All Stories
- Paleontology
Why the turtle got its shell
Fossil evidence suggests that turtles’ ancestors started to form precursors to today’s shells to help them dig, not to protect themselves.
- Planetary Science
Juno snaps its first pic of Jupiter
Jupiter and three of its moons take center stage in the first snapshot taken by the Juno spacecraft since arriving at the planet on July 4.
- Health & Medicine
Risk of travelers to Olympics sparking new Zika outbreaks low
Just four countries — Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea and Yemen — bear a substantial risk of bringing Zika virus home from the Olympics and having it spread, the CDC says.
By Meghan Rosen - Health & Medicine
Still mysterious, aging may prove malleable
Our editor in chief discusses the science of aging.
By Eva Emerson - Life
A healthy old age may trump immortality
Despite disagreements about what aging is and isn't, scientists have reached a radical consensus: It can be delayed.
- Neuroscience
The brain’s blueprint for aging is set early in life
The brain's decline may mirror its beginning, offering clues to aging.
- Animals
Organisms age in myriad ways — and some might not even bother
There is great variety in how animals and plants deteriorate (or don’t) over time.
By Susan Milius - Animals
Readers mesmerized by ‘Strange visions’
Animal vision, ice-making microbes, brain maps and more reader feedback.
- Animals
What animals’ life spans can tell us about how people age
The animal world can offer insights into human longevity.
- Animals
When bird populations shrink, females fly away
In small and shrinking populations of willow warblers, males outnumber females. That’s because girls choose to join bigger groups, a new study finds.
- Animals
How snails breathe through snorkels on land
Shells with a tube counterintuitively sealed at the end have hidden ways to let Asian snails snorkel while sealed in their shells.
By Susan Milius - Animals
How snails breathe through snorkels on land
Shells with a tube counterintuitively sealed at the end have hidden ways to let Asian snails snorkel while sealed in their shells.
By Susan Milius