All Stories
- Neuroscience
Scientists have mapped an insect brain in greater detail than ever before
Researchers have built a nerve cell “connectivity map” of a larval fruit fly brain. It’s the most complex whole brain wiring diagram yet made.
- Agriculture
Dry farming could help agriculture in the western U.S. amid climate change
Some farmers in the western United States are forgoing irrigation, which can save on water and produce more flavorful fruits and vegetables.
- Paleontology
520-million-year-old animal fossils might not be animals after all
Newly described fossils of Protomelission gatehousei suggest that the species, once thought to be the oldest example of bryozoans, is actually a type of colony-forming algae.
By Sid Perkins - Climate
How wildfires deplete the Earth’s ozone layer
Scientists detail the chain of chemical reactions that occur when wildfire smoke enters the stratosphere.
- Astronomy
Newborn stars sculpt their galaxies in new James Webb telescope images
Dark voids riddle the galaxies’ faces, highlighting previously invisible details about how new stars alter their locales.
- Physics
Is this the superconductor of scientists’ dreams? A new claim faces scrutiny
It’s big, if true: transmitting electricity with no resistance at room temperature and moderate pressure. But controversy dogs the team making the claim.
- Health & Medicine
An antibody injection could one day help people with endometriosis
An injectable antibody treatment that reduced signs of endometriosis in monkeys is now being tested in a Phase 1 clinical trial in people.
By Meghan Rosen - Health & Medicine
Bird flu can jump to mammals. Should we worry?
Reports of bears and sea lions infected with H5N1 have sparked fears about the pandemic potential of bird flu. Experts are keeping a close eye on its spread.
- Cosmology
Astronomers spotted shock waves shaking the web of the universe for the first time
Studying these elusive shock waves could give scientists a better look at the mysterious magnetic fields that permeate the cosmic web.
By Elise Cutts - Environment
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill ruined long-term shore stability
For at least eight years, the oil disaster continued to kill soil-retaining marsh plants along the Louisiana coast, accelerating shoreline loss.
- Animals
What the first look at the genetics of Chernobyl’s dogs revealed
Dogs living in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant industrial area are genetically distinct from other dogs, but scientists don’t yet know if radiation is the reason.
By Meghan Rosen - Archaeology
The Yamnaya may have been the world’s earliest known horseback riders
5,000-year-old Yamnaya skeletons show physical signs of horseback riding, hinting that they may be the earliest known humans to do so.