Paleontology
How mammals took over the world
In the book The Rise and Reign of the Mammals, paleontologist Steve Brusatte tracks the evolutionary innovations that made mammals so successful.
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Cover Story
Ancient ‘smellscapes’ are wafting out of artifacts and old texts
In studying and reviving long-ago scents, archaeologists aim to understand how people experienced, and interpreted, their worlds through smell.
Reviews & Previews
Science Visualized
Physics
A galactic smashup might explain galaxies without dark matter
Scientists are debating whether a trail of galaxies reveals the origins of two weird dark matter–free galaxies.
Notebook
Plants
Leonardo da Vinci’s rule for how trees branch was close, but wrong
An update to da Vinci’s elegant, 500-year-old “rule of trees” offers a powerful, new way to describe the structure of almost any leafy tree.
Features
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Western wildfires’ health risks extend across the country
As western wildfires become more common, hazardous smoke is sending people — especially children — to emergency rooms on the East Coast.
More Stories from the June 18, 2022 issue
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AnimalsA ‘mystery monkey’ in Borneo may be a rare hybrid. That has scientists worried
Severe habitat fragmentation caused by expanding palm oil plantations may have driven two primate species to mate that wouldn’t have otherwise.
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Planetary ScienceNASA’s InSight lander has recorded the largest Marsquake yet
The magnitude 5 temblor, detected May 4, will help scientists learn more about the Red Planet’s interior.
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PhysicsExperiments hint at why bird nests are so sturdy
A bird’s nest is a special version of a granular material. Lab experiments and computer simulations explain its quirky behavior.
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PsychologyLatin America defies cultural theories based on East-West comparisons
Theories for how people think in individualist versus collectivist nations stem from East-West comparisons. Latin America challenges those theories.
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AnimalsThese dolphins may turn to corals for skin care
For Indo-Pacific bottlenosed dolphins, rubbing against corals and sea sponges that contain antibacterial compounds could help keep skin healthy.
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Particle PhysicsHigh-energy neutrinos may come from black holes ripping apart stars
Where extremely energetic neutrinos originate from is a mystery. A new study supports the idea that “tidal disruption events” are one source.
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EcosystemsBiocrusts reduce global dust emissions by 60 percent
Lichens and other microbes construct biological soil crusts that concentrate nutrients and slash global dust emissions.
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NeuroscienceHeadbutts hurt the brain, even for a musk ox
Though musk oxen are built to bash, a study of the headbutters turned up signs of brain damage. But that may not be catastrophic for the bovids.
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ClimateReplacing some meat with microbial protein could help fight climate change
Just a 20 percent substitution could cut deforestation rates and land-use CO2 emissions by more than half by 2050, a new study suggests.
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PhysicsGravitational waves gave a new black hole a high-speed ‘kick’
Ripples in spacetime revealed that two black holes united into one, which then sped off at around 5 million kilometers per hour.
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Planetary ScienceIce at the moon’s poles might have come from ancient volcanoes
Volcanic eruptions billions of years ago probably released enough water vapor to have deposited ice at the lunar poles, a study finds.