Latest Headlines

06/15/2023

One photon is all it takes to kick off photosynthesis

A single particle of light is the spark that begins the process of turning light to chemical energy in photosynthetic bacteria, a new study confirms.

'Polyester bees' brew beer-scented baby food in plastic cribs

Ptiloglossa bees' baby food gets its boozy fragrance from fermentation by mysteriously selected microbes.

'In the Blood' traces how a lifesaving product almost didn't make it

There's plenty of drama in Charles Barber's new book, which explores why a blood-clotting invention was initially dismissed.

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Find out how brain implants are treating depression — and changing lives — in a six-part series that arrives weekly starting whenever you sign up.

Jupiter-sized planets are very rare around the least massive stars

A six-year search of 200 nearby low-mass red dwarf stars found no Jupiter-like planets, boosting the standard theory for how such planets form.

Camouflaging wheat with a wheat smell could be a new approach to pest control

Wheat fields coated in wheat germ oil confuse the noses of mice, reducing seed loss by more than 60 percent, a new study finds.

Bowhead whales may have a cancer-defying superpower: DNA repair

Bowhead whale cells repair damaged DNA exceptionally well, an ability that could prevent cancer and help the marine mammals live for centuries

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More Recent Headlines

A cyclone has been spotted swirling over Uranus' north pole for the first time

Voyager 2 hinted at a cyclone at Uranus' south pole. Now Earth-based observations give the first direct evidence of a storm at the ice giant's north pole.

An old perfume bottle reveals what some ancient Romans smelled like

Chemical analyses reveal that an unopened flask of perfume from 2,000 years ago contained patchouli, a common ingredient in modern perfumes.

Wildfire smoke is blanketing the U.S. East Coast. It won't be the last time

Climate change will continue to exacerbate fire risk across the world's boreal forests, making events like the dangerous smoke over the U.S. East Coast more common.

Rising groundwater threatens to spread toxic pollution on U.S. coastlines

Sea level rise is pushing groundwater into shallower layers of earth, threatening to spread hazardous chemicals from contaminated soils.

Surviving a drought may help forests weather future dry spells

Climate change is making droughts more intense and frequent, but conifer forests have a trick up their sleeve, airplane and satellite data show.

JWST captured Enceladus' plume spraying water nearly 10,000 kilometers into space

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope reveals the rate at which Saturn's moon Enceladus spews water and where that water ends up.

These ancient flutes may have been used to lure falcons

Seven bird-bone flutes unearthed from a site in northern Israel are about 12,000 years old and may have been used as bird calls.

Taurine slows aging in mice. Will it ever work for people?

The amino acid taurine — found in meats, produced by the body and common in energy drinks — may have a role in health and aging, a new study suggests.

Brain cavities that swell in space may need at least 3 years to recover

MRI scans of astronauts show that duration in space and time between flights affect how much the brain's fluid-filled cavities expand during missions.

RNA editing helps octopuses cope with the cold

California two-spot octopuses tweak the proteins they make, potentially to help maintain brain function when temperatures dip.