1,929 results
- Paleontology
Fossil leaves yield extinction clues
Analyses of fossil leaves provide more evidence that the mass extinctions that wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago were sudden and probably brought about by an extraterrestrial impact.
- Earth
Killer Crater: Shuttle-borne radar detects remnant of dino-killing impact
Radar images gathered during a flight of the space shuttle Endeavour 3 years ago show the subtle topography related to the impact of an asteroid or comet that may have wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.
- Paleontology
Was it sudden death for the Permian period?
The massive extinctions that came at the end of the Permian period could have occurred within a mere 8,000 years, which suggests a catastrophic cause for the die-offs.
- Plants
Micro Sculptors
Snippets of RNA that control biochemical reactions by squelching the creation of specific proteins play a role in the development of leaves.
- Humans
From the October 25, 1930, issue
alt=”Click to view larger image”> STEAM ACCUMULATORS BOOST POWER IN BERLIN Six hundred tons of steam stored under 190-pounds-per-square-inch pressure in huge steel cylinders help Berliners ride the trams to and from work and burn lights in the early morning. These cylinders are the new steam accumulators at the Charlottenburg power station, which are attracting […]
- Paleontology
Mosasaurs were born at sea, not in safe harbors
Newly discovered fossils of prehistoric aquatic reptiles known as mosasaurs suggest that the creatures gave birth in midocean rather than in near-shore sanctuaries as previously suspected.
- Paleontology
Stegosaur tails packed a punch
A mathematical analysis of a fossil stegosaur's bones leaves little doubt that the creature's spike-studded tail was an effective defense against predators.
- Humans
From the May 24, 1930, issue
GRASSHOPPERS THREATEN UNITED STATES Grasshoppers threaten to wreak heavy damage to grain and forage crops in Montana and the Dakotas this year. There were many hoppers in these states, and in parts of Texas, last year, and the eggs they laid are now hatching in large numbers. If climatic and other conditions favor the growth […]
- Paleontology
Old Frilly Face: Triceratops’ relative fills fossil-record gap
Fossils of a creature the size of a Texas jackrabbit cast new light on the early evolution of a group of horned dinosaurs that include the 8-meter-long Triceratops.
- Science & Society
Science News of the Year 2003
A review of important scientific achievements reported in Science News during the year 2003.
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18994
There is another mechanism besides muscle that gives energy to running and hopping animals. It enables such animals as kangaroos to run faster than their muscles alone can take them. What happens is the tendons act as springs that stretch and then snap back. There is no reason to think that a large and heavy […]
- Paleontology
Skimming the Surface: Flying reptile may have scooped its meals
Fossils unearthed in Brazil strengthen the idea that some species of ancient flying reptiles snatched their meals on the fly, snapping up fish as they swooped low over the water's surface.
