Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Paleontology
Human route into Americas traced via trail of bison fossils
Bread crumbs in the form of ancient bison may mark one potential path that humans took to colonize the Americas.
- Science & Society
Francis Crick’s good luck revolutionized biology
Francis Crick, born 100 years ago, chose to study molecular biology first and then later tackled consciousness.
- Animals
Maximum size of giant squid remains a mystery
A scientist has come up with a new estimate of the maximum size of giant squid. He says the animals could be as long as two public buses.
- Animals
Pygmy blue whales deepen their moans
Sri Lankan pygmy blue whales are tweaking their calls — making one part deeper and keeping another part the same — but scientists can’t say why. The finding injects a new wrinkle in theories about blue whale calls.
- Genetics
Ancient DNA tells of two origins for dogs
Genetic analysis of an ancient Irish mutt reveals complicated history of dog domestication.
- Environment
Tiny plastics cause big problems for perch
Researchers have linked microplastics to feeding behavior changes and development issues in Baltic Sea perch.
- Animals
Tiny plastics cause big problems for perch, lab study finds
Researchers have linked microplastics to feeding behavior changes and development issues in Baltic Sea perch.
- Life
Jumping gene turned peppered moths the color of soot
A single gene is behind some of the most famous examples of natural selection.
- Climate
Readers share climate change concerns
Readers respond to the April 16, 2016, issue of Science News with thoughts on climate change, prairie dogs and more.
- Materials Science
Butterfly-inspired nanostructures can sort light
Scientists re-created a nanostructure found on butterflies that can separate out circularly polarized light, a characteristic that may be useful for telecommunications.
- Life
Scientists dig up proteins from the past
To learn how today’s proteins evolved, scientists are reconstructing ancient molecules.
- Animals
Pandas have ultrasonic hearing
Giant pandas hear very high frequencies. Scientists still don’t know why.
