Video
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Animals
A new species of walking shark has been found in Papua New Guinea
Walking sharks crawl on their fins across reefs and even out into tide pools. The newfound Dudgeon walking shark brings the known species count to 10.
- Animals
These birds clack their wing bones together to woo mates at night
During courtship, male scissor-tailed nightjars crack their wings together to make a sharp snapping sound. It's the result of colliding arm bones.
- Animals
Bumblebees can solve problems on their own
With no training, bumblebees can work out how to use a ball like a ladder to feed on sugar from an out-of-reach flower.
- Animals
Homing pigeons may use a surprising navigation mechanism
How animals navigate by Earth's magnetic field is hotly debated. New research in pigeons points to iron-laden liver immune cells as the compass.
- Life
Can DEET attract mosquitoes? A lab study offers clues
Lab experiments suggest mosquitoes can smell DEET and learn to associate it with food, but it’s unclear whether that happens in the wild.
- Artificial Intelligence
AI bots ignore evidence. Can we trust them with science?
Scientists rethink their ideas after experiments. AI agents struggle to learn from evidence and recognize when an idea is obviously incorrect.
- Paleontology
If wings came before flight, what were they for?
Scientists use simulated dinosaurs to trigger real insect brains and test how wings originally evolved.
- Health & Medicine
Prenatal surgery for spina bifida may get a boost from stem cells
A clinical trial for spina bifida treatment suggests that a surgical approach relying on stem cells is safe for patients. Its efficacy is still being evaluated.
- Animals
This kea parrot is the first-known disabled alpha male
With half a beak, Bruce has developed an innovative fighting style that has won the kea top status in his flock, videos and documented interactions reveal.
- Space
Artemis II: NASA’s Orion heads home after a historic loop around the moon
The record-setting astronauts had a front-row view of the farside of the moon, an eclipse and perhaps a re-creation of the famous Earthrise.
- Health & Medicine
Digital heart twins can guide a lifesaving procedure
Heart replicas helped doctors spot good targets for ablation in 10 patients. Months later, all of them are free of sustained faulty rhythms.
- Animals
Secrets of the Bees zooms in on life in a hive
A new documentary available on Disney+ and Hulu appeals to our sense of wonder to highlight why bees need saving.
