Feature

  1. Earth

    Year in review: Life thrives under Antarctica

    Thousands of microbe species thrive in Lake Whillans deep beneath the West Antarctic ice sheet.

    By Thomas Sumner
  2. Anthropology

    Year in review: Asian cave art got an early start

    Stone Age cave painting began at about the same time in Southeast Asia as in Europe, challenging the idea that Western Europeans cornered the market on creativity 40,000 years ago.

    By Bruce Bower
  3. Genetics

    Year in review: Genes linked to tameness

    A look at the genes of domesticated animals offers possible insights into why taming has altered animals’ appearances.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  4. Animals

    Year in review: Insect, bird evolution revisited

    Insects got an entirely new family tree after an extensive genetic analysis rearranged the creatures' relations.

    By Susan Milius
  5. Genetics

    Year in review: Easy stem cells a no go

    An incredibly easy method for making stem cells turned out to be impossible, again tainting the stem cell research field with controversy.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  6. Neuroscience

    Year in review: The nose knows a trillion odors

    Humans can suss out more than 1 trillion different smells, a 2014 study estimated.

    By Bruce Bower
  7. Archaeology

    Year in review: Roster of dinosaurs expands

    With the discovery of several new species and a few dogma-shaking revelations, dinosaurs got a total rethink in 2014.

    By Meghan Rosen
  8. Particle Physics

    Year in review: Neutrinos leave tracks in ice

    The IceCube experiment has started to pinpoint the birthplaces of some high-energy neutrinos.

    By Andrew Grant
  9. Planetary Science

    Year in review: Ocean may power Enceladus’ geysers

    NASA’s Cassini spacecraft builds a stronger case for a subsurface ocean on Enceladus that drives ice geysers on the moon’s south pole.

    By Christopher Crockett
  10. Animals

    Year in review: The post-pigeon century

    Birds' troubles received an eerie emphasis in the news when biologists marked the 100th anniversary of the death of the last known passenger pigeon.

    By Susan Milius
  11. Planetary Science

    Year in review: Business booming on Mars

    Mars now has seven robots studying it and together they have given scientists their best view of any planet in the solar system other than Earth.

    By Alexandra Witze
  12. Humans

    Year in review: Genes, bones tell new Clovis stories

    The genes and bones of the Clovis people reveal the range and legacy of the early North Americans.

    By Bruce Bower