All Stories
- Animals
Fungi threaten sea turtle nests
The pathogens can kill up to 90 percent of eggs in a single nest.
- Genetics
Monkeys born with edited genes
A DNA-snipping technique inspired by bacteria shows therapeutic promise.
- Astronomy
Some gas clouds refuse to collapse
A study of dust gives astronomers a sharper picture of cold gas.
- Health & Medicine
Should your kid eat organic? The answer is complicated
The science behind kids’ pesticide exposure is complicated and patchy.
- Neuroscience
Football helmet redesign can reduce concussion risk
No helmet will ever eliminate the risk of sustaining a concussions during a football game. But tweaking the design may slow the speed of head movements after a hit and reduce the risk of brain trauma.
- Cosmology
Slow, cold start to universe suggested
By allowing particle masses to change, a new theory suggests how the universe could have arisen without a Big Bang.
- Animals
Disco clams put on a streak show
Scuba divers call Ctenoides ales the disco or electric clam because the restless, curling lips of its mantle flash bright streaks.
By Susan Milius - Physics
Quarks celebrate their 50th anniversary
In a 1997 interview with Context blogger Tom Siegfried, Murray Gell-Mann discussed the origin of the idea for the subatomic particles that he named quarks.
- Health & Medicine
Smoking equality
A study of tobacco smoking patterns reports that more men than women smoke in every country except Sweden.
- Health & Medicine
Your baby knows who your real friends are
Infants are surprisingly good judges of who ought to be friendly to each other.
- Animals
Synchronous birth
For young banded mongoose moms, there’s only one choice for when to give birth — the same day as older, dominant mothers. In communities of these cat-sized animals, all females give birth together, no matter when they became pregnant.
- Animals
When snakes fly
A gliding snake gets some lift by spreading its ribs, but much about its flight remains a mystery.
By Susan Milius