Week in Science: Astronomers race to understand Little Red Dots

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February 20—This week, a possible answer to the cosmic mystery of "Little Red Dots," how a socially awkward mathematician cleared his name with a theorem, the benefits of walkable cities and more. Plus, don't miss all the stories from our March issue, which is online now! —Emma Gometz, Newsletter Editor Have thoughts? Email newsletters@sciam.com anytime.

Top Stories

Exotic black hole stars could explain the mystery of Little Red Dots Astronomers are racing to understand mysterious ancient objects that pepper James Webb Space Telescope images Rebecca Boyle

The mathematical mystery inside the legendary '90s shooter Quake 3 Deep within the source code of this online multiplayer game lies an enigmatic number that puzzles and inspires experts to this day Manon Bischoff

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Mountain photographer stumbles on one of the largest ever collections of Triassic dinosaur prints A newfound site in the Italian Alps holds one of the largest collections of Triassic dinosaur footprints ever seen Humberto Basilio

This mathematician proved a brilliant theorem to justify his social awkwardness George Pólya's random walk theorem absolved him of being a lurker and revealed how the laws of chance interact with physical space Jack Murtagh

NASA says a litany of failures led to 2024 Boeing Starliner astronaut stranding On Thursday NASA leadership outlined how 2024's glitch-plagued Boeing Starliner mission jeopardized astronaut welfare and the space agency's culture of safety and accountability Claire Cameron

Axolotls wow scientists by regenerating this complex organ Axolotls can completely rebuild their thymus, a key immune organ Taylor Mitchell Brown

Astronomers spot one of the largest spinning structures in the universe This enormous chain of hundreds of galaxies—a cosmic filament—is twisting through space 400 million light-years away Humberto Basilio

This mind-bending relativity illusion has never been seen—until now Physicists have observed the bizarre Terrell-Penrose effect in real life Victoria Helm, Thomas Juffmann, Peter Schattschneider

Your daily steps may depend on your zip code more than your willpower Researchers found that walkable city design—not personal motivation—was the key factor behind people taking 1,100 more steps per day Eve Lu

Key NIH research institute told to remove references to 'pandemic preparedness' Staff members have been instructed to scrub this topic and 'biodefense' from the agency's website, a Nature investigation finds Max Kozlov, Nature magazine

First solar eclipse of 2026 blazes a 'ring of fire' above Antarctica A stunning "ring of fire" eclipse was totally visible to a lucky few in the Southern Hemisphere. Here's how to see the next one Jackie Flynn Mogensen

The truth about polyamory An anthropologist's detailed research shows polyamorists focus on intimacy and honesty, not sleeping around Rebecca J. Lester

AI just got its toughest math test yet. The results are mixed Experts gave AI 10 math problems to solve in a week. OpenAI, researchers and amateurs all gave it their best shot Joseph Howlett

The true worth of America's public lands An environmental scientist's analysis reveals who will win and who will lose in the push to put federal land into private hands Kyle Manley

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