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Top Science News
June 19, 2020

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June 17, 2020 — A team of astronomers has picked up on a curious, repeating rhythm of fast radio bursts emanating from an unknown source outside our galaxy, 500 million light years ...
June 17, 2020 — New research suggests that the first dinosaurs laid soft-shelled eggs -- a finding that contradicts established thought. The study analyzed the eggs of two vastly different non-avian dinosaurs and ...
June 17, 2020 — Where you live has a significant impact on the likelihood that you will reach centenarian age, suggests a new study. New research suggests that people who live in highly walkable, mixed-age ...
June 17, 2020 — In a series of experiments using human cancer cell lines, scientists say they have successfully used light as a trigger to make precise cuts in ...
Latest Top Headlines
updated 2:25pm EDT
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Super-Potent Human Antibodies Protect Against COVID-19 in Animal Tests

June 15, 2020 — Researchers have discovered antibodies in the blood of recovered COVID-19 patients that provide powerful protection against SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes the disease, when tested in animals and human ...
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Diluting Blood Plasma Rejuvenates Tissue, Reverses Aging in Mice

June 15, 2020 — A new study reveals that replacing half of the blood plasma with a mixture of saline and albumin reverses signs of aging and rejuvenates muscle, brain and liver tissue in old mice. The research team is currently finalizing clinical trials to determine if a modified plasma exchange in humans could ...
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Face Masks Critical in Preventing Spread of COVID-19

June 12, 2020 — A study has found that not wearing a face mask dramatically increases a person's chances of being infected by the ...
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Up to 45 Percent of SARS-CoV-2 Infections May Be Asymptomatic

June 12, 2020 — Asymptomatic infections may have played a significant role in the early and ongoing spread of COVID-19 and highlight the need for expansive testing and contact tracing to mitigate ...
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As Many as Six Billion Earth-Like Planets in Our Galaxy, According to New Estimates

June 16, 2020 — There may be as many as one Earth-like planet for every five Sun-like stars in the Milky Way Galaxy, according to ...
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New Light Shed on Intelligent Life Existing Across the Galaxy

June 15, 2020 — Is there anyone out there? This is an age-old question that researchers have now shed new light on with a study that calculates there could be more than 30 intelligent civilizations throughout our Galaxy. This is an enormous advance over previous estimates which spanned from zero ...
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Engineers Put Tens of Thousands of Artificial Brain Synapses on a Single Chip

June 8, 2020 — Engineers have designed a 'brain-on-a-chip,' smaller than a piece of confetti, that is made from tens of thousands of artificial brain synapses known as memristors -- silicon-based components that mimic the information-transmitting synapses in the ...
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Tiny, Magnetically Powered Neural Stimulator

June 8, 2020 — Neuroengineers have created a tiny surgical implant that can electrically stimulate the brain and nervous system without using a battery or wired ...
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Tomato's Hidden Mutations Revealed in Study of 100 Varieties

June 17, 2020 — A new analysis of difficult-to-access genetic variation is the most comprehensive ever conducted in plants. It could guide the improvement of tomatoes and ...
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African savanna (stock | Credit: (c) Grispb / stock.adobe.com

Hunting in Savanna-Like Landscapes May Have Poured Jet Fuel on Brain Evolution

June 16, 2020 — Compared to the vast emptiness of open water, land is rife with obstacles and occlusions. By providing prey with spaces to hide and predators with cover for sneak attacks, the habitats possible on land may have helped give rise to planning ...
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Guinea pigs (stock | Credit: (c) Weiming / stock.adobe.com

Origins of the Beloved Guinea Pig

June 16, 2020 — New research sheds light on guinea pig domestication and how and why the small, furry animals became distributed around ...
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Spectacular Bird's-Eye View? Hummingbirds See Diverse Colors Humans Can Only Imagine

June 15, 2020 — While humans have three color cones in the retina sensitive to red, green and blue light, birds have a fourth color cone that can detect ultraviolet light. A research team trained wild hummingbirds to perform a series of experiments that revealed ...
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Health News
June 19, 2020
June 9, 2020 — In times of unexpected uncertainty, such as the sudden appearance of a global pandemic, people may be more prone to paranoia, say ...
June 8, 2020 — Scientists have recently identified a small mitochondrial uncoupler, named BAM15, that decreases the body fat mass of mice without affecting food intake and muscle mass or increasing body ...
June 3, 2020 — Scientists have tried to develop synthetic red blood cells that mimic the favorable properties of natural ones, such as flexibility, oxygen transport and long circulation times. Now, researchers have ...
June 3, 2020 — Poison is lethal all on its own -- as are arrows -- and together, they can take down the strongest opponents. Researchers have found an antibiotic that simultaneously punctures bacterial walls and ...
Latest Health Headlines
updated 2:25pm EDT

Gut Bacteria May Modify Behavior in Worms, Influencing Eating Habits

June 17, 2020 — Gut bacteria are tiny but may play an outsized role not only in the host animal's digestive health, but in their overall well-being. According to a new study, specific gut bacteria in the worm may modify the animal's behavior, directing its dining ...
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Sedentary Behavior Independently Predicts Cancer Mortality

June 18, 2020 — In the first study to look at objective measures of sedentary behavior and cancer mortality, researchers found that greater inactivity was independently associated with a higher risk of dying from ...
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US Cities With Pro Sports See More Flu Deaths

June 18, 2020 — Sports leagues may want to consider calling a timeout on reopening their doors to fans, based on new research that links an uptick in seasonal flu deaths to US cities with pro sports ...
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Scientists Decode How the Brain Senses Smell

June 18, 2020 — Scientists have further decoded how mammalian brains perceive odors and distinguish one smell from thousands of ...
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Human Brain Size Gene Triggers Bigger Brain in Monkey Fetus

June 18, 2020 — A human-specific gene causes a larger neocortex in the common marmoset, a non-human ...
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Hookworm Trial Offers New Hope to MS Patients

June 18, 2020 — Parasitic worms could offer a new treatment hope for patients suffering from the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis, according to ...
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Decide Now or Wait for Something Better? Our Standards Drop Over Time

June 18, 2020 — When we make decisions, we don't always have all options available to choose from at the same time. Instead they often come one after another, as for example when we search for an apartment or a flight ticket. So we have to decide on something without knowing if a better option might have come along later. A study has shown that our standards drop more and more in the course of ...
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Classes Set by Ability Are Hitting Children's Self-Confidence

June 16, 2020 — The way a vast amount of schools are setup, with classes grouping children based on their ability, is severely affecting pupil's ...
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Not Smoking and Being Socially Active Keys to Longevity

June 18, 2020 — Researchers have discovered some of the secrets to longevity with new research revealing not smoking and being social engaged throughout older age are common traits of New Zealand ...
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Poor Sleep Significantly Linked With Teenage Depression

June 17, 2020 — Teenagers who experience very poor sleep may be more likely to experience poor mental health in later life, as depressed teens in study slept 30 minutes less per night than other ...
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What It Means When Animals Have Beliefs

June 17, 2020 — Humans are not the only ones who have beliefs; animals do too, although it is more difficult to prove them than with humans. Researchers have now proposed four criteria to understand and empirically investigate animal ...
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Air Quality Impacts Early Brain Development

June 17, 2020 — Does living close to roadways pose a risk to the developing brain? A study found a link between traffic-related air pollution and an increased risk for changes in brain development relevant to neurodevelopmental ...
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Physical/Tech News
June 19, 2020
June 8, 2020 — Astronomers have discovered that emissions from an object known as a repeating Fast Radio Burst follow a cyclic pattern repeating every 157 ...
June 3, 2020 — A new paper has shown how large structures in the distribution of galaxies in the Universe provide the most precise tests of dark energy and cosmic expansion ...
June 3, 2020 — Astronomers have for the first time measured the Fermi Bubbles in the visible light spectrum. The Fermi Bubbles are two enormous outflows of high-energy gas that emanate from the Milky Way and the ...
May 30, 2020 — For the first time in history, NASA astronauts have launched from American soil in a commercially built and operated American crew spacecraft on its ...
Latest Physical/Tech Headlines
updated 2:25pm EDT

Measuring a Tiny Quasiparticle Is a Major Step Forward for Semiconductor Technology

June 19, 2020 — A team of researchers has uncovered new information about the mass of individual components that make up a promising quasiparticle, known as an exciton, that could play a critical role in future applications for quantum computing, improved memory storage, and more efficient energy ...
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Is Teleportation Possible? Yes, in the Quantum World

June 19, 2020 — Researchers are exploring new ways of creating quantum-mechanical interactions between distant electrons. The research marks an important advance in quantum ...
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Researchers Make Next-Generation, High-Toughness Battery Component

June 18, 2020 — By combining a ceramic material with graphene, engineers have made what they say is the toughest solid electrolyte built to ...
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New Research Leads to Drones Changing Shape Mid-Flight

June 18, 2020 — Engineers have developed autonomous air vehicles that can change shape during ...
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Are Planets With Oceans Common in the Galaxy? It's Likely, Scientists Find

June 19, 2020 — Several years ago, planetary scientists began to wonder whether any of the more than 4,000 known exoplanets, or planets beyond our solar system, might resemble some of the watery moons around Jupiter and ...
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Hubble Provides Holistic View of Stars Gone Haywire

June 18, 2020 — As nuclear fusion engines, most stars live placid lives for hundreds of millions to billions of years. But near the end of their lives they can turn into crazy whirligigs, puffing off shells and jets of hot gas. Hubble has dissected such crazy fireworks in two nearby young planetary ...
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Researchers Shed New Light on Solar Flares

June 18, 2020 — Plasma astrophysicists have created the first self-consistent simulation of the physical processes that occur during a solar flare. The researchers used supercomputers and a new combination of physical ...
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Spacecrafts Get a Boost in 'Aerogravity Assisted' Interactions

June 18, 2020 — Researchers map the energy variations of the spacecraft orbits due to 'Aerogravity Assisted' ...
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A Deep-Learning E-Skin Decodes Complex Human Motion

June 18, 2020 — A deep-learning powered single-strained electronic skin sensor can capture human motion from a distance. The single strain sensor placed on the wrist decodes complex five-finger motions in real time with a virtual 3D hand that mirrors the original motions. The deep neural network boosted by rapid situation learning (RSL) ensures stable operation regardless of its position on the surface of the ...
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Brainsourcing Automatically Identifies Human Preferences

June 17, 2020 — Researchers have developed a technique, using artificial intelligence, to analyze opinions and draw conclusions using the brain activity of groups of people. This technique, which the researchers call ''brainsourcing'', can be used to classify images or recommend content, something that has not been demonstrated ...
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Discovery Allows 3D Printing of Sensors Directly on Expanding Organs

June 17, 2020 — Mechanical engineers and computer scientists have developed a 3D printing technique that uses motion capture technology, similar to that used in Hollywood movies, to print electronic sensors directly on organs that are expanding and ...
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'SlothBot in the Garden' Demonstrates Hyper-Efficient Conservation Robot

June 17, 2020 — For the next several months, visitors to the Atlanta Botanical Garden will be able to observe the testing of a new high-tech tool in the battle to save some of the world's most endangered species. SlothBot, a slow-moving and energy-efficient robot that can linger in the trees to monitor animals, plants, and the environment below, will be tested near the Garden's popular Canopy ...
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Environment News
June 19, 2020
June 12, 2020 — The origins of human innovation have traditionally been sought in the grasslands and coasts of Africa or the temperate environments of Europe. More extreme environments, such as the tropical ...
June 9, 2020 — Evidence from rocks billions of years old suggest that volcanoes played a key role in the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere of the early ...
June 3, 2020 — A new study maps for the first time the evolutionary history of the world's terrestrial vertebrates: amphibians, birds, mammals and reptiles. It explores how areas with large concentrations of ...
June 3, 2020 — Researchers report two newly identified super-eruptions associated with the Yellowstone hotspot track, including what they believe was the volcanic ...
Latest Environment Headlines
updated 2:25pm EDT

The Wind Beneath Their Wings: Albatrosses Fine-Tuned to Wind Conditions

June 19, 2020 — A new study of albatrosses has found that wind plays a bigger role in their decision to take flight than previously thought, and due to their differences in body size, males and females differ in their response to ...
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'Dark Matter' DNA Is Vital for Rice Reproduction

June 19, 2020 — Researchers have shed light on the reproductive role of 'dark matter' DNA - non-coding DNA sequences that previously seemed to have no function. Their findings have revealed that a specific non-coding genomic region is essential for the proper development of the male and female reproductive organs in ...
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Genetic Variation May Affect Bacterial Composition and Healing of Wounds

June 18, 2020 — Genetic variability across patients might play an important role in shaping the microbiome composition of wounds, thereby influencing the healing process, according to a new ...
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New Argentine Fossils Uncover History of Celebrated Conifer Group

June 18, 2020 — Newly unearthed, surprisingly well-preserved conifer fossils from Patagonia, Argentina, show that an endangered and celebrated group of tropical West Pacific trees has roots in the ancient supercontinent that once comprised Australia, Antarctica and South America, according to an international team of ...
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Natural Fluid Injections Triggered Cahuilla Earthquake Swarm

June 18, 2020 — Scientists generated a catalog of 22,000 seismic events from a four-year period to reveal the structure of an active fault ...
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Innovation by Ancient Farmers Adds to Biodiversity of the Amazon

June 18, 2020 — Innovation by ancient farmers to improve soil fertility continues to have an impact on the biodiversity of the Amazon, a major new study ...
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African Lion Counts Miss the Mark, but New Method Shows Promise

June 18, 2020 — The current technique used for counting lion populations for research and conservation efforts doesn't add up, according to a researcher. He has been investigating new methods of photographing and reviewing data to count ...
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Antioxidant-Rich Diet Reduces Stress Response During Bird Migration

June 18, 2020 — Ornithologist had birds fly in a wind tunnel to simulate migration and found that birds that consume dietary antioxidants before and during fall migration can reduce the endocrine stress response triggered by long-duration ...
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Studying the Neanderthal DNA Found in Modern Humans Using Stem Cells and Organoids

June 18, 2020 — Protocols that allow the transformation of human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines into organoids have changed the way scientists can study developmental processes and enable them to decipher the interplay between genes and tissue formation, particularly for organs where primary tissue is not available. Now, investigators are taking this ...
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High-Tech CT Reveals Ancient Evolutionary Adaptation of Extinct Crocodylomorphs

June 18, 2020 — New insights into the anatomy of the inner ear of prehistoric reptiles, the thalattosuchians, revealed details about the evolutionary adaption during the transition into the ocean after a long semiaquatic phase. These new findings were made possible by the use of a Canon high-tech computed tomography (CT) ...
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Goodbye 'Extinction,' Hello 'Evanescence'? Validating a New Paradigm

June 18, 2020 — Naturalist and zoologist Georges Cuvier established extinction as a distinct field of science in a series of publications beginning in 1799. He confirmed that fossil species were formerly living species no longer extant, confirming similar conclusions of classical Greek scholars. However, mechanisms thought to control the process remained controversial for two ...
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Fish Fossils Become Buried Treasure

June 18, 2020 — Rare metals crucial to green industries turn out to have a surprising origin. Ancient global climate change and certain kinds of undersea geology drove fish populations to specific locations. As remains of the fish fossilized, they accumulated valuable elements and these fossil beds became concentrated deposits of such metals. This discovery could aid future prospects for deposits of so-called ...
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Society/Education News
June 19, 2020
May 8, 2020 — A new study has identified thousands of incidents of previously rare or unprecedented extreme heat/humidity combinations in parts of Asia, Africa, ...
May 11, 2020 — Levels of two major air pollutants have been drastically reduced since lockdowns began in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but a secondary pollutant -- ground-level ozone -- has increased in China, ...
Apr. 30, 2020 — Researchers have found the highest levels of microplastic ever recorded on the seafloor, with up to 1.9 million pieces in a thin layer covering just one square ...
Apr. 23, 2020 — A worldwide compilation of insect abundance studies shows the number of land-dwelling insects is in decline. On average, there is a global decrease ...
Latest Society/Education Headlines
updated 2:25pm EDT

Hurricane Season Combined With COVID-19 Pandemic Could Create Perfect Storm

June 16, 2020 — When extreme climate conditions interact with stressors to social systems, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the consequences could be severe unless experts from diverse backgrounds work together to develop comprehensive solutions to combat their negative ...
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New Species Extinction Target Proposed for Global Nature Rescue Plan

June 16, 2020 — A scientist proposes a prominent political target to give discussions of species conservation more vigor. Together with a group of experts from other research institutions, he proposes to limit species extinctions to 20 per ...
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Study Settles the Score on Whether the Modern World Is Less Violent

June 16, 2020 — A study by mathematicians has used new techniques to address the long-running debate over whether battle deaths have been declining globally since the end of the Second World ...
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Researchers Flush out Worrying Trend of Designer Drug Use

June 15, 2020 — In a sign that designer drugs are becoming more prevalent in Australia, synthetic cathinones -- commonly known as 'bath salts' -- have been detected in the nation's wastewater in the largest study of its kind in the ...
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A Fair Reward Ensures a Good Memory

June 17, 2020 — By deciphering the neural dialogue between the brain's reward and memory networks, a new study demonstrates that the lasting positive effect of a reward on the ability of individuals to retain a variety of ...
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No Single Solution Helps All Students Complete MOOCs

June 15, 2020 — In one of the largest educational field experiments ever conducted, researchers found that promising interventions to help students complete online courses were not effective on a massive scale -- suggesting that targeted solutions are needed to help students in different circumstances or ...
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'Philosophy Lab Test' Finds Objective Vision Impossible

June 8, 2020 — Researchers who study the mind and brain used methods from cognitive science to test a long-standing philosophical question: Can people see the world objectively? Their answer, is a flat ...
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How COVID-19 Lockdown Has Altered Sleep in the US and Europe

June 10, 2020 — Two new studies show that relaxed school and work schedules and more time spent at home has led people to sleep more on average with less 'social jetlag' as indicated by a reduced shift in sleep timing and duration on work days versus free days. But, at the same time, one of the studies also finds that the pandemic has taken a toll when it comes to self-reported sleep ...
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COVID-19: Tradeoffs Between Economics and Public Health

June 11, 2020 — A new study uses a variety of data on consumer and business activity to tackle that question, measuring 26 types of businesses by both their usefulness and risk. Vital forms of commerce that are relatively uncrowded fare the best in the study; less significant types of businesses that generate crowds perform worse. The results can help inform the policy decisions of government officials during ...
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Researchers Uncover a New Mindset That Predicts Success

June 10, 2020 — To succeed in modern life, people need to accomplish challenging tasks effectively. Many successful entrepreneurs, businesspeople, students, athletes and more, tend to be more strategic -- and hence, more effective -- than others at meeting such challenges. A new study shows that one important psychological factor behind their success may be a 'strategic ...
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'Artificial Chemist' Combines AI, Robotics to Conduct Autonomous R&D

June 4, 2020 — Researchers have developed a technology called 'Artificial Chemist,' which incorporates artificial intelligence and an automated system for performing chemical reactions to accelerate R&D and manufacturing of commercially desirable ...
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Behaviors and Traits That Influence Social Status, According to Evolutionary Psychologists

June 2, 2020 — Beyond fame and fortune, certain traits and behaviors may have pervasive influence in climbing the social ladder, according to a study by evolutionary ...
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