New Research
Volcanic Ash Preserved Trilobite Fossils in Surprising Detail at 'Prehistoric Pompeii'
The specimens date to more than 500 million years ago and provide new insights into trilobite anatomy, revealing previously unseen features
What Killed the Last Woolly Mammoths? Scientists Say It Wasn't Inbreeding
New research suggests some catastrophic event—such as a natural disaster or a virus—killed the world's last known population of mammoths on Wrangel Island
New Blood Test for Predicting Parkinson's Disease With A.I. Shows Promise, Study Suggests
In preliminary research, scientists identified eight protein anomalies in the blood of patients with Parkinson's, which they say can help diagnose the disease up to seven years before symptoms appear
Ancient Egyptian Scribes Were Worked to the Bone
The administrators spent long periods writing in odd postures, which damaged their joints, researchers discovered
'Frog Saunas' May Be the Key to Saving Amphibians From a Deadly Fungal Infection
Providing frogs with sun-warmed bricks inside mini-greenhouses can help them recover from chytrid and make them more resilient against the disease in the future, a new study finds
Researchers Make a Smiling Robotic Face From Living Skin
The team designed a new way for their lab-grown skin to adhere to the robot's face, in a creation that could help produce soft robots or train plastic surgeons
16th-Century Skeletons of Children Infected With Smallpox Discovered in Peru
The toddlers' remains were buried around the beginning of the Spanish conquest of South America
Honeybees Can Sniff Out Lung Cancer, Scientists Suggest
New research opens the door for doctors to one day use bees as a living diagnostic tool
Extreme Wildfires Became Twice as Frequent and Intense in 20 Years, Study Finds
As measured by satellites, wildfires have markedly increased in boreal and temperate conifer forests, and rising nighttime temperatures allow flames to keep burning intensely after dark
Jupiter's Signature Red Spot May Have Evolved More Than Once
The planet's massive storm, known as the Great Red Spot, seems to be different from a spot first observed at roughly the same location in the 17th century, a new study finds
These Stunning Butterflies Flew 2,600 Miles Across the Atlantic Ocean Without Stopping
Researchers combined several lines of evidence to solve the mystery of why a group of painted ladies, which do not live in South America, were found fluttering on a beach in French Guiana
Easter Island Did Not Collapse From Overuse of Resources After All, Study Suggests
A new paper contradicts the idea that people used up the island's resources and experienced a significant population decline, instead proposing that a small society lived there sustainably
Chimpanzees May Self-Medicate With Plants, Using the Forest as a Pharmacy
New research suggests sick chimps seek out and eat plants with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties—a finding that could advance drug discovery for humans
Move Over, Genghis Khan. Many Other Men Left Huge Genetic Legacies
A 2015 study showed that ten other men have a lot of descendants. The paper is just one of several genetic studies revealing the secrets of descent
Why Are Some People Seemingly Immune to Covid-19? Scientists May Now Have an Answer
Researchers tracked the immune responses of 16 people intentionally exposed to SARS-CoV-2 and pinpointed a gene that seems to help resist the virus before it can take hold
Watch Blood-Sucking Leeches Leap From Leaves and Soar Through the Air
New videos may help settle scientists' long-standing debate over whether leeches can jump
Ancient DNA Illuminates the History of Malaria, One of the World's Deadliest Diseases
Researchers extracted parasitic DNA from preserved teeth and bones, revealing how malaria spread across the globe in a new study
A Giant Interstellar Cloud May Have Once Enveloped Earth, Potentially Causing Ice Ages
Astronomers suggest this cold, dense cloud compressed our sun's protective field between two and three million years ago, leaving the Earth exposed to cosmic material
Ernest Shackleton's Last Ship, Quest, Discovered Off the Coast of Canada
The famed explorer died of a heart attack aboard the ship near South Georgia Island in 1922, and it sank in the north Atlantic Ocean in 1962
Scientists Release Largest Trove of Data on How Space Travel Affects the Human Body
A collection of 44 new studies, largely based on a short-duration tourist trip in 2021, provides insight into the health effects of traveling to space
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