Life

More Stories in Life

  1. Life

    Sheep earwax can record a dangerous diet

    Sheep that eat death camas plants record the toxic meal in their earwax, a goopy health data repository that researchers are increasingly exploring.

    By Jake Buehler
  2. Life

    Here are 8 remarkable scientific firsts of 2024

    Making panda stem cells, mapping a fruit fly’s brain and witnessing a black hole wake up were among the biggest achievements of the year.

    By Sophie Hartley
  3. Neuroscience

    The message-sending part of neurons may be blobby, not smooth

    Axons can be shaped like strings of pearls, research in mice and people show. How that shape may influence brain signaling is not yet clear.

    By Laura Sanders
  4. Anthropology

    Humans have linked emotions to the same body parts for 3,000 years

    3,000-year-old clay tablets show that some associations between emotion and parts of the body have remained the same for millennia.

    By Jason Bittel
  5. Life

    The ‘Blob,’ an unprecedented marine heat wave, killed 4 million seabirds

    Millions of other animals may have perished too, suggesting the die-off event might be one of the worst in modern times.

    By Jake Buehler
  6. Genetics

    Neandertal genes in people today came from hook-ups around 47,000 years ago

    Most present-day humans carry a small amount of Neandertal DNA that can be traced back to a single period of interbreeding, two genetic analyses find.

    By McKenzie Prillaman
  7. Animals

    The screams of thirsty plants may prompt some moths to lay eggs elsewhere

    Female moths may pick up on the ultrasonic wailing of distressed plants and opt to lay their eggs on different, healthier plants.

    By Jake Buehler
  8. Plants

    Meet a scientist tracking cactus poaching in the Atacama Desert

    Botanist Pablo Guerrero has been visiting Atacama cacti all his life. They’re not adapting well to a drier climate, booming mining and plant collection.

    By Rebecca Dzombak
  9. Animals

    Climate stress may undermine male spiders’ romantic gift giving

    Even spider love lives show an effect of climate uncertainty: Stressed males may offer a bit of silk-wrapped junk rather than a tasty insect treat.

    By Susan Milius