News
- Climate
Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees versus 2 has big benefits, the IPCC says
A new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change compares the impact of warming targets on extreme weather, sea level rise and habitat loss.
- Cosmology
The universe’s continued existence implies extra dimensions are tiny
The strictest limits yet on the size of extra dimensions come from the fact that black holes haven't destroyed the universe.
- Physics
A new ultrafast laser emits pulses of light 30 billion times a second
A new technique allows lasers to pulsate at a higher rate than ever before.
- Health & Medicine
City size and structure may influence influenza epidemics
The size and structure of cities helps shape the progression of new influenza cases during a flu season, a new study finds.
- Planetary Science
Saturn’s ‘ring rain’ is a surprising cocktail of chemicals
NASA’s Cassini probe got a closeup view of the material falling from Saturn’s rings into the planet. The data could help illuminate the belts’ origins.
- Chemistry
Speeding up evolution to create useful proteins wins the chemistry Nobel
The three winners, which include the fifth woman to win the chemistry prize, pioneered techniques used to fashion customized proteins for new biofuels and drugs.
- Life
Lemur study suggests why some fruits smell so fruity
A new test with lemurs and birds suggests there’s more to fruit odors than simple ripening.
- Astronomy
Hubble may have spotted the first known exomoon
A single sighting with the Hubble Space Telescope seems to confirm that there’s a Neptune-sized moon orbiting exoplanet Kepler 1625b.
- Animals
Giraffes inherit their spots from their mothers
Africa’s tallest creatures get their characteristic patterns of spots from their moms, a new study finds.
- Physics
Dazzling laser feats earn these physicists a Nobel
The 2018 Nobel Prize in physics went to scientists — including the third-ever female winner — who made optical tweezers and boosted the strength of laser pulses.
- Climate
Tracking how rainfall morphs Earth’s surface could help forecast flooding
After Hurricane Harvey, scientists used GPS networks to track how Earth’s surface morphed under the weight of floodwaters.
- Health & Medicine
Discovery of how to prod a patient’s immune system to fight cancer wins a Nobel
Two scientists share the 2018 medicine Nobel for identifying proteins that act as brakes on tumor-fighting T cells.
