Uncategorized
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Archaeology
Ancient nomadic herders beat a path to the Silk Road
Herders’ mountain treks helped mold the Silk Road, an ancient, cross-continental trade network.
By Bruce Bower -
Animals
Readers dispute starfishes’ water-swirling abilities
Volcanic eruptions, fast-freezing water, starfish physics and more in reader feedback.
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Science & Society
Science journalists don’t use the science of ‘nudge’
Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill discusses the mission of science journalists.
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Neuroscience
Brain training turns recall rookies into memory masters
Six weeks of training turned average people into memory masters, a skill reflected in their brains.
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Psychology
Nudging people to make good choices can backfire
Steering people’s decisions with simple nudges, such as e-mail reminders or opt-out programs, can come with a downside.
By Bruce Bower -
Astronomy
Astronomers detect oldest known stardust in distant galaxy
The first stardust ever generated in the universe may have been spotted in a distant galaxy, seen as it was 600 million years after the Big Bang.
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Agriculture
Fleets of drones could pollinate future crops
Chemist Eijiro Miyako turned a lab failure into a way to rethink artificial pollination.
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Ecosystems
Invasive species, climate change threaten Great Lakes
In The Death and Life of the Great Lakes, a journalist chronicles the lakes’ downward spiral and slow revival.
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Tech
Virtual reality has a motion sickness problem
Virtual reality games and experiences can make some people sick, and women are more susceptible.
By Betsy Mason -
Astronomy
Magnetism helps black holes blow off gas
The turbulent winds that swirl around black holes are probably driven by magnetic fields, scientists say.
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Paleontology
Identity of ‘Tully monster’ still a mystery
Paleontologists challenge whether the Tully monster actually was a vertebrate because it lacks key vertebrate structures.
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Anthropology
‘Monkeytalk’ invites readers into the complex social world of monkeys
In Monkeytalk, a primatologist evaluates what’s known about monkeys’ complex social lives in the wild.
By Bruce Bower