All Stories
- Astronomy
Zoom in on amazing detail in NASA moon map
An interactive mosaic of images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter lets you fly over the Moon’s north pole with unprecedented detail.
- Health & Medicine
Early treatment may stave off esophageal cancer
Zapping precancerous tissue in patients with Barrett’s esophagus might reduce incidence of cancer.
By Nathan Seppa - Health & Medicine
Telling kids lies may teach them to lie
In a new study, kids who were told a lie were more likely to later tell a fib themselves. The results should encourage parents not to lie to their kids.
- Health & Medicine
E-cigarettes don’t help smokers quit, study finds
People who tried e-cigarettes no more likely to give up smoking a year later.
By Nathan Seppa - Genetics
Mice lose a gene to drop some weight
Mice lacking gene have less fat, more muscle and lived longer than normal.
- Humans
Former baseball players have big, strong bones in old age
Decades later, health benefits of exercise persist in male athletes’ bones.
By Meghan Rosen - Animals
Mama frog’s care includes a gift of poison
Strawberry poison frog tadpoles get defensive chemicals through unfertilized, nutritious eggs provided by mom.
- Life
To do: Exhibits to explore in the U.S. and London
Highlights include the impending arrival of a T. rex skeleton in Washington, D.C., a pterosaur exhibit coming to New York City, and the history of longevity at the Royal Society in London.
- Materials Science
Pearl coating inspires tougher ceramics
A material called mother of pearl, or nacre, has inspired the design of more durable, less brittle ceramics.
- Climate
Natural climate shifts affect sea level rise
A recent dip in the rate of sea level rise may be due to natural climate variability.
- Tech
English Channel tunnel
First proposed in 1802 as a tunnel for horse-drawn carriages, the Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, was built starting in 1987 and opened in 1994.
- Cosmology
Cosmic question mark
Two ways of measuring the universe’s expansion rate disagree by about 10 percent. One of the methods may be flawed. Or it could be that a hitherto unobserved phenomenon is at work.