News
- Animals
Odd head of seahorse cloaks its sneak attacks
Head shape creates hydrodynamic fake-out for stealth hunting.
By Susan Milius - Materials Science
Material inspired by dragonfly wings bursts bacteria
Silicon studded with nanostructures could act as antimicrobial coating on medical devices.
By Beth Mole - Archaeology
Early shrine unearthed at Nepal Buddhist site
Ritual structure could help pin down when the sage known as the Buddha lived in South Asia.
By Bruce Bower - Climate
Methane emissions may be far higher than estimated
U.S. fossil fuel and cattle industries may emit far more methane than government estimates indicate.
- Anthropology
Little Red Riding Hood gets an evolutionary makeover
A statistical analysis attempts to track the rise of several widespread folktales.
By Bruce Bower - Astronomy
High-energy neutrinos ensnared from beyond the solar system
Speedy particles detected in Antarctica may point to gargantuan black holes or cataclysmic explosions.
By Andrew Grant - Health & Medicine
Eating nuts may extend a person’s life
People who regularly ate peanuts or tree nuts were less likely to die during decades-long studies.
By Nathan Seppa - Genetics
Ancient Siberian bones clarify Native American origins
Some New World ancestors came from western Eurasia, not East Asia.
- Planetary Science
Ancient Martian meteorite preserves chunks of planet’s early crust
Rock could reveal what Mars was like 4.4 billion years ago.
By Andrew Grant - Animals
Comb jelly immune system can spot old enemies
Animal at base of family tree could help researchers understand the evolution of immunity.
By Susan Milius - Ecosystems
Virus-blocking insects taking over Vietnamese island
Field trial tests mosquitoes that may stop the spread of dengue infection.
By Beth Mole - Anthropology
Human ancestors threw stone-tipped spears at prey
African discoveries show that hunting weapons thrown from a distance appeared by 279,000 years ago.
By Bruce Bower