Science News Magazine: May 1, 2026

More Stories from the May 1, 2026 issue

1. 

   Fossils

   Newfound fossil is not a teen T. rex but a whole new species

   Now known as Nanotyrannus, this mini dino could have roamed the late Cretaceous alongside T. rex.

   By Carolyn Gramling

2. ⏸

   Artificial Intelligence

   Chatbots may make learning feel easy — but it’s shallow

   People who use search engines gain deeper knowledge and care more about what they learn than those who rely on AI chatbots, a new study finds.

   By Payal Dhar

3. 

   Archaeology

   60,000-year-old poison arrowheads show early humans’ hunting tactics

   Traces of poison on the South African arrowheads hint that people used poisoned weapons 50,000 years earlier than previously thought.

   By Tom Metcalfe

4. 

   Planets

   Listen to the crackle of ‘mini-lightning’ on Mars

   Scientists suspected Mars had these zaps but had never detected them — until now. NASA’s Perseverance rover recorded them generated by dusty gusts.

   By Nikk Ogasa

5. 

   Animals

   Chicago’s Rat Hole? Science concludes it’s likely not from a rat

   Researchers employed tools of paleontology to analyze the iconic landmark — a sidewalk critter crater made when a mystery rodent fell into wet concrete.

   By Amanda Heidt

6. 

   Earth

   Build your own seismograph with this science activity

   By recording earthquakes, seismographs help scientists better understand and hopefully predict quakes.

   By Science Buddies

7. 

   Health & Medicine

   Butt breathing might help people struggling to get enough oxygen

   This strange investigation into whether humans can use the gut for breathing has surprisingly heartwarming origins: helping the scientist’s dad.

   By Maria Temming