All Stories
- Environment
Plastic pollution increases risk of devastating disease in corals
Researchers estimate about 11 billion pieces of plastic are polluting Asia-Pacific corals, raising the risk of disease at scores of reefs.
- Genetics
Scientists find 10 new defense systems used by bacteria
Scientists identify 10 groups of genes that appear to govern defense systems used by bacteria against virus attacks.
- Earth
Overlooked air pollution may be fueling more powerful storms
The tiniest particles in air pollution aren’t just a health threat. They also strengthen thunderstorms, new research suggests.
- Anthropology
An ancient jaw pushes humans’ African departure back in time
If an ancient jaw found in an Israeli cave belongs to Homo sapiens, the humans left Africa tens of thousands of years earlier than we thought.
- Earth
Robots map largest underwater volcanic eruption in 100 years
High-resolution mapping of a 2012 underwater volcanic eruption just goes to show there’s a lot we don’t know about deep-sea volcanism.
- Tech
Lasers trace a new way to create hovering hologram-like images
Hovering 3-D images pave the way for futuristic displays that could be used for education or entertainment.
- Anthropology
Human brains rounded into shape over 200,000 years or more
Ancient humans’ brains slowly but surely became round, scientists say.
- Science & Society
Memory remains elusive, but the search continues
Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill explores the history of memory and scientists' search for its physical trace in our brains.
- Cosmology
Readers wonder about the universe’s expansion and more
Readers had questions about the universe's accelerating expansion, a hidden void in the Great Pyramid of Giza and what happens to human waste in space.
- Genetics
Baby macaques are the first primates to be cloned like Dolly the Sheep
Scientists have cloned two baby macaque monkeys with the same technique used to clone Dolly. The research could help advance the cloning of other species.
- Astronomy
The X-ray glow keeps growing after the recent neutron star collision
X-rays from a neutron star collision have been getting brighter, and scientists are debating why.
- Neuroscience
Somewhere in the brain is a storage device for memories
New technology and new ideas spur the hunt for the physical basis of memory.
