News in Brief
- Earth
U.S. wells are pumping up groundwater from increasing depths
Around the United States, groundwater wells are getting deeper in search of new sources of freshwater, a new study shows.
- Physics
Increased control over ions’ motions may help improve quantum computers
Scientists precisely manipulated the ion’s oscillations and energy levels, a key step toward building better quantum computers.
- Planetary Science
India’s first lunar lander is on its way to the moon
India’s Chandrayaan 2 mission just launched, hoping to become the first Indian spacecraft to land on the moon.
- Animals
A deadly fungus gives ‘zombie’ ants a case of lockjaw
Clues left on infected ant jaws may reveal how the ‘zombie-ant-fungus’ contracts ant muscles to make their death grip.
- Health & Medicine
WHO declares a public health emergency over Congo’s Ebola outbreak
The yearlong Ebola outbreak in the Congo has been declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization.
- Animals
Southern right whale moms and calves may whisper to evade orcas
Mother-calf whale pairs call to each other quietly to stay in touch while avoiding attracting the attention of predators, a study suggests.
- Paleontology
An ancient bird found encased in amber had a bizarrely long toe
A 99-million-year-old fossil holds a bird with an oddly long toe, which might have helped the critter hook hard-to-reach dinners.
- Anthropology
Ancient DNA reveals the origins of the Philistines
A mysterious Biblical-era population may have fled Bronze Age calamities.
- Health & Medicine
Rogue immune cells can infiltrate old brains
Killer T cells get into older brains where they may make mischief, a study in mice and postmortem human brain tissue finds.
- Climate
Europe’s latest heat wave has been linked to climate change
Global warming made the June heat wave at least five times more likely to happen.
- Health & Medicine
Vision cells can pull double duty in the brain, detecting both color and shape
Neurons in a brain area that handles vision fire in response to more than one aspect of an object, countering earlier ideas, a study in monkeys finds.
- Planetary Science
With Dragonfly, NASA is heading back to Saturn’s moon Titan
NASA’s next robotic mission to explore the solar system is headed to Saturn’s largest moon, Titan.
