All Stories
- Animals
Paw-print DNA lets scientists track out-of-sight polar bears
This environmental DNA can aid in conserving species that are hard or dangerous to observe.
- Health & Medicine
The teen brain is especially vulnerable to the harms of cannabis
Today’s concentrated cannabis products — with higher THC levels — may pose greater risks of addiction and psychosis than ever before.
- Life
Scientists Say: Protist
Unified by a few key traits, these diverse organisms come in all shapes and sizes.
- Animals
A newfound type of hedgehog is small, dark and adorable
At first, this hedgehog was mistaken for a lookalike relative. But its teeth, skull shape and DNA confirmed it as a new species.
- Science & Society
Music has the power to move us physically and emotionally. Here’s why
The way music impacts the brain can improve mood and overall health.
- Animals
Here’s how kingfishers avoid concussions during high-speed dives
Understanding the genetic adaptations that protect the birds’ brains as they dive might one day offer clues to protecting human brains.
- Materials Science
Let’s learn about graphene
Scientists have been trying to understand and harness this material’s superpowers since its discovery in 2004.
- Math
This civil engineer turns to math to make energy more affordable
Destenie Nock uses computer algorithms to help identify households struggling to afford utilities.
- Physics
Scientists Say: Polarized light
Sunlight, lamplight and other lights are usually unpolarized. But passing light waves through filters can ‘polarize’ them.
- Planets
Huge polygons on Mars hint its equator may once have been frozen
A Chinese rover used radar to reveal long-buried terrain. The discovery hints that Mars’ equator was once much colder and wetter.
- Physics
Neutrons are unveiling hidden secrets of fossils and artifacts
Images made with these particles have revealed details of dinosaur bones, mummies and more.
- Animals
Horned lizards and snakes tend to ambush their prey
The reptiles’ horns could help or hinder during foraging, depending on how they hunt. This might be why horns evolved in some species and not others.
