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Materials Science

Here’s how to hide some objects from heat-sensing cameras

A special coating that conceals temperature information from heat-detecting cameras might someday be used as a privacy shield.

Health & Medicine

The many challenges of corralling a coronavirus outbreak

The Chinese government has quarantined millions of people in hopes of limiting spread of a new coronavirus. But no one yet knows how much this will help.

Animals

Healthy coral reef sounds attract fish searching for a home

Playing the sounds of a healthy reef can help attract fish to dying corals, helping rebuild their community.

Earth

Newfound desert soil community lives on sips of fog

Lichens and other fungi and algae team up to form a 'grit-crust' on the parched soil of Chile’s Atacama Desert. Those species slake their thirst with moisture from coastal fog.

Earth

Scientists Say: Estuary

This is where a freshwater river meets a salty sea. This environment has brackish water, a mix of saltwater and freshwater.

Animals

Small T. rex ‘cousins’ may actually have been growing teens

Dinosaurs once thought to be mini cousins of Tyrannosaurus rex may have been merely adolescent members of the famous species, a new study suggests.

Health & Medicine

Explainer: What is a coronavirus?

Coronaviruses are a diverse family of disease-causing agents. Some cause the common cold. Newer ones have emerged to pose more serious threats to people.

Genetics

Serious virus emerges in China and is spreading globally

A new viral infection emerged in December 2019 among people in Wuhan, China. The mystery illness has already killed at least 17 people and sickened many hundreds.

Science & Society

A first: Kids advise hospital researchers on their medical studies

When the Mayo Clinic realized it was missing key voices, the hospital recruited kids to advise doctors about their research.

Animals

Australian fires have imperiled up to 100 species

As massive wildfires consume huge swaths of Australia’s bush, untold species — many of them found nowhere else — are now threatened with extinction.

Materials Science

Self-powered surface may evaluate table-tennis play

Scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology built a 'smart' surface on which to play table tennis. It can track the location, speed and direction of the ball.

Animals

Why some whales become giants and others are only big

Being big helps whales access more food. But just how big a whale can get is influenced by whether it hunts or filter-feeds.