All Stories
- Science & Society
Using AI, historians track how astronomy ideas spread in the 16th century
A new AI machine learning technique helped historians analyze 76,000 pages from astronomy textbooks spanning nearly two centuries.
- Animals
These hornets may be the alcohol-detox champs of the animal world
Vespa orientalis fed an 80-percent-ethanol brew still did hornet tasks and had normal life spans. This trick may be an adaptation to gut-dwelling yeast.
- Animals
Giant rats could soon help sniff out illegally smuggled goods
African giant pouched rats can detect landmines and diseases. Now some have been trained to sense elephant ivory, pangolin scales and more.
- Archaeology
A race to save Indigenous trails may change the face of archaeology
As construction of a pipeline nears, an effort to preserve an Indigenous trail in Canada tests whether heritage management can keep up with advances in archaeology.
- Climate
Fans may not keep older adults cool during heat waves
Older adults are at higher risk of suffering health consequences during heat waves. Fans may not do enough to prevent that.
- Health & Medicine
Are synthetic food dyes bad for you? Here’s what the science says.
California is banning them in schools. The FDA says they’re fine. But synthetic dyes added to food to make them more colorful have a long, troubled history.
- Animals
A common kitchen tool could help koala conservation
A simple device sucks koala DNA out of the air, making it easier for conservationists to detect the elusive marsupials.
- Math
Two teenagers have once again proved an ancient math rule
Ne’Kiya Jackson and Calcea Johnson have published 10 trigonometric proofs of the Pythagorean theorem, a feat thought impossible for 2,000 years.
- Health & Medicine
Drop in vaping drives tobacco product use by U.S. youth to a record low
The fewest number of U.S. middle and high school students are currently using tobacco products since the National Youth Tobacco Survey began in 1999.
- Health & Medicine
Male mosquitoes sometimes suck, too
Blood isn’t actually toxic to all male mosquitos. In at least one virus-carrying species, it may even help them live longer.
- Science & Society
The U.S. empire was built on bird dung
A mid-1850s act let the United States seize islands rich in bird guano. Those strategic outposts fueled the U.S. rise to power, a researcher says.
- Animals
The ‘Mekong ghost’ megafish has resurfaced after an extinction scare
Rediscovery of giant salmon carp in Cambodia sparks hope for the rare fish’s survival and efforts to conserve one of the greatest diversity hot spots.
