Neptune's moon and ring system stand out among the giant planets because of the strange imbalance between its one very large moon and its many tiny moons. Its largest moon, Triton, makes up more than 99% of the mass of all satellites orbiting the planet while orbiting
Rising carbon dioxide in the atmosphere may be leaving a measurable imprint inside the human body. Researchers analyzing more than two decades of U.S. health data found that blood bicarbonate levels have climbed about 7% since 1999, while calcium and phosphorus have
Gut microbes need something to eat, and when fiber is limited, they may begin consuming proteins from the mucus lining that protects the gut. Researchers found that fiber can suppress this process, while indigestible plant proteins help microbes produce more beneficial compounds.
Fossils collected in Osaka more than 30 years ago have revealed a surprise hiding in plain sight: four previously unrecognized bones from a giant Cretaceous mosasaur. Among them is the first confirmed premaxilla—the frontmost bone of the upper jaw—ever identified in a Japanese
A widely available food-preservation chemical is emerging as a disturbing factor in rising UK suicide deaths, particularly among younger people and men. Researchers say the scale may be underestimated and are calling for urgent restrictions on access and harmful online
A recent National Student Safety Survey found that one in six students attending Australian universities had been sexually harassed and one in 20 had been sexually assaulted since starting university.
A painted panel deep in a Spanish cave may push the human relationship with mind-altering plants back thousands of years, earlier than anything previously known The post Is This the World’s Oldest Image of a Mind‑altering Plant? appeared first on Nautilus .
Scientists have long thought an unusual genetic system helped ants, bees, and wasps evolve their extraordinary social colonies. A massive new analysis suggests that genetics alone can’t explain it—and the real secret may lie in other traits unique to these insects.
Fusion reactors, devices that generate energy by fusing light atomic nuclei at extremely high temperatures, could contribute to ongoing efforts aimed at producing electricity more sustainably. The extreme environment inside these devices, however, can damage materials that
Over the past two decades, photonic-crystal surface-emitting lasers (PCSELs) have shown promise as a type of advanced semiconductor laser useful in defense- and aerospace-related applications. Typically, these devices are made with photonic crystal patterns that repeat across
For the first time, researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities have demonstrated that the low-purity iron ore prevalent in Minnesota can be used to create semiconductor-quality iron sulfide, also known as "fool's gold" or pyrite. This discovery could have
Four more belugas have arrived at a Chicago aquarium as part of a plan to move Canada's last remaining captive whales from a shuttered theme park to aquariums in the United States and Spain.
In 2016, archaeologists working at the Phaleron Burial Ground, part of the ancient Attica region, uncovered an astonishing sight: three mass graves dating to the 7th and 6th centuries BCE containing the skeletons of 79 adult men. Many were bound together with metal shackles.
In ant colonies, a single ant can be the catalyst for a wave of mob activity, launching brief bursts of coordinated movement involving hundreds or even thousands of swarming workers, according to new simulations from New Jersey Institute of Technology.
Scientists are increasingly relying on powerful data sources and tools that they often cannot fully understand, inspect or verify, according to a new study.
Scientists have uncovered why two seemingly opposite ways of targeting the same brain receptor can both promote weight loss. In mice, activating the GIP receptor in the brainstem reduced appetite, while blocking it in the hypothalamus removed a kind of “brake” on fullness
A strengthening tropical storm named Lala is set to hit Hawaii's Big Island with hurricane-force gales on Saturday, bringing dangerous winds, rainfall and heavy surf.
The UK has experienced several heat waves this summer—heat stress among workers is one of the biggest causes of weather-related sick leave. Very high temperatures can cause symptoms like heat rash and cramps, or even exhaustion and heatstroke.
Giants have featured in stories for millennia, but the reason why they don't exist helps explain the natural world
On the banks of the Waal, the Dutch branch of the Rhine, swimmers are sunning themselves on a Nijmegen beach that didn't exist before the river level dropped a few months ago.
A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia early Saturday, damaging buildings and homes, and triggering a tsunami warning. Authorities urged people on affected coastlines to move to higher ground.
More than 40 years after the end of commercial whaling, new research reveals a recent increase in sightings of the world's two largest whale species in the southeastern Atlantic. The findings, published in the African Journal of Marine Science, compiled more than 60 years of
From launchpads to low Earth orbit and beyond, space companies and their affiliates are deploying a familiar marketing tactic—with a new twist. In a space economy projected to reach US$1.8 trillion by 2035, they sell space exploration narratives by appealing to a desire to
Why do disagreements about vaccines, climate change or elections often feel so personal? Our research suggests it is not simply because other people have different beliefs. It is because we think those beliefs are mistaken.
As summer temperatures soar across the United States and Europe, cities are being forced to confront the difficult reality that they're getting dangerously hot.
Using unique equipment installed on NASA's WB-57 aircraft flying above heavy clouds off the coast of Iceland, a Southwest Research Institute-led team successfully observed a total solar eclipse on Wednesday. The high-altitude jet followed the moon's shadow at 50,000 feet
Researchers at the University of Maryland and their collaborators have cloned a gene that makes wheat resistant to feeding by Hessian fly larvae and demonstrated its direct interaction with a protein produced by the insect. The research breaks through a longstanding barrier to
A book sits atop a table. Although it's closed, its title, "Encyclopedia of Human Tissue," promises untold secrets. Perhaps with this book, you can learn about different cell types and what they look like under normal conditions or conditions of disease. Maybe you can learn how
Decades of climate change have not left Europe's mountain vegetation unscathed. However, the changes observed do not always match expectations. As a new international study by a research team led by researchers from the University of Vienna, the Austrian Academy of Sciences and
A genetically engineered bacterium can rapidly break down one of Earth's most abundant minerals, opening a promising new pathway for simultaneously removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and recovering critical elements used in electric vehicle batteries, according to new
Firefighters raced to save a 1,000-year-old monastery in northeastern Spain on Friday as a growing wildfire prompted the hasty removal of the bones of medieval monarchs buried there.
Basic biology courses teach that cells contain organelles—such as the nucleus, mitochondria and Golgi apparatus—set apart by lipid membranes to get things done. Recent cell biology research has revealed another organizational principle at work in cells across all orders of
When one mentions "waves," we immediately think of a perturbation that propagates. This applies to waves on the shore, sound waves in the air or electromagnetic waves that we use to transmit information via optical fibers. The same idea of propagating perturbations applies to
Epithelial cells are the tiny shields that line and protect our bodies. In a developing embryo, epithelial cells grow, divide and move into positions to form the outer layers of our skin and the surfaces of our organs and blood vessels. When we scrape our skin, suffer an
For centuries, scholars have read ancient documents describing the production of brass in 10th-century A.D. China. The problem was that the earliest physical evidence of brass production would be found nearly 600 years later, in the 16th century A.D.
Over 4 million hectares (9.9 million acres) of protected tropical forest—an area double the size of Wales—have been lost to wildfires since 2001.
A booming market for mummified remains poses health risks The post The Real “Mummy’s Curse” Lurks Online appeared first on Nautilus .
Hawaii rarely sees direct hurricane hits—if Lala strengthens, it will be just the third recorded hurricane to make landfall there
New genetic analyses of ancient human skeletons from western Remote Oceania are shedding light on the complex history of settlement in this vast Pacific region over the past 3,000 years. With island nations such as Vanuatu, Fiji and Tonga, the region is home to societies with a
For astronauts in space, constipation is a well-known problem. But why this happens has long been unclear. Now, a new study from the University of Copenhagen in collaboration with NASA provides an idea of what happens in the stomach without the influence of gravity.
Adjusting to a new time zone or work schedule can leave the body's internal clock out of sync for days, contributing to sleep disruption, metabolic changes and other health consequences. Researchers at Rice University and Northwestern University have developed an implantable
A conversation with David Samson, evolutionary anthropologist and author of The Sleepless Ape , about how to sleep The post Where Human Sleep Went Wrong appeared first on Nautilus .
Tornadoes are among the most destructive weather phenomena on Earth. Their small scale, short life cycle and sudden onset make them extremely difficult to predict. This challenge is amplified for weak tornadoes embedded within midlatitude westerly flows, which often hide in
A new pathway has opened for controlling the rotation direction of light simply by changing how molecules are arranged, without having to synthesize complex new materials. Circularly polarized light is a special form of light that travels while rotating like a pinwheel to the
On a summer day in Michigan, a tiny Poweshiek skipperling butterfly—smaller than a quarter—takes flight over a restored prairie.
Astronomers have proposed a new explanation for the mysterious Cygnus Bubble, a vast cloud of ultra-high-energy gamma rays stretching thousands of light-years across the sky. While the bubble has generally been linked to the Cygnus X star-forming region, the new study argues
Chalk streams are among the world's rarest river habitats. Fewer than 300 exist globally, and most are found in England. They support rich wildlife and have been described as England's 'Great Barrier Reef' due to their biodiversity. But they face pressure from climate change
The human body is teeming with more than 35 trillion bacteria, coexisting in microbiomes inside the gut, mouth, lungs, skin and urogenital tract. While it's now clear these microbes are associated with health and disease, scientists have only begun to uncover the full scale of
Can science point the way toward designing environments to maximize mental health in such situations? The post The Conditions on a US Aircraft Carrier Sound Concerning appeared first on Nautilus .
Animals searching for water brought the forest to the city, perhaps sparking Brazil’s first yellow fever outbreak in decades.
