Science News Magazine: May 26, 2018

More Stories from the May 26, 2018 issue

1. 

   Anthropology

   A hole in an ancient cow’s skull could have been surgery practice

   Before performing skull operations on people, ancient surgeons may have rehearsed on cows.

   By Bruce Bower

2. 

   Plants

   Genetically modified plant may boost supply of a powerful malaria drug

   Using a DNA study and genetic engineering, researchers tripled the amount of an antimalarial compound naturally produced by sweet wormwood plants.

   By Dan Garisto

3. 

   Planetary Science

   Asteroids could have delivered water to the early Earth

   Shooting mineral pellets at a simulated planet suggests an impact wouldn’t have boiled all of an asteroid’s water away.

   By Lisa Grossman

4. 

   Psychology

   In China, coffee shop habits show cultural differences tied to farming

   Farming histories have shaped behavior in northern and southern China.

   By Bruce Bower

5. 

   Astronomy

   The latest star map from the Gaia spacecraft plots 1.7 billion stars

   The Gaia spacecraft’s latest data release brings the number of stars with precisely measured motions up from 2 million to more than 1.3 billion.

   By Lisa Grossman

6. 

   Archaeology

   Footprints prove humans hunted giant sloths during the Ice Age

   Footprints of humans and giant sloths show a dramatic chase sequence from more than 10,000 years ago.

   By Dan Garisto

7. 

   Environment

   This plastic can be recycled over and over and over again

   A new kind of polymer is fully recyclable: It breaks down into the exact same molecules that it came from.

   By Laurel Hamers

8. 

   Earth

   Pumping water underground for power may have triggered South Korean quake

   A 2017 South Korean earthquake may have been caused by human activities, two new studies suggest.

   By Carolyn Gramling

9. 

   Planetary Science

   Last year’s solar eclipse set off a wave in the upper atmosphere

   The August 2017 solar eclipse launched a wave in the upper atmosphere that was detected from Brazil after the eclipse ended.

   By Lisa Grossman

10. 

    Physics

    Neutron stars shed neutrinos to cool down quickly

    Scientists find the first clear evidence of rapid cooling of a neutron star by neutrino emission.

    By Emily Conover

11. 

    Animals

    Defenseless moths do flying impressions of scary bees and wasps

    Faking that erratic bee flight or no-nonsense wasp zoom might save a moth’s life.

    By Susan Milius

12. 

    Climate

    Bull sharks and bottlenose dolphins are moving north as the ocean warms

    Rising temperatures are making ocean waters farther north more hospitable for a variety of marine species.

    By Allie Wilkinson

13. 

    Animals

    This ancient fowl bit like a dinosaur and pecked like a bird

    A new fossil of Ichthyornis dispar helped scientists create a 3-D reconstruction of the ancient bird’s skull, shedding light on early bird evolution.

    By Carolyn Gramling

14. 

    Planetary Science

    NASA gets ready to launch the first lander to investigate Mars’ insides

    The InSight lander is launching to Mars on May 5 and is expected to be in position to sense seismic activity by early 2019.

    By Lisa Grossman

15. 

    Health & Medicine

    FDA approves the first smallpox treatment

    Concerns about bioterrorism fueled the development of the first treatment for smallpox.

    By Aimee Cunningham

16. 

    Health & Medicine

    An enzyme involved in cancer and aging gets a close-up

    The structure of telomerase, described with the greatest detail yet, may give researchers clues to cancer treatments and other telomerase-related illnesses.

    By Aimee Cunningham

17. 

    Animals

    With a little convincing, rats can detect tuberculosis

    TB-sniffing rats prove more accurate in detecting infection, especially in children, than the most commonly used diagnostic tool.

    By Yao-Hua Law