Uncategorized

  1. Animals

    Please do not touch the Australian stinging tree

    Stinging-tree leaves look soft and inviting, but one touch delivers agony. Structurally, the plant's painful chemical looks a lot like spider venom.

    By Rebecca E. Hirsch
  2. Planets

    There’s water on sunny parts of the moon, scientists confirm

    The new observations were made by a telescope on board a jet in Earth’s atmosphere. They confirm the presence of water on sunlit areas of the moon.

    By Maria Temming
  3. Health & Medicine

    Third major vaccine shows great promise against COVID-19

    This vaccine, which may be easier to get to the public, appears to be 90 percent effective at halting disease and maybe spread of the new coronavirus.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  4. Animals

    The diabolical ironclad beetle is nearly unsquishable

    The diabolical ironclad beetle is an incredibly tough little creature. A peek inside its exoskeleton reveals what makes it virtually uncrushable.

    By Maria Temming
  5. Brain

    Scientists Say: Puberty

    Puberty is a time when hormones surge and people develop the ability to have children. But it’s so much more than that.

    By Bethany Brookshire
  6. Materials Science

    This artificial skin feels ‘ghosts’ — things you wish were there

    Engineers have developed a wearable device that simulates the sense of touch. It may benefit robotic surgery and deep-sea exploration.

    By Stephen Ornes
  7. Health & Medicine

    Warning! Junk foods can harm a teen’s brain

    The adolescent brain has a hard time resisting junk food. But high-fat, high-sugar diets can interfere with learning and pose risks to mental health.

    By Sharon Oosthoek
  8. Health & Medicine

    Teen athletes with even mild COVID-19 can develop heart problems

    COVID-positive student athletes, some with no symptoms, have developed heart inflammation and more. They are new reasons to limit coronavirus exposure.

    By Partho Sengupta
  9. Climate

    Surprising long-haul dust and tar are melting high glaciers

    Dust and tar blown onto high mountains, like the Himalayas, boost the melting of snow and ice far more than scientists had realized. Here’s why.

    By Sid Perkins
  10. Health & Medicine

    Moderna vaccine for COVID-19 appears nearly 95 percent effective

    A second coronavirus vaccine appears super effective in preventing people from being sickened by COVID-19.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  11. Animals

    This snake rips open a living toad to feast on its organs

    A particularly gruesome way to kill may help small-banded kukri snakes avoid a deadly poison secreted from the neck and backs of some toads.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  12. Animals

    Scientists Say: Evolution

    Evolution is how species change over time. Individuals in the group vary, and some will pass on their genes. Over time, the whole species changes.

    By Bethany Brookshire