive tissue found in female birds.
By Meghan Rosen -
AstronomyQuasars’ distance no longer in question
Astronomers now know quasars live around black holes in remote galaxies, but 50 years ago, one researcher argued they were much closer.
-
PhysicsLike birds of a feather, sperm flock together
Studies of sperm show that they swim in groups because of the elasticity of the mucus they travel through.
-
Planetary ScienceGet your Pluto trivia down cold
Eight months after visiting Pluto, the New Horizons spacecraft has delivered a wealth of details about the dwarf planet and its family of moons.
-
HumansPacific islanders got a double whammy of Stone Age DNA
Neandertal and Denisovan genes influence the health of present-day Melanesians.
By Bruce Bower -
LifeHow Paralympic sprinters lose speed on curves
Amputee runners may lose more speed on curves when the leg on the inside of the curve is the one bearing a prosthetic, a biomechanics study finds.
-
Health & MedicineEfforts to control mosquitoes take on new urgency
The major mosquito that is spreading Zika virus has quirks that make it one of the toughest to fight.
By Susan Milius -
NeuroscienceLost memories retrieved for mice with signs of Alzheimer’s
Using light, scientists coaxed a forgotten memory from the brains of mice with Alzheimer’s-like symptoms.
-
PaleontologyTrue nature of ‘Tully monster’ revealed
The identity of a 300-million-year-old enigmatic creature known as the “Tully monster” is a mystery no longer.
By Meghan Rosen -
AnimalsPlain ol’ Texas rat snakes basically match vipers for speed
Rattlesnakes and other vipers are not the fastest fangs in the West.
By Susan Milius -
Materials SciencePlaying with building blocks for metamaterial design
Legos show promise as a low-cost method to assist scientists in developing novel metamaterials.
-
TechComputer program bests world champion 4-1 in strategy game Go
Google DeepMind’s Go-playing computer program AlphaGo has topped Lee Sedol, the world’s reigning Go player, in a five-game match in South Korea.
By Meghan Rosen