Notebook
- Environment
50 years ago, chemical pollutants were linked to odd animal behavior
Fifty years after studies hinted that pollution interferes with how aquatic creatures communicate, scientists are still unraveling its myriad effects.
- Planetary Science
50 years ago, astronomers were chipping away at Pluto’s mass
Prior to the discovery of Pluto’s moon Charon, astronomers struggled to pin down the dwarf planet’s mass.
- Physics
50 years ago, physicists thought they found the W boson. They hadn’t
Fifty years after a false-alarm discovery, physicists have caught the W boson and are using it to unravel mysteries of particle physics.
- Chemistry
50 years ago, scientists developed self-destructing plastic
In the 1970s, scientists developed plastic that could quickly break down when exposed to light. But that didn’t solve the world’s pollution problems.
- Animals
A hammerhead shark baby boom near Florida hints at a historic nursery
Finding an endangered shark nursery in a vast ocean is like finding a needle in a haystack. But that’s just what scientists did near Miami.
- Animals
How some lizards breathe underwater
Researchers have figured out how some anole lizards can stay underwater for as long as 18 minutes.
- Microbes
Missing Antarctic microbes raise thorny questions about the search for aliens
Scientists couldn’t find microbial life in soils from Antarctica, hinting at a limit for habitability on Earth and other worlds.
- Science & Society
How science overlooks Asian Americans
Existing scientific datasets fail to capture details on Asian Americans, making it hard to assess the group’s overall well-being.
- Health & Medicine
50 years ago, scientists found a virus lurking in human cancer cells
In 1971, scientists were building a case for viruses as a cause of cancer. Fifty years later, cancer-preventing vaccines are now a reality.
- Science & Society
50 years ago, UFO sightings in the United States went bust
In 1971, reports of unidentified flying objects were on the decline. Fifty years later, sightings have spiked thanks in part to pandemic lockdowns.
- Ecosystems
As ‘phantom rivers’ roar, birds and bats change their hunting habits
A massive experiment in the Idaho wilderness shows it’s not just human-made noises that impact ecosystems. Natural noises can too.
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50 years ago, NASA relaxed quarantine rules for returning moon missions
Fifty years after NASA declared that moon missions returning to Earth weren’t a contamination risk, protocols for planetary missions are under review.
