Anthropology
Drought may have doomed the ‘hobbits’ of Flores
Stalagmite data suggest Homo floresiensis faced prolonged drought that stressed both them and their prey, contributing to their disappearance.
Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
More Stories in Earth
- Climate
Here are 3 big ideas to combat climate change, with or without COP
As action from the U.N.’s huge COP30 international meeting falls short, smaller groups are banding together to find ways to fight climate change.
- Oceans
Combining western science with Indigenous knowledge could help the Arctic
Polar marine ecologist Marianne Falardeau investigates how Arctic ecosystems are shifting under climate change.
- Climate
Life-saving research on extreme heat comes under fire
The Trump administration’s cuts to heat research come at a time when climate change is making extreme heat waves more common and intense.
- Oceans
Deep-sea mining might feed plankton a diet of junk food
An analysis of mining plumes in the Pacific Ocean reveals they kick up particles sized similarly to the more nutritious tidbits that plankton eat.
- Animals
This fly’s flesh-eating maggot is making a comeback. Here’s what to know
After a decades-long hiatus, new world screwworm populations have surged in Central America and Mexico — and are inching northward.
- Plants
A special shape shift helps a shrub thrive in blistering heat
A microscope reveals an algae-like adaptation that might future-proof crop photosynthesis in extreme heat.
- Animals
Mosquitoes infiltrated Iceland. Will they survive the winter?
Mosquitoes have reached Iceland, a place once thought too harsh for them to survive. Climate change may play a role in this shift.
- Animals
Deep Antarctic waters hold geometric communities of fish nests
Scientists found thousands of patterned fish nests in Antarctica’s Weddell Sea, boosting calls for marine protected areas.
- Climate
Hurricane Melissa spins into a monster storm as it bears down on Jamaica
The story of Atlantic hurricanes is treading a familiar — and frightening — path: Climate change is fueling huge, slow-moving, rain-drenching storms.
