The transition from a lumbering, heavy dinosaur body to the flight-adapted bird body plan is one of many fascinating episodes in evolutionary history. Working out how this massive transformation took place relies heavily on fossil records, especially of transitional species. A
Fish hatcheries are a critical part of the effort to restore salmon runs in the Pacific Northwest. But hatchery fish are less likely than wild ones to return from the ocean to spawn—and one reason may be hatchery noise.
When Dolly the sheep—the first cloned mammal—was born 30 years ago, she became one of the most famous animals in science history. Her arrival sparked predictions of a sci-fi future filled with cloned pets, cloned humans and even resurrected extinct animals like the wooly
Hayabusa 2's primary mission is now well in the past. JAXA's asteroid-sampling spacecraft rendezvoused with asteroid Ryugu in June 2018. It studied the asteroid for 1.5 years and gathered a sample that was returned to Earth in December 2020.
Astronomers studying a population of unusually X-ray-silent and overmassive black holes discovered by the James Webb Space Telescope have found that they may not be as massive as they appear. The new paper, outlining a plausible scenario that would produce such black holes, was
Research by Oregon State University biologists suggests that toxic air stemming from wildfires won't necessarily prompt animals to flee in search of better breathing conditions. The study of American robins led by OSU's Jamie Cornelius is one of the few to examine how wildfire
It takes intelligence to get things spectacularly wrong. An essay on our undoing. The post What Makes Humans Stupid appeared first on Nautilus .
The gold standard of scientific review, peer review by researchers’ colleagues, is in crisis. AI might offer a solution but has problems of its own.
A University of Miami study has developed a new approach to evaluate how multiple climate resilience plans work together—or fail to do so—in addressing the growing risks posed by climate-related hazards. The researchers analyzed 37 resilience plans developed at the regional,
Food marketers increasingly use people for paid promotions who share the racial and ethnic identities of their target audiences because such "identity congruence" is seen as persuasive. This strategy has migrated to social media, where it can reach millions of users daily,
Local newspapers have long played a quiet but powerful role in corporate accountability: They scrutinize company behavior and give public visibility to good corporate citizenship. But as local newspapers continue to disappear, that accountability system weakens—and companies
Around 1,800 years ago, a fossilized spinal bone lay on the windswept beaches of Roman Britain until a curious passerby picked it up and carried it far away, only to drop it in a pit.
As rainfall intensifies with climate change, waste flushed out to sea could attract more sharks, putting beachgoers at risk
A drug that raises levels of histamine – the chemical that causes allergy symptoms – in the brain boosts our memory by around 10 per cent
Scientists have discovered that creatine may strengthen one of the immune system's most important cancer-fighting pathways by energizing dendritic cells that activate killer T cells. The promising results could eventually help make immunotherapy more effective, but they have
Hotter, drier weather threatens to double water bills by midcentury in some cities, according to a Stanford-led study. The research, published in Nature Sustainability, is the first to comprehensively model how climate change, infrastructure investment and household water
The morning sun beats down on Antonio Reina as he tends a public garden in Barcelona, but he works reassured that a simple wristband protects him in the summer heat.
Intermittent fasting helped people lose as much weight as calorie restriction, but without the same feeling of constantly controlling their food intake. Researchers say that difference could make fasting a more sustainable option for people who struggle with traditional diets.
Pan Sok still remembers his relative screaming as a tiger dragged him away one night, deep inside the Cambodian rainforest where they were tapping trees for resin.
Day will briefly turn into night across a swath of northern Spain on Aug. 12, when the moon will completely cover the sun during a rare total solar eclipse.
As visitors peered at skeletons and preserved animals in a London zoological museum during a UK heat wave, staff focused on a different attraction: a computer screen glowing with red and green temperature indicators.
As a child, Enrique Bordallo would gaze in awe at the starry night sky in rural Spain. Next month's solar eclipse has now made his passion a popular obsession.
DNA from a 5,000-year-old French megalithic tomb reveals that the people buried before and after a population collapse were genetically unrelated, pointing to a major migration after a devastating crisis. The shift coincided with new social traditions and the disappearance of
Federal trade and industrial policies have triggered a new wave of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the United States, with some companies committing billions of dollars to U.S.-based manufacturing. Now, an analysis in Contemporary Economic Policy has found that FDI raises
A study published in Ecography has assessed how climate change may be destabilizing interactions between predators and prey in the wild—specifically, how owl–prey interactions have responded to environmental variability and resource availability over 24 years in the semi-arid
A short spell in a heat chamber at the University of Brighton showed Alec Luhn that his body is not adapted to high temperatures – but regular exposure can train the body to respond more effectively
A new once-daily weight-loss pill called orforglipron delivered better weight loss and blood sugar improvements than the leading oral semaglutide in a major clinical trial. The tablet could offer a more convenient alternative to injectable drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy because
Researchers have created an AI-based simulation that makes it much faster to model how neutron star mergers produce many of the universe's heaviest elements. The new tool could improve predictions of these powerful explosions while helping scientists better connect observations
The U.S. is the fourth-largest wine-producing country by output volume, and approximately 80% of its production occurs in California. Ever since the 19th century, California's premier wine-growing regions have been the Napa Valley and Sonoma County, thanks to their favorable
Forests are shaped by light competition. The trees that grow the tallest have access to the most sunlight, blocking the rays and rendering the shaded space around them inhospitable to shorter trees below. In this stem exclusion phase of forest succession, the shorter trees
A research report launched today reveals that sponsorship is a critical part of progression into senior leadership roles because it teaches individuals how advancement actually works in practice. But only a small proportion of sponsorship relationships—less than a quarter—are
Space and rockets have been big news of late, from the successful Artemis 2 mission in April to the recent listing of SpaceX on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
A new study published in the Journal of Helminthology by researchers from the Estonian University of Life Sciences and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, together with collaborators from Greenland and the Faroe Islands, has revealed surprisingly limited dispersal
A team of researchers led by Felipe Herrera, a professor at the University of Santiago and a researcher at the Millennium Institute for Research in Optics (MIRO), has identified a quantum phenomenon that enables chemical bonds to be broken using significantly less energy than
A new study led by a Boston College researcher has found that experiencing educational opportunities in all stages of childhood and adolescence is the best predictor of higher educational attainment and earnings for disadvantaged American youth, as opposed to the impact of
Following its longest hibernation period ever of nearly a year, NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has emerged in good health and is ready to begin transmitting science data gathered in the distant Kuiper Belt far beyond Pluto.
A centimeter-sized crystal has revealed clear signs of quantum entanglement, showing that large, everyday objects can display surprisingly deep quantum behavior. The discovery could help solve the mystery of strange metals while opening new possibilities for ultra-precise
Visitors to the Fernando de Noronha archipelago, located about 340 miles (545 kilometers) off the coast of Pernambuco in northeastern Brazil, soon notice a small lizard. Seemingly ubiquitous, it roams among rocks, trails and urbanized areas, approaching people and stealing food
Universities have a role in challenging the status quo on issues such as gender, race, nationality and sexuality. But all too often, they replicate societal inequalities.
Controlling light within microscopic spaces is crucial for next-generation optical devices such as photonic integrated circuits and localized sensors. Microspheres formed of luminescent π-conjugated polymers act as optical resonators that confine and amplify light via
The galaxy Centaurus A is about 11 million light-years away and is the fifth-brightest galaxy in the sky. Because it's so bright, it's been studied extensively by amateur and professional astronomers alike. Also called NGC 5128, it's a starburst galaxy, meaning it's forming
Conventional wisdom holds that targeting the best-connected individuals in a social network is an effective way to nudge a wider group of people to change their behavior. For example, public health officials launching a campaign to improve nutrition might target a community's
A newly developed material can control and "program" heat, allowing it to direct thermal radiation, switch modes, and remember its settings without continuous power. The innovation could lead to smarter infrared sensors, better energy technologies, and memory devices that use
Young women are moving away from exclusive heterosexuality faster than young men.
The DNA in a single cup of water can track wildlife, monitor pollution and survey pathogens in waterways and their surroundings, all at the same time.
Freshwater ecosystems are under growing pressure worldwide, but conservation resources are limited. A framework developed by IIASA researchers and partners can help identify where conservation could prevent biodiversity loss and where restoration efforts are likely to have the
Scientists are increasingly worried we may be witnessing the start of the "sixth mass extinction"—the first to be caused by human activities.
Abuse, neglect, and loss can reverberate in a partner’s behavior The post Childhood Trauma Echoes Through Romantic Relationships appeared first on Nautilus .
VUB researcher Maarten Ottaway investigated how trees and their invisible underground allies—the fungi—respond to soil pollution. His Ph.D. sheds new light on an age-old partnership that is crucial for healthy forests, and on how that partnership holds up under the pressure of
Bumblebees are picking up dramatically more toxic heavy metals than honeybees, even when both species forage in the same places. Researchers warn that this hidden pollution could quietly reduce their ability to find food, reproduce, and keep colonies healthy.