News
- Materials Science
Like a balloon, peculiar magnet grows and shrinks
A recently discovered alloy of iron and gallium can expand and contract like a balloon when exposed to a magnetic field.
- Archaeology
Earliest known stone tools unearthed in Kenya
East African discoveries suggest stone-tool making started at least 3.3 million years ago.
- Astronomy
Peeks into early life of supernovas show how to blow up a star
Multiple supernovas show off some of the ways a star can explode.
- Health & Medicine
Snagging blood clots upgrades stroke care
A new device threaded up to the brain via catheter can unblock vessels in cerebral arteries, studies show.
- Planetary Science
Sea salt may stripe Europa’s surface
Salt deposits on Jupiter’s moon Europa might be responsible for brown stripes on the icy satellite’s surface.
- Materials Science
Spiders spin stronger threads with nanotubes
Spiders sprayed with carbon nanotubes spin supertough strands of silk.
- Psychology
Quantity counts for baboons
Counting-like logic helps baboons track and compare accumulating sets of peanuts.
- Earth
Asteroids boiled young Earth’s oceans, remnant rocks suggest
Giant asteroid impacts may have boiled Earth’s oceans around 3.3 billion years ago, snuffing out near-surface life.
- Animals
Deepwater dweller is first known warm-hearted fish
The opah, a deep-diving fish, can keep much of its body warmer than its surroundings, making it similar to warm-blooded birds and mammals.
- Oceans
Mysterious form of phosphorus explained
Mysterious form of phosphorus may be used as shadow currency by marine microbes, potentially upending scientists’ understanding of nutrient exchanges.
- Neuroscience
Fruit flies flee from shadows
Studying flies’ responses to an ominous shadow may lead to a deeper understanding of humans’ emotions.
- Genetics
MicroRNAs track radiation doses
MicroRNAs in the blood may indicate radiation damage, a study of mice finds.
