All Stories
- Physics
A quantum strategy could verify the solutions to unsolvable problems — in theory
A quantum technique for verifying solutions to difficult problems could apply to an “unbelievably huge” class of puzzles.
- Health & Medicine
WHO says China’s coronavirus outbreak isn’t a global emergency yet
While the WHO says the coronavirus outbreak isn’t a global emergency, China has locked down several large cities to stop the virus from spreading.
- Archaeology
A 3-D printed vocal tract lets an ancient mummy speak from beyond the grave
A re-created version of a mummy’s vocal tract reveals what this ancient Egyptian might have sounded like.
- Life
Sparkly exoskeletons may help camouflage beetles from predators
Iridescence, normally thought to help insects stand out, can also camouflage beetles from predators, according to new experimental evidence.
- Archaeology
Mount Vesuvius may have suffocated, not vaporized, some victims
A new study suggests people living near Pompeii who hid in stone boathouses died a slower death when the volcano erupted in A.D. 79.
- Humans
Stress turns hair gray by triggering the body’s fight-or-flight response
A study in mice finds stress responses deplete cells that give hair its pigment, making the strand white.
- Earth
Fed by human-caused erosion, many river deltas are growing
Deforestation and river damming are changing the shape of river deltas around the globe.
- Genetics
Ancient kids’ DNA reveals new insights into how Africa was populated
Four long-dead youngsters from west-central Africa have opened a window on humankind’s far-flung African origins.
- Animals
Collectors find plenty of bees but far fewer species than in the 1950s
An analysis of global insect collections points to a major collapse in bee diversity since the 1990s.
- Health & Medicine
The first U.S. case of a new coronavirus has been confirmed
After confirmation that a new coronavirus is transmissible between humans, U.S. health officials report a first case in Seattle.
- Earth
A 2.2-billion-year-old crater is Earth’s oldest recorded meteorite impact
The newly dated Yarrabubba crater in Western Australia extends Earth’s impact record by more than 200 million years.
- Space
Phosphorus, a key ingredient of life, has been found in a newborn star system
Astrochemists map phosphorus-bearing molecules in a star-forming cloud, giving clues to how this vital element may have arrived on Earth.
