News in Brief

  1. Life

    Asteroid barrage, ancient marine life boom not linked

    Impacts from asteroid debris probably didn’t trigger the boom in marine animal diversity around 471 million years ago during the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event.

    By Thomas Sumner
  2. Animals

    Desert ants look to the sky, rely on memory to navigate backward

    Desert ants appear to use a combination of visual memory and celestial cues to make it back to the nest walking butt-first, researchers find.

    By Helen Thompson
  3. Climate

    Earth’s last major warm period was as hot as today

    Sea surface temperatures today are comparable to those around 125,000 years ago, a time when sea levels were 6 to 9 meters higher, new research suggests.