This “Feathered Dragon” Shook Its Tail Feathers in the Time of Dinosaurs
Some things never go out of style The post This “Feathered Dragon” Shook Its Tail Feathers in the Time of Dinosaurs appeared first on Nautilus .
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Adequate potassium management is key to maximizing cotton yield and fiber quality, researchers reiterate
With the 2026 cotton planting season in full swing, research out of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station provides a fresh reminder of the importance of sufficient potassium for cotton lint yield and quality.
The generation of massive Schrödinger cat states using ultracold atoms
Quantum mechanics is a physics framework that describes how matter and energy behave at an extremely small scale, specifically at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. An effect predicted by the laws of quantum mechanics is superposition, which entails that particles can
New fences can save restored saltmarsh, research suggests
Saltmarsh is disappearing from coastlines around the world, and while brushwood fencing can help bring it back, a new study has found it only works if the fences are kept in good repair. Around 46% of the world's saltmarsh has been lost or damaged, and restoring it is not
'The book is in the future, but everything is seeded from our present'
Helen Phillips, winner of the Climate Fiction prize for her novel Hum, on if stories can make a difference, her anxieties and writing about the climate
Scientists unlock evolution of gigantism in Scottish island wrens
A new study of British wrens has provided new insights into the inner workings of "island syndromes," according to research led by the University of Birmingham. The paper, published in the Evolutionary Journal of the Linnean Society, reveals that different subspecies of island
Happy, who taught researchers that elephants can recognize themselves, is euthanized at Bronx Zoo
Happy, a Bronx Zoo elephant who gave researchers new insight into the animal's behavior and became the crux of a closely watched animal rights case, has been euthanized at age 55, the zoo said Wednesday.
Arctic Ocean food chain is disrupted as a key tipping point has now been passed
An irreversible shift in the chemical makeup of the Arctic Ocean driven by climate change is disrupting the region's food chain, a study suggests. Widespread loss of Arctic sea ice has led to a sharp fall in levels of a key nutrient, affecting populations of plankton, fish,
Cells trap heat in ways standard fluid physics cannot explain, study finds
Living cells cool much slower than our current understanding of heat conduction can explain, according to new research from the University of Tokyo. Researchers have used two techniques—high-speed temperature mapping and artificial heating—to observe how heat dissipates from
Astronomers discover how to estimate masses of newborn planets using dust rings
A team of astronomers, led by University of Warwick in collaboration with researchers at MIT and McMaster, have developed a novel method to use the properties of dust rings around stars to estimate the masses of newborn planets. Published in The Astrophysical Journal, this
The ‘age of gravitational astronomy’ is here
A record-setting collection of precisely measured gravitational waves reveals new information about how black holes behave and evolve
SpaceX's Starship rockets are grounded pending investigation after test flight
SpaceX Starship launches are on hold pending an investigation into last week's test flight.
Think it's hot now? The next five years will smash records, UN says
In the next five years, the Earth is overwhelmingly likely to surge again and again past the international climate threshold set as safe and shatter its hottest-year record along the way, according to new United Nations climate projections.
Millions of planets might form around supermassive black holes
Massive amounts of dust swirl around active nuclei at the centres of galaxies, and these discs could give rise to vast numbers of rocky planets, some even the size of stars
Plants select growth strategies by 'spying' on their neighbors' scents
New research reveals that plants have the ability to detect their neighbors' growth rates through aromatic cues called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and subsequently adjust how much energy they invest into their own growth or defense strategies through responsive gene
A new approach to urban planning with less car traffic and lower carbon emissions
Urban planning needs to tackle greenhouse gas emissions—and an important way to achieve this is by reducing the number and length of car commutes. This can be achieved primarily by ensuring that homes are located close to city centers and workplaces, so well-targeted building
Researchers block key protein that helps Parkinson’s spread through the brain
A newly identified protein called GPNMB may play a major role in helping Parkinson’s disease spread through the brain. Researchers discovered that immune cells release the protein in response to damaged neurons, creating a vicious cycle that speeds up brain cell degeneration.
Scientists thought brain inflammation was driving long COVID but the scans told a different story
A new brain imaging study has found no evidence of widespread brain inflammation in patients suffering from prolonged symptoms after COVID-19 infection. Instead, the most severe long COVID symptoms were associated with increased brain activity in regions involved in mood and
New depression treatment targets the immune system instead of the brain
A surprising new approach to depression treatment is showing early promise — not by targeting brain chemicals, but by calming the immune system. In a small clinical trial, researchers found that an anti-inflammatory drug normally used for rheumatoid arthritis appeared to ease
Scientists discover hidden gut-brain circuit that triggers protein cravings
When the body runs low on protein, the gut sends powerful signals to the brain that reshape cravings and push animals to seek essential amino acids instead of sugar. Researchers say this newly discovered gut-brain network could transform our understanding of appetite,
The definitive census of multiple star systems within ten parsecs
Our sun is a loner. It lacks a stellar companion hurtling through interstellar space with it. But we've known for a long time that that's actually relatively rare—most stars have at least one gravitationally bound partner. Understanding how exactly those stars are related to
Listening to the sun reveals previously hidden changes to solar cycle
Internal changes due to the sun's "active biorhythm" have become increasingly "skin-deep" over the past four solar activity cycles, according to a new study.
How the greenhouse effect governs temperature changes across Antarctica
A decade ago, Bradley Markle, an assistant professor at the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado Boulder, noticed an odd pattern while sifting through temperature records from the end of the last ice age in Antarctica. The records seemed to defy
Expanded susceptibility and transmission in circulating avian influenza viruses reshape wild bird mortality
Johanna Harvey, an assistant professor of wildlife disease ecology at the University of Rhode Island, has described bird flu in public presentations as a quiet virus with loud consequences. Now, she's published a new paper in Wildlife Monographs, describing how circulating
Temporary carbon removal could help support climate goals, if used correctly
Persistent methane emissions from sectors such as agriculture and growing debates over the credibility of carbon offsets are creating new challenges for governments and companies pursuing net-zero commitments. New research suggests that temporary carbon storage may have a
Newly discovered 'thunder' of Atlantic sturgeons inspires awe
When a team of researchers recorded a low thundering underneath the surface of the Hudson River, they thought they were hearing the muffled rumble of trains. A closer look and listen led to a much more interesting discovery: The thunder came from Atlantic sturgeon—an iconic and
Monkey see, monkey do: Study sheds light on cooperative decision-making
The old "monkey see, monkey do" adage may rest on some neuroscientific evidence, finds a new Yale study. To examine how the primate brain facilitates cooperative behavior among individuals during social interaction, a team of researchers trained pairs of marmoset monkeys to
Scientists forecast milder Chesapeake Bay dead zone in 2026
Scientists at William & Mary's Batten School & VIMS, FlowWest and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science recently announced that the Chesapeake Bay's annual "dead zone" is expected to be relatively mild this summer.
DNA 'nicks' make for safer, more precise genetic analysis
Researchers at Cornell University have developed a safer and more precise way to study how genes function in living tissues by refining a recently developed CRISPR-based genetic technique in fruit flies, enabling researchers to better study how genes contribute to development
Researchers push back fundamental limit on energy transfer between particles without 'spilling' radiation
Researchers at TU/e have demonstrated that energy transfer without loss via light or heat can occur over much greater distances than previously thought possible thanks to vibrations in microscopic gold rods. They succeeded in making energy jump from one particle to another over
The Supernova That Sparked the Original Scientific Revolution
Centuries before we started debating the transformative effect of AI on science, a new light in the sky shone the way The post The Supernova That Sparked the Original Scientific Revolution appeared first on Nautilus .
Metamaterials enable control of heat transfer at nanoscale, potentially transforming energy and electronics
Heat behaves in predictable ways: a hot cup of coffee cools, a laptop warms your hands, the sun heats Earth. But at scales thousands of times smaller than a human hair, those rules begin to break down, and scientists are learning how to take advantage of that.
Where are all the intermediate mass black holes? Microlensing fast radio bursts might reveal them
Astrophysicists think that black hole masses are hierarchical. The largest are supermassive black holes (SMBH) like the one at the center of the Milky Way and other galaxies. Stellar mass black holes are born of collapsing stars, and are smaller. The smallest of all are the
Are the chemicals around you safe? Researchers are using AI to find out
People are exposed to thousands of chemicals every day—through the products they use, the food they eat and the environments they live in—but only a fraction of those chemicals have been fully tested for safety.
Early childhood educators change how they speak to toddlers depending on gender, finds study
Early childhood educators speak differently to boys compared to girls in toddler classrooms, University of Queensland research has found.
Analysis of more than 10,000 cities reveals hidden details governments can use to better support their people
The world's urban population increased by 785 million people between 2000 and 2020, but that tells only part of the story. Now, a research team including an expert from the University of Michigan has dug into the demographics of more than 10,000 individual cities to obtain
Corn Belt groundwater and irrigation boost thunderstorm complexes by 24–35%, simulations show
An international team of scientists has demonstrated how powerful thunderstorm complexes over the U.S. Corn Belt are fueled by moisture rising from the region's fertile fields or just beneath them. The findings can lead to better and longer-term weather forecasts for this
AI ads are almost indistinguishable from human-made work—they just don't perform as well
Ads generated by artificial intelligence are nearly indistinguishable from human-made ones, but new research shows they consistently underperform compared to human-made work when it comes to predicting short-term sales impact.
Why Do More Women Than Men Develop Alzheimer’s?
A study in mice suggests loss of estrogen between brain cells as a possible cause The post Why Do More Women Than Men Develop Alzheimer’s? appeared first on Nautilus .
Revised mushroom toxin pathway could improve poisoning detection
The St. George's mushroom (Calocybe gambosa) is a popular edible mushroom, usually picked in May. Unfortunately, however, it also carries a risk as it can easily be confused with the young deadly fiber cap, which can potentially lead to fatal poisoning. The reason for this is
DNA assembly insights could streamline design and manufacturing of nanostructures for medicine, materials and more
Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have uncovered key principles that govern how DNA "origami" structures fold, findings that could make nanoscale materials faster and easier to manufacture. DNA origami is a technique that uses strands of DNA to self-assemble into
Sea squirt reveals glowing spines and unexpected nervous system anatomy
Ascidians, also known as sea squirts, are the evolutionary link between vertebrates and invertebrates, making them valuable subjects of biological studies. For the first time, researchers at Ruhr University Bochum have detected pronounced autofluorescence in Halocynthia
Study clarifies conditions for amphibian species richness on marine islands
A Brazilian study published in the journal Ecography indicates that the biodiversity of anuran amphibians (toads and frogs) on islands is determined by factors encompassed in two previously opposing theories.
Can Cells from a Sea Cucumber Live Forever?
What scientists are learning about immortality from a humble marine creature The post Can Cells from a Sea Cucumber Live Forever? appeared first on Nautilus .
Long-distance bat migration runs on fatty acids, challenging limits of mammal metabolism
Bats are the only mammals that can actively fly, enabling many species to perform seasonal migrations. In migratory birds, remaining airborne for many hours is supported by burning fatty acids, something most mammals are incapable of.
How developing immune cells fine-tune their signals
Researchers at VIB, Ghent University, and VUB have uncovered how two proteins essential for immune cell development work together at the molecular level. The findings provide important insights into a critical mechanism that mediates the integration of molecular signals
Social background also shapes environmental awareness, says study
Academic success depends largely on social background—this has long been known. A recent international study led by researchers at Leuphana University of Lüneburg now shows that young people's attitudes toward environmental protection are also strongly influenced by their
New biosynthesis platform could enable bioactive compounds to be labeled, targeted and released on demand
Many medically important drugs originate from natural sources. Microorganisms produce these compounds using highly sophisticated and remarkably precise enzymatic assembly lines. Many natural microbial products belong to a class known as nonribosomal peptides—short chains of
Q&A: How researchers are building next-gen quantum computers
Quantum computers have the potential to transform science, accelerating breakthroughs in drug development, cosmology, materials science, nuclear physics, and more.
Gutweed successfully grown in full life cycle within brackish conditions in Baltic Sea
Gutweed could become a future crop in the Baltic Sea. This is shown in a new study from the University of Gothenburg, where researchers have, for the first time, successfully cultivated the seaweed through its entire life cycle in brackish water.
