All Stories

  1. Materials Science

    Stretchy fiber lets electrons flow

    Folded layers of carbon nanotubes allow an elastic fiber to conduct electrical current when stretched.

    By Andrew Grant
  2. Materials Science

    Stretchy fiber keeps electrons flowing

    Folded layers of carbon nanotubes allow an elastic fiber to conduct electrical current when stretched.

    By Andrew Grant
  3. Astronomy

    Kepler telescope identifies new ‘habitable zone’ planet

    A new analysis of data from NASA’s Kepler mission has uncovered a planet orbiting a sunlike star that could be Earth’s “cousin.”

    By Sarah Schwartz
  4. Planetary Science

    First craters on Mars spotted 50 years ago

    Fifty years ago, Mariner 4 revealed that the Red Planet was peppered with craters. Now we know pockmarks are common on many other planets and moons, too.

    By Ashley Yeager
  5. Paleontology

    Sudden heat spikes did in Ice Age’s mammoth mammals

    Abrupt warming and excessive hunting by ancient humans were responsible for the disappearance of many large mammals, including woolly mammoths, during Earth’s last glacial period.

    By Thomas Sumner
  6. Paleontology

    Museum fossil links snakes to lizards

    Scientists have discovered the fossilized remains of the first four-legged snake. The fossil bridges the gap between snakes and lizards.

    By Meghan Rosen
  7. Life

    Cells from grandma help keep fetus safe

    Grandmother’s cells may watch over grandchildren in the womb.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  8. Environment

    Fracking doesn’t always go to great depths

    Fracking at shallow depths is unexpectedly common in the United States and raises new concern for drinking water contamination.

    By Beth Mole
  9. Animals

    Boas kill by cutting off blood flow, not airflow

    Boas actually kill by constricting blood flow of their prey, not suffocating them, as scientists previously suspected.

    By Ashley Yeager
  10. Neuroscience

    Boosting estrogen, only in the brain

    Scientists have developed a chemical that transforms into the hormone estrogen in the brain, but not the body, of rats.

    By Sarah Schwartz
  11. Animals

    Sea level rise threatens sea turtles

    Sea level rise is causing coastal areas to be inundated with water. Even short periods of being wet can kill sea turtle eggs, a new study finds.

    By Sarah Zielinski
  12. Health & Medicine

    Bystanders deliver on CPR

    People suffering from cardiac arrest are more likely to survive without brain damage if a bystander performs CPR, new studies suggest.

    By Nathan Seppa