News
- Materials Science
Want a ‘Shrinky Dinks’ approach to nano-sized devices? Try hydrogels
Patterning hydrogels with a laser and then shrinking them down with chemicals offers a way to make nanoscopic structures out of many materials.
- Microbes
Scientists have found the first known microbes that can eat only viruses
Lab experiments show that Halteria ciliates can chow down solely on viruses. Whether these “virovores” do the same in the wild is unclear.
- Animals
These adorable Australian spike-balls beat the heat with snot bubbles
An echidna’s snot bubbles coat the spiny critter’s nose with moisture, which then evaporates and draws heat from the sinus, cooling the blood.
- Climate
Cyclones in the Arctic are becoming more intense and frequent
Over the last 70 years, boreal storms have steadily grown stronger. And climate change may make them worse, threatening both people and sea ice.
- Physics
A powerful laser can redirect lightning strikes
In a mountaintop experiment, a laser beamed into the sky created a virtual lightning rod that snagged several bolts before they hit the ground.
- Health & Medicine
Here’s what you need to know about COVID’s XBB.1.5 ‘Kraken’ variant
XBB.1.5, an offshoot of the coronavirus’s omicron variant, can hide from parts of the immune system, but vaccines and some treatments still work.
- Planetary Science
Enceladus is blanketed in a thick layer of snow
Pits on the Saturnian moon reveal the surprising depth of the satellite’s snow, suggesting its plume was more active in the past.
- Health & Medicine
HDL ‘good’ cholesterol isn’t always good for heart health
High levels of HDL cholesterol don’t appear to protect against heart disease, while harm from low levels may depend on race, a study reports.
- Astronomy
The James Webb telescope found ‘Green Pea’ galaxies in the early universe
The James Webb telescope spotted tiny “green” galaxies that might have helped trigger a dramatic cosmic makeover more than 13 billion years ago.
- Planetary Science
Methylated gases could be an unambiguous indicator of alien life
On Earth, methylated gases are produced by organisms cleaning up their environment — and by little else. The same might be true on some exoplanets.
- Health & Medicine
4 key things to know about lung infections caused by fungi
News that three kinds of fungi are more widespread than previously thought prompted reader questions about risk, symptoms and more. We answer them.
- Physics
Rare ‘dark lightning’ might briefly touch passengers when flying
Gamma-ray blasts from thunderstorms might occasionally zap passing airplanes, briefly exposing passengers to unsafe levels of radiation.
