News

  1. Astronomy

    Mysterious ‘yellowballs’ littering the Milky Way are clusters of newborn stars

    The first comprehensive analysis of the celestial specks indicates they are clusters of infant stars of various masses.

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  2. Physics

    X-ray scans explain how the ‘Brazil nut effect’ works

    X-ray CT scans of a box of mixed nuts explain the orientations that let large, oblong Brazil nuts rise to the top.

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  3. Space

    Fast radio bursts could help solve the mystery of the universe’s expansion

    Astronomers used fast radio bursts for the first time to measure the Hubble constant in hopes of ending the debate on the universe’s expansion rate.

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  4. Chemistry

    A new technique could make some plastic trash compostable at home

    Embedding enzymes inside biodegradable plastics makes them truly compostable, which could mitigate the plastic waste problem.

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  5. Particle Physics

    The already tiny neutrino’s maximum possible mass has shrunk even further

    At less than an electron volt, neutrinos are by far the most lightweight massive particles known, a new measurement confirms.

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  6. Astronomy

    Neutron stars may not be as squishy as some scientists thought

    NASA’s NICER X-ray telescope finds that the most massive known neutron star has an unexpectedly large diameter.

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  7. Health & Medicine

    Here’s what we know about B.1.1.7, the U.S.’s dominant coronavirus strain

    Studies show the variant is more contagious and may cause more severe COVID-19 overall. But vaccines still work against B.1.1.7.

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  8. Planetary Science

    NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter made history by flying on Mars

    An autonomous helicopter just lifted itself into the air on Mars, marking the first time a vehicle has flown on a planet other than Earth.

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  9. Planetary Science

    How the laws of physics constrain the size of alien raindrops

    Physics limits the size of raindrops, no matter what they’re made of or what planet they fall on.

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  10. Health & Medicine

    People with rare blood clots after a COVID-19 jab share an uncommon immune response

    AstraZeneca’s and J&J’s shots are linked to antibodies that spark clots. Knowing that lets doctors ID cases and get patients the right treatment.

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  11. Humans

    Neandertal DNA from cave mud shows two waves of migration across Eurasia

    Genetic material left behind in sediments reveals new details about how ancient humans once spread across the continent.

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  12. Planetary Science

    Earth sweeps up 5,200 tons of extraterrestrial dust each year

    Thousands of micrometeorites collected from Antarctica come from both comets and asteroids, a new study suggests.

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