All Stories
- Planetary Science
Mercury’s dark secret revealed
Graphite from Mercury’s primordial crust might be responsible for making the innermost planet darker than the moon.
- Animals
Eat your stinkbugs
Prepared as a snack by some groups in southern Africa, the stinkbug Encosternum delegorguei is a good source of protein and antioxidants.
- Paleontology
Free virtual fossils for everyone
MorphoSource.org archives 3-D images of bones from over 200 genera of both living and extinct animals.
By Erin Wayman - Health & Medicine
Mind’s healing powers put to the test in new book
Cure: A Journey Into the Science of Mind Over Body investigates the brain’s role in keeping people healthy.
- Science & Society
Historian puts new spin on scientific revolution
The Invention of Science offers readers an unconventional perspective on the origins of modern science.
- Health & Medicine
Brazil study strengthens link between Zika virus, birth defects
In a study of pregnant women in Brazil, nearly 30 percent of those infected with Zika virus had babies with fetal abnormalities.
By Meghan Rosen - Animals
These beetles use surface tension to water-ski
Waterlily beetles are in for a fast and bumpy ride as they fly across ponds, researchers find.
- Paleontology
Lizards locked in amber provide clues to reptile evolution
Amber-encased lizard remains that date to 99 million years ago may shed light on the evolution of geckos and chameleons.
- Health & Medicine
Microcephaly: Building a case against Zika
Zika virus is the prime suspect for Brazil’s recent surge in birth defects. New evidence in human cells strengthens the case, but more definitive proof could come this summer from Colombia, where thousands of pregnant women have been infected.
By Meghan Rosen - Science & Society
Zika virus, mosquitoes, gene drives: Ask us anything
Three Science News reporters answer questions about zika virus, genetically engineered mosquitoes, mosquito biology and more in a Reddit AMA on Friday, March 4.
- Animals
Is Amy Tan actually ‘thrilled’ a leech is named after her?
Novelist Amy Tan answers a lingering question about celebrities honored in scientific names of new species — her namesake is a leech.
By Susan Milius - Genetics
Missing genes not always a problem for people
Humans have ways to make up for missing genes, study suggests.