All Stories
- Chemistry
Asteroid impacts may have sparked life on Earth
The energy produced by comets and asteroids that collide with Earth may have been strong enough to start life.
- Physics
Picture This: Christmas from space
Satellite images show that cities brighten during holidays. Charting such changes can point to factors affecting energy use and contributing to global warming.
- Animals
A nervy strategy for transplants
Adjusting the electric charges in cells helped a transplanted eye reach out to its new host. The eye grew cells, which help transmit signals to other cells.
- Earth
Clouds may be dining cars for some germs
Scientists had known microbes could hitchhike across and between continents on clouds. New research now shows that some germs don’t just treat clouds as a high flying jet, but also as a cafeteria.
- Animals
Spidey sense: Eight-legged pollution monitors
Spiders that prey on aquatic insects can serve as sentinels that naturally monitor banned chemicals that still pollute many rivers across the United States.
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Cookie Science 11: That’s the way the cookie crumbles
I made cookies and had people taste them. Now it’s time to look at the results of my data.
- Animals
Virus blamed in starfish die-off
A virus may explains the deaths of millions of starfish along the Pacific Coast of North America. The deaths affect 20 species. Some of the stricken animals appear to melt into puddles of slime.
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Give the gift of science without breaking the bank
Many gifts for science lovers can get pricey. But there are lots of ways to share a love of science without having to spend too much.
- Environment
Soot fouls subway stations — and maybe lungs
Soot levels in stations for New York City’s electric subway trains exceed the levels outdoors, a new study finds. The underground source of this black carbon: maintenance trains that share the tracks with subway trains. Breathing soot can aggravate asthma and other lung disease.
- Brain
Nano air pollutants strike a blow to the brain
Most people think that air pollution poses the biggest risk to our lungs. In fact, pollution hits the brain too, sometimes by traveling a direct route — through our noses. These tiny pollutants can harm IQ and more.
- Brain
Banned drug reduces brain communication
Illegal drugs called “bath salts” can reduce communications among different brain regions. New research, done in rats, may explain the violent and unpredictable behavior seen in some people using these drugs.
- Brain
Scents may affect how appealing tobacco is
Menthol’s effects on the brain may make tobacco more addicting. In contrast, foul odors might help smokers quit. Two new studies show how.
