News in Brief

Earth

Volume of fracking fluid pumped underground tied to Canada quakes

Study links volume of fracking fluid injected underground with hundreds of quakes in central Canada, and not the rate at which the fluids were injected.

Astronomy

Spaceships could use blinking dead stars to chart their way

Timing signals from five pulsars allowed scientists to pinpoint an experiment’s place in space.

Planetary Science

Shallow ice sheets discovered on Mars could aid future astronauts

Exposed water ice on steep Martian slopes suggest there’s a lot within a meter or two of the surface.

Planetary Science

Hubble telescope ramps up search for Europa’s watery plumes

Astronomers are redoubling their efforts to confirm that the icy moon Europa spews water from its south pole.

Neuroscience

Protein helps old blood age the brains of young mice

Increased levels of one protein in old blood may contribute to its aging effects on the brain, a mouse study suggests.

Genetics

CRISPR gene editor could spark immune reaction in people

Immune reactions could shut down CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing.

Climate

Warming ocean water is turning 99 percent of these sea turtles female

Green sea turtle populations in part of the Great Barrier Reef are becoming increasingly female due to higher ocean temperatures.

Oceans

Corals are severely bleaching five times as often as in 1980

Corals are now bleaching more frequently and severely than they were in the early 1980s.

Astronomy

Aliens ruled out for why Tabby’s star flickers

The first real-time observations of Tabby’s star flickering put the final nail in the “alien megastructure” coffin.

Tech

Boy robot passes agility tests

Anatomically accurate humanlike robots pave the way for more sophisticated prosthetics and realistic crash-test dummies.

Health & Medicine

Gay, lesbian and bisexual high schoolers report ‘tragically high’ suicide risk

Teens who identify as sexual minorities are more likely to report suicidal behaviors than their heterosexual peers, a new study finds.

Earth

Federal maps underestimate flood risk for tens of millions of people, scientists warn

New flood maps suggest that the U.S. government underestimates how many people live in floodplains.