Laurel Hamers

Laurel Hamers was the general assignment reporter at Science News.

All Stories by Laurel Hamers

  1. Animals

    Ancient whale turns up on wrong side of the world

    A Southern Hemisphere whale species was briefly a northern resident.

  2. Agriculture

    Much of the world’s honey now contains bee-harming pesticides

    A controversial group of chemicals called neonicotinoids has a global impact, tests of honey samples show.

  3. Chemistry

    Chemistry Nobel Prize goes to 3-D snapshots of life’s atomic details

    An imaging technique that gives up-close 3-D views of proteins is honored in this year's chemistry Nobel Prize.

  4. Chemistry

    Chong Liu one-ups plant photosynthesis

    Chong Liu mixes bacteria and inorganics into systems that can generate clean energy better than a leaf.

  5. Chemistry

    Cool way to peer into molecules’ inner workings wins chemistry Nobel Prize

    Three scientists will split the prize for their work developing cryo-electron microscopy.

  6. Environment

    Radioactive material from Fukushima disaster turns up in a surprising place

    Radioactive cesium is reaching the ocean through salty groundwater.

  7. Paleontology

    This giant marsupial was a seasonal migrant

    The giant, extinct marsupial Diprotodon optatum migrated seasonally, the first marsupial shown to do so.

  8. Paleontology

    This giant marsupial was a seasonal migrant

    A new analysis suggests that Diprotodon optatum, a giant plant-eating marsupial that went extinct about 40,000 years ago, migrated long distances, much like today’s zebras and wildebeests.

  9. Environment

    The way poison frogs keep from poisoning themselves is complicated

    Gaining resistance to one of their own toxins forced some poison dart frogs to make other genetic tweaks, too.

  10. Microbes

    Now we know how much glacial melting ‘watermelon snow’ can cause

    Algae that give snow a red tint are making glacial snow in Alaska melt faster.

  11. Materials Science

    Tiny ‘supraballs’ put a new spin on creating long-lasting color

    Nano-sized balls of melanin and silica generate durable colors.

  12. Animals

    Animal goo inspires better glue

    Researchers are turning to nature to create adhesives that work in the wet environment of the human body.