All Stories
- Microbes
Evolutionary virologist Daniel Blanco-Melo seeks out ancient pathogens
Daniel Blanco-Melo has reconstructed two viral strains brought to the Americas with European colonizers in the 16th century.
- Physics
Light, not just heat, might spur water to evaporate
In experiments, light shining on water as much as doubled the evaporation rate expected from heat alone, hinting at a never-before-seen effect.
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Scientific meetings — it’s nice to see you again
Executive editor Elizabeth Quill discusses the importance of covering scientific meetings.
- Animals
How hummingbirds fly through spaces too narrow for their wings
Using high-speed cameras, a new study reveals Anna’s hummingbirds turn sideways to shimmy through gaps half as wide as their wingspan.
- Environment
Grassland and shrubland fires destroy more U.S. homes than forest fires
Grassland and shrubland fires destroyed nearly 11,000 homes in the contiguous United States from 1990 to 2020.
- Climate
The last 12 months were the hottest on record
The planet’s average temperature was about 1.3 degrees Celsius higher than the 1850–1900 average, a new report finds.
- Life
Head lice hitched a ride on humans to the Americas at least twice
The genes of head lice record the story of their human hosts’ global voyages.
- Planetary Science
50 years ago, the first probe to visit Mercury launched
In the 1970s, NASA’s Mariner 10 became the first spacecraft to visit Mercury. Only one other probe has made the journey and another one is on its way.
- Physics
A controversial room-temperature superconductor result has now been retracted
The retraction by Nature is the third for beleaguered physicist Ranga Dias, who still stands by his claim of a room-temperature superconductor.
- Psychology
Why scientists are expanding the definition of loneliness
Feeling detached from animals, places and routines can cause loneliness, researchers are learning, which may expand the list of interventions.
- Animals
The mysterious deaths of dozens of Zimbabwe’s elephants has been solved
A bacterium never before identified in elephants or implicated in deadly internal hemorrhaging killed Zimbabwe elephants in 2020, genetic tests show.
