8,095 results
- Earth
Gulf gusher is far and away the biggest U.S. spill
As cleanup efforts progress, scientists try to track missing oil roaming below the surface.
- Earth
Florida’s big chill may have hammered corals near shore
January cold snap caused rare wintertime coral bleaching and die-offs for Florida’s coral reefs.
- Ecosystems
Fish shrinkage reversible, but better hurry
In an experiment, scientists show that, although it takes generations, fish can rebound from evolutionary pressures created by selective harvesting, which has pushed some populations to become small and slow-growing.
- Agriculture
Germs eyed to make foods safer
Adding viruses to foods doesn’t sound appetizing, much less healthy. But it’s a stratagem being explored to knock some of the more virulent food poisoning bacteria out of the U.S. food supply. Scientists described data supporting the tactic July 18 at the Institute of Food Technologists’ annual meeting in Chicago.
- Life
One ocean, four (or more) killer whale species
A new genetic analysis splits killer whales into multiple taxa.
- Earth
Monster stingrays: Field notes from a global wrangler
A megafish biologist shares what he's learning about a rare freshwater species.
- Humans
Ancient shoe steps out of cave and into limelight
Excavations in an Armenian cave have uncovered the oldest known leather footwear, a 5,500-year-old shoe.
- Paleontology
Sail-backed dinos had semiaquatic lifestyle
Isotopic analyses of fossils suggest the carnivores had crocodile-like habits.
- Humans
Beefy hormones: New routes of exposure
On any given day, some 750,000 U.S feedlots are beefing up between 11 million and 14 million head of cattle. The vast majority of these animals will receive muscle-building steroids — hormones they will eventually excrete into the environment. But traditional notions about where those biologically active pollutants end up may need substantial revising, several new studies find.
- Humans
BP spill: Gulf is primed to heal, but . . .
Every day, Mother Nature burps another 1,000 barrels of crude into the Gulf of Mexico, along with additional quantities of natural gas. Normally, these hydrocarbons don’t stick around long because local bacteria have evolved to eat them about as fast as they appear. Which is potentially good news, she explained in testimony during a pair of June 9 House subcommittee events on Capitol Hill, because those bugs are now in place to begin chowing down on the oil and gas entering the Gulf from BP's damaged Deepwater Horizon well.
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The Why of Sleep
Brain studies may reveal the purpose of a behavior both basic and mystifying.
- Life
There are rules in fiddler crab fight club
Territorial crustaceans will defend their own rivals, but only to keep stronger ones out.
