News
- Earth
Fingerprints of climate change are increasingly appearing in extreme weather
A new report finds evidence that some of 2018’s extreme weather events were linked to human-caused climate change.
- Paleontology
Licelike insects munched on dinosaur feathers around 100 million years ago
Fossils in amber push the origin of feather-feeding insects back over 50 million years, a study finds.
- Climate
See how an Alaskan glacier has shrunk over time
Scientists have created a time-lapse series of images of the retreat of an Alaskan glacier using NASA and U.S. Geological Survey Landsat data.
- Ecosystems
A newly found Atacama Desert soil community survives on sips of fog
Lichens and other fungi and algae unite to form “grit-crust” on the dry soil of Chile’s Atacama Desert and survive on moisture from coastal fog.
- Space
Electric charges on dust grains may help explain how planets are born
In an experiment, glass beads clung together like protoplanetary dust particles when shaken and flung more than 100 meters skyward.
- Oceans
Stealthy robots with microphones could improve maps of ocean noise
Recordings from underwater microphones on stealthy robotic gliders could create a better “soundscape” of noises throughout the ocean, researchers say.
- Science & Society
Why Rembrandt and da Vinci may have painted themselves with skewed eyes
A strongly dominant eye, not an eye disorder, may explain why some great artists painted themselves with one eye turned outward.
- Life
An ancient critter may shed light on when mammals’ middle ear evolved
Rare skeletons are helping to pin down the evolution of mammals’ three middle ear bones, known popularly as the hammer, anvil and stirrup.
- Health & Medicine
A once-scrapped Alzheimer’s drug may work after all, new analyses suggest
An antibody that targets Alzheimer’s sticky protein amyloid showed promise in slowing mental decline, according to the company that’s developing it.
- Life
A single-celled protist reacts to threats in surprisingly complex ways
New research validates a century-old experiment that shows single-celled organisms are capable of complex “decision making.”
- Health & Medicine
Scientists’ brains shrank a bit after an extended stay in Antarctica
The experience of an isolated, long-term mission at an Antarctic research station slightly shrunk a part of crew members’ brains, a small study finds.
- Humans
A gene tied to facial development hints humans domesticated themselves
Scientists may have identified a gene that ties together ideas about human evolution and animal domestication.
