Week in Science: Earth's oldest impact crater discovered in Australia

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March 14—This week, microplastics are interfering with plant photosynthesis, a new claim of quantum computing "advantage," and scientists discover Earth's oldest impact crater in Australia. Enjoy and have a great weekend! --Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor

Top Stories

Microplastics Are Messing with Photosynthesis in Plants Microplastics can cut a plant's ability to photosynthesize by up to 12 percent, new research shows Joanna Thompson

For Quantum Computing, Pressing the Advantage Is a Risky Proposition D-Wave's fresh claim that it has achieved "quantum advantage" has sparked criticism of the company—and of the scientific process itself Lee Billings

Earth's Oldest Impact Crater Discovered in Australia Scientists with a new theory about how Earth's early continents formed predicted where a superold impact crater should be—then found it Tim Johnson, Chris Kirkland, Jonas Kaempf, The Conversation US

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The 9 Unsolved Mysteries Mathematicians Can't Stop Thinking About Mathematicians discuss some of the most compelling unsolved problems in the field Rachel Crowell

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The Secret to Understanding Animal Consciousness May Be Joy Animal emotions—including joy—may be key markers of conscious beings Jacek Krywko

What Is Chloroprene, the Cancer-Causing Chemical at the Center of a Federal Lawsuit? Trump could drop a federal lawsuit against a petrochemical plant that emits chloroprene. Here's a look at the cancer-causing chemical Stephanie Pappas

COVID Pandemic Fatigue Has Left the U.S. Vulnerable to New Threats The "quarantine fatigue" of 2020 became an ongoing "pandemic fatigue," a complex set of emotions that continues to affect the nation Meghan Bartels

NASA Begins Mass Firings ahead of Trump Team's Deadline Top advisers in NASA's Office of the Chief Scientist are among the first to go amid a government-wide downsizing effort Alexandra Witze, Nature magazine

Athena Lunar Lander Declared Dead on the Moon For the second time in two years, a commercial lunar lander built and operated by Intuitive Machines has fallen over on the moon Tariq Malik, SPACE.com

Are Foodborne Illnesses and Deaths in the U.S. Worsening? New Data on Recalls Explain Despite headlines, there were fewer food recalls in 2024 than in 2023, but more people died from food poisoning linked to outbreaks Lori Youmshajekian

Why Great Storytellers Find Life More Meaningful People who are rated as good storytellers exhibit a purpose-oriented mindset and big-picture thinking more often than others Ron Shachar

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