Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Agriculture
A tweaked yeast can make ethanol from cornstalks and a harvest’s other leftovers
By genetically modifying baker’s yeast, scientists figured out how to get almost as much ethanol from cornstalks as kernels.
- Earth
A WWII submarine-hunting device helped prove the theory of plate tectonics
With a boost from World War II, the fluxgate magnetometer became a portable and invaluable tool.
- Animals
Focusing on Asian giant hornets distorts the view of invasive species
2021’s first “murder hornet” is yet another arrival. This is the not-so-new normal.
- Earth
Invisible bursts of electricity from volcanoes signal explosive eruptions
Mysterious “vent discharges” could help warn of impending explosions, a study of Japan’s Sakurajima volcano shows.
- Paleontology
Fossilized dung from a dinosaur ancestor yields a new beetle species
Whole beetles preserved in fossilized poo suggest that ancient droppings may deserve a closer look.
- Climate
3 things to know about the record-smashing heat wave baking the Pacific Northwest
Road-buckling, cable-melting, life-threatening heat waves in the Pacific Northwest may become more common as global temperatures rise.
- Animals
‘Fathom’ seeks to unravel humpback whales’ soulful songs
The film ‘Fathom’ on Apple TV+ follows the quest of researchers on the ocean’s surface to decipher the eerie symphony of humpback whale calls below.
- Earth
A satellite’s view of a deadly 2019 eruption could improve volcano monitoring
Monitoring volcanoes from space could enhance scientists’ understanding of, and ability to predict, even small eruptions.
- Climate
Collapse may not always be inevitable for marine ice cliffs
Runaway collapse of ice cliffs could dramatically boost sea level. But these cliffs may not be so vulnerable, new simulations suggest.
- Earth
A new book uses stories from tsunami survivors to decode deadly waves
In ‘Tsunami: The World’s Greatest Waves,’ two scientists chronical hundreds of eyewitness accounts to show the human cost of life at the water’s edge.
- Chemistry
Many cosmetics contain hidden, potentially dangerous ‘forever chemicals’
Scientists found signs of long-lasting PFAS compounds in about half of tested makeup products, especially waterproof mascaras and lipsticks.
- Earth
Scientists have found the origins of a mysterious, deadly flood in India
A landslide of rock and ice caused the deadly flood that washed out two hydroelectric power plants in an Indian Himalayan state in February.
