All Stories
- Animals
Dire wolves or not, these pups could help counter extinction
Some question if these are just gene-tweaked gray wolves. Still, the tech behind the new "dire wolves" might help some living at-risk species avoid extinction.
- Health & Medicine
Explainer: What is cancer?
Cancer is a whole collection of diseases with one thing in common: all develop when the body’s cells start dividing out of control.
- Materials Science
A beautiful blue butterfly wing offers a new way to study cancer
Once a morpho butterfly wing is placed atop a thin slice of tissue, shining polarized light through it can help reveal how likely breast cancer is to spread.
- Brain
Let’s learn about memory
Brain injuries, drug use and other factors can impair our memory. But targeted practice and healthy habits can boost our ability to remember.
- Materials Science
This engineer uses light to get hearts pumping
Pengju Li designed a new type of pacemaker to help doctors during open-heart surgery.
- Plants
Scientists Say: Circumnutation
Plants are always on the move, their tips slowly waving in search of better light — a process called circumnutation.
- Tech
Squirty gels bring food-like flavors to virtual reality
A new device recreates complex flavors including lemonade, coffee and fish soup by delivering a mix of chemicals.
- Animals
Analyze This: Why the fastest creatures are neither tiny or huge
The “Goldilocks zone” for fast animal speed seems to depend on a body not being too small or so big it gets in the way of its own strength.
- Agriculture
A secret climate superhero lies beneath our farms
Agriculture contributes to climate change. But changes to how farms manage soil might help remove carbon and other greenhouse gases from the air.
- Physics
Physics finally explains the sound of clapping
The “Helmholtz resonator” concept is responsible for the sound produced by hand-clapping.
- Animals
Lab-grown mosquitoes could help protect Hawaii’s native birds
To curb the spread of avian malaria, a teen researcher found a way to make those mosquitoes grow faster and stronger.
- Chemistry
Scientists Say: Vitamin
Our bodies can’t make enough of these tiny but mighty worker molecules. That’s what makes them a dietary essential.
