All Stories
- Psychology
When it’s playtime, many kids prefer reality over fantasy
Given a choice between fantasy play and doing the things that adults do, children prefer reality-based tasks, studies suggest.
- Anthropology
Ancient kids’ toys have been hiding in the archaeological record
Some unusual finds from thousands of years ago are actually toys and children’s attempts at mimicking adult craftwork.
- Plants
Pollinators are usually safe from a Venus flytrap
A first-ever look at what pollinates the carnivorous Venus flytrap finds little overlap between pollinators and prey.
- Cosmology
The way dwarf galaxies move puts a new spin on galaxy formation
Distant dwarf galaxies orbit a larger galaxy in a coordinated loop, rather than randomly as expected. The finding could challenge theories of dark matter.
- Physics
Laser experiment hints at weird in-between ice
Scientists spot signs of an unusual phase of water called superionic ice.
- Astronomy
Some of TRAPPIST-1’s planets could have life-friendly atmospheres
The seven planets orbiting TRAPPIST-1 are probably rocky and some may have life-friendly atmospheres, two new papers suggest.
- Science & Society
Wikipedia has become a science reference source even though scientists don’t cite it
Wikipedia is everyone’s go-to source. Even scientists. A new study shows how science on Wikipedia may end up forwarding science itself.
- Science & Society
‘Death: A Graveside Companion’ offers an outlet for your morbid curiosity
A coffee-table book explores how humans have tried to understand death through the ages.
- Artificial Intelligence
‘Machines That Think’ predicts the future of artificial intelligence
In a new book, an artificial intelligence expert explores AI’s past, present and future.
- Materials Science
New textile weathers temperature shift
Reversible textile keeps skin at a comfortable temperature with thin layers of carbon and copper.
- Neuroscience
A blood test could predict the risk of Alzheimer’s disease
A blood test can predict the presence of an Alzheimer’s-related protein in the brain.
- Animals
A peek into polar bears’ lives reveals revved-up metabolisms
Polar bears have higher metabolisms than scientists thought. In a world with declining Arctic sea ice, that could spell trouble.
