2022 Staff Picks

Risk-taking cougars

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12/19/22 Thank you for subscribing to The Cheat Sheet, from Science News Explores. If you like this newsletter, share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up for our weekly updates. Got questions, suggestions or comments? Email us at sns@sciencenews.org and put “The Cheat Sheet” in the subject line. We’d love to hear from you. Inside Science News Explores This newsletter (like many of you, we hope) is about to take a holiday break. But before it does, we’d like to share some of our favorite stories of this year. So, without further ado, here are the Science News Explores staff picks of 2022. Happy holidays, all, and see you for another year of amazing science in 2023!  Living mysteries: Why teeny-weeny tardigrades are tough as nails I had known that tardigrades were indestructible, but I enjoyed learning about how they developed their superpowers. Plus, this story has one of my favorite videos — of microscopic water bears hatching. — Sarah Zielinski, Editor (Print) Is the sky really blue? It depends on what language you speak It can be easy to assume that others share our perceptions. But as this story points out, even though people all over the world see with the same eyes and brains, the ways we describe and understand the world are colored (literally) by our culture and background. — Jill Sakai, Assistant Managing Editor Ancient ‘ManBearPig’ mammal lived fast — and died young Dinosaur discoveries are exciting but sometimes hog the spotlight. I loved how “ManBearPig” showed us a glimpse of the exciting work being done with prehistoric mammals! — Aaron Tremper, Editorial Assistant How we choose to pay has hidden costs for the planet You hear a lot about the pollutive cost of mining cryptocurrency, but I’d never considered that using any type of money has an environmental cost.   — Maria Temming, Assistant Editor Why fandom feels good—and may be good for you This story made my nerdy, geeky heart happy. I’m part of a lot of the fandoms mentioned, which made the story a lot of fun to produce. And it was such a treat to learn about the science behind the benefits of being a fan and fandom in general.  — Lillian Steenblik Hwang, Assistant Digital Editor Cosmic timeline: What’s happened since the Big Bang This story introduces us to the birth of space, gravity, light and matter. They didn’t all occur at once (as I, a physics major, had assumed), but instead sequentially over a stunningly productive short span — all well within the first second following the Big Bang. — Janet Raloff, Editor (Digital) A New Magazine for Kids Learn more and subscribe to Science News Explores, a new magazine designed to satisfy young readers’ curiosity about how the world works.      SUBSCRIBE NOW   Catch up with the latest from Science News Explores Sprinting reptiles may have been forerunners of soaring pterosaurs: A new analysis of an old fossil supports the idea that winged pterosaurs evolved from swift and tiny two-legged ancestors. Readability: 7.5 Resources: power words, classroom questions, alternate version at Science News Cougars pushed out by wildfires took more risks around roads: After an intense 2018 burn in California, big cats in the region crossed roads more often. That put them at higher risk of becoming roadkill. Readability: 7.3 Resources: power words, alternate version at Science News NASA is readying to send humans back to the moon: The launch of NASA's Artemis I is a huge step toward sending humans back to the moon and beyond. Readability: 7.0  Resources: power words, classroom questions, word find puzzle, alternate version at Science News Some young fruit flies’ eyeballs literally pop out of their heads: The first published photo shoot of developing Pelmatops flies shows how their eyes rise on gangly stalks in the first hour of adulthood. Readability: 7.3 Resources: power words, alternate version at Science News Let’s learn about creativity: By reading brain scans and eavesdropping on brainwaves, scientists are learning more about how creativity works. Readability: 7.5 Resources: power words, word find, video Scientists Say: Drought: A drought is a shortage of rain or snow in a particular area. Readability: 6.4 Resources: power words, audio recording Opportunity High-school students around the world can apply now for Yale Young Global Scholars, a two-week academic program at Yale University in summer 2023. Each participant selects a session to attend in the humanities, social sciences or STEM. Scholarships and financial aid are available. Applications are due January 10, 2023.   Find out more about the resources available for using Science News Explores stories for learning. And if you like this newsletter, please share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone share this with you? Subscribe to this newsletter here. If you’ve got questions, suggestions or comments, email us at sns@sciencenews.org. Thank you for reading! Privacy policy  |  Update Profile  | Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe This email was sent by: Society for Science 1719 N Street NW Washington, DC, 20036, US