News

Archaeology

Indigenous Americans ruled democratically long before the U.S. did

Oklahoma’s Muscogee people, among others, promoted rule by the people long before the U.S. Constitution was written.

Health & Medicine

What you need to know about the new omicron booster shots

With approval of omicron booster shots, COVID-19 vaccine approval and dosing guidance is moving closer to the way flu shots are handled.

Physics

Zapping plastic with a laser forged tiny diamonds

The technique could be used to manufacture nanodiamonds for use in quantum devices and other applications.

Earth

In 2021, a deadly volcano erupted with no warning. Here’s why

Before the Nyiragongo eruption, underground magma was already close to the surface and so didn’t trigger instruments that look for lava movement.

Astronomy

Here’s the James Webb telescope’s first direct image of an exoplanet

Along with spying its first exoplanet, the James Webb telescope got its first direct spectrum of an object orbiting a star in another solar system.

Animals

A clever molecular trick extends the lives of these ant queens

Ant queens typically live much longer than their workers by blocking a key part of a molecular pathway implicated in aging, a new study suggests.

Health & Medicine

Who has the highest risk of long COVID? It’s complicated

Long COVID can look different for different people, making it difficult to pinpoint the risk factors behind it.

Life

Ancient ‘demon ducks’ may have been undone by their slow growth

Mihirung birds grew to more than half a ton and took their time getting there. That slow growth may have been a vulnerability when humans got to Australia.

Space

Physicists dispute a claim of detecting a black hole’s ‘photon ring’

A thin ring of light around a black hole, which would probe gravity in a new way, has been found, one team claims. Skeptics aren’t convinced.

Paleontology

This bizarre ancient critter has been kicked out of a group that includes humans

A wee sea creature without an anus was thought to be the oldest deuterostome. New imaging showing it had spines led to its reclassification.

Earth

The Tonga eruption may have spawned a tsunami as tall as the Statue of Liberty

A massive undersea volcanic eruption in the South Pacific in January created a tsunami that was initially 90 meters tall, computer simulations suggest.

Neuroscience

COVID-19 gave new urgency to the science of restoring smell

With newfound pressure from the pandemic, olfactory training and a host of other newer treatments are now getting a lot more attention.