Life

More Stories in Life

  1. a jaguar swimming in water
    Animals

    Huge numbers of fish-eating jaguars prowl Brazil’s wetlands

    Jaguars in the northern Pantanal ecosystem primarily feed on fish and caiman, living at densities previously unknown for the species.

    By Jake Buehler
  2. two Siberian sled dogs
    Archaeology

    Dog DNA reveals ancient trade network connecting the Arctic to the outside world

    People in Siberia were exchanging canines and probably other goods as early as 7,000 years ago with cultures as far off as Europe and the Near East.

    By Freda Kreier
  3. close-up of the head of a black bird with a red beak
    Anthropology

    How catching birds bare-handed may hint at Neandertals’ hunting tactics

    By pretending to be Neandertals, researchers show that the ancient hominids likely had the skills to easily hunt crowlike birds called choughs.

    By Trishla Ostwal
  4. an illustration of a giant ground sloth eating from a mammal carcass in front of a cave
    Animals

    Giant ground sloths may have been meat-eating scavengers

    Contrary to previous assumptions, at least one ancient giant ground sloth was a meat eater.

    By Carolyn Gramling
  5. the bones of the famous skeleton Lucy arranged on a black background
    Chemistry

    Radiometric dating puts pieces of the past in context. Here’s how

    Carbon dating and other techniques answer essential questions about human history, our planet and the solar system.

    By Sid Perkins
  6. illustration of several types of dinosaurs exploring a habitat with a lake and trees amid rain
    Earth

    A volcano-induced rainy period made Earth’s climate dinosaur-friendly

    New physical evidence links eruptions 234 million to 232 million years ago to climate changes that let dinosaurs start their climb to dominance.

    By Megan Sever
  7. brain scan
    Neuroscience

    A blood test may help predict recovery from traumatic brain injury

    High levels of a key blood protein point to brain shrinkage and damage to message-sending axons, providing a biomarker for TBI severity and prognosis.

    By Jackie Rocheleau
  8. twin girls stand side by side
    Genetics

    All identical twins may share a common set of chemical markers on their DNA

    Identical twins may share a set of unique chemical tags on their DNA that could be used to identify individuals who were conceived as identical twins.

    By Jonathan Lambert
  9. An ancient female spider and her egg sac trapped in amber
    Paleontology

    This is the oldest fossil evidence of spider moms taking care of their young

    A spider trapped in amber 99 million years ago guarded her eggs and may have helped raise her young.

    By Freda Kreier