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Latest News

photo shows the empire state building as viewed from a nearby skyscraper; the building and those nearby are surrounded by a dense cloud of yellow-orange smog made up of wildfire smoke

NYC's air quality ranked worst of any major city on Wednesday. With climate change, will it happen again?

Rebecca Sohn published 8 June 23

New York City's normally good air quality rating recently plummeted to the worst of any major city in the world, as wildfire smoke drifted over the city from Canada.

A photo of the moon in its First Quarter phase

What is the moon phase today?

Colin Stuart last updated 8 June 23

Reference A look at the phases of the moon, from new moon to full moon, including's tonight's lunar phase.

A small black hole orbits a supermassive black hole in the galaxy OJ 287.

Flare of light brighter than a trillion suns reveals location of rare double black hole galaxy

Stephanie Pappas published 8 June 23

Brilliant new signals from a far-off galaxy confirm that the system is anchored by a pair of black holes locked in a daring dance.

An array of stone tools against a black background.

Oldest evidence of humans in Greece is 700,000 years old, a quarter of a million years older than previous record

Kristina Killgrove published 8 June 23

A prehistoric site in Greece pushes back the earliest known hominin presence in the region by up to 250,000 years.

photo shows a man with tan skin and black hair wearing a white button down shirt and holding a molecular model of taurine, an atypical amino acid

Amino acid taurine can slow aging in animals, but we don't know if it works in people

Nicoletta Lanese published 8 June 23

Experiments suggest that taurine, an unusual amino acid, can extend some animals' life spans, but it's unclear if it would work in humans.

We see a slender whale on a beach with yellow ties around its head and tail. The ties are attacked to an excavator.

Ultra-rare, deep-diving whale dies on New England beach with possible case of bird flu

Sascha Pare published 8 June 23

A necropsy revealed that the animal may have been infected with avian influenza, which would be "a big deal" if it is confirmed by further testing, scientists say.

Brilliant new signals from a far-off galaxy confirm that the system is anchored by a pair of black holes locked in a daring dance.
Flare of light brighter than a trillion suns reveals location of rare double black hole galaxy Brilliant new signals from a far-off galaxy confirm that the system is anchored by a pair of black holes locked in a daring dance.
A prehistoric site in Greece pushes back the earliest known hominin presence in the region by up to 250,000 years.
Oldest evidence of humans in Greece is 700,000 years old, a quarter of a million years older than previous record A prehistoric site in Greece pushes back the earliest known hominin presence in the region by up to 250,000 years.
A necropsy revealed that the animal may have been infected with avian influenza, which would be "a big deal" if it is confirmed by further testing, scientists say.
Ultra-rare, deep-diving whale dies on New England beach with possible case of bird flu A necropsy revealed that the animal may have been infected with avian influenza, which would be "a big deal" if it is confirmed by further testing, scientists say.
About 1,700 years ago, liquid gypsum was poured over the remains of an elite family in Roman Britain.
'Liquid gypsum' burial from Roman Britain scanned in 3D, revealing 1,700-year-old secrets About 1,700 years ago, liquid gypsum was poured over the remains of an elite family in Roman Britain.
A dentist noticed a lump on a patient's tongue, and it turned out to have an unusual cause.
Mysterious bump on a man's tongue had an 'extremely rare' cause A dentist noticed a lump on a patient's tongue, and it turned out to have an unusual cause.
A record-breaking drilling attempt, which dug more than a kilometer into an underwater mountain in the Atlantic Ocean, has given scientists a treasure trove of rocks to study for clues to Earth's inner workings.
Scientists extract a kilometer of rock from Earth's mantle in record-breaking mission A record-breaking drilling attempt, which dug more than a kilometer into an underwater mountain in the Atlantic Ocean, has given scientists a treasure trove of rocks to study for clues to Earth's inner workings.

Planet Earth

Just a small section of the kilometer of peridotite rock extracted from the Earth's mantle.

Scientists extract a kilometer of rock from Earth's mantle in record-breaking mission

By Ben Turner published 8 June 23

A record-breaking drilling attempt, which dug more than a kilometer into an underwater mountain in the Atlantic Ocean, has given scientists a treasure trove of rocks to study for clues to Earth's inner workings.

Geology
Ocean wave crashing

How many oceans are there?

By Kiley Price published 7 June 23

One, four or five? Not all experts agree on the number of oceans on our planet.

Rivers & Oceans
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  1. Here we see  a hand clenching around the end of a wooden spear, with the forefinger in the "open ring" finger loop.
    1
    150-year-old mystery of strange half-circles from Paleolithic site in France finally solved
  2. 2
    Burmese pythons are helping rats take over Florida's Everglades — and that could help spread disease
  3. 3
    Hundreds of ancient, invisible structures discovered near our galaxy's center
  4. 4
    Orcas have sunk 3 boats in Europe and appear to be teaching others to do the same. But why?
  5. 5
    Ancient Egyptian queen's bracelets contain 1st evidence of long-distance trade between Egypt and Greece
  1. 1
    Cancer Is a Man-Made Disease, Controversial Study Claims
  2. 2
    150-year-old mystery of strange half-circles from Paleolithic site in France finally solved
  3. 3
    Stephen Hawking's most famous prediction could mean that everything in the universe is doomed to evaporate, new study says
  4. 4
    Hundreds of ancient, invisible structures discovered near our galaxy's center
  5. 5
    There may be hundreds of millions of habitable planets in the Milky Way, new study suggests

Space

A gassy blue ball of a galaxy with a long, cloudy tail trailing behind it to the bottom right

Enormous structure discovered near doomed galaxy group is the longest galactic 'tail' ever seen

By Joanna Thompson published 8 June 23

The 1.5-million-light-year-long gas trail was caused by a group of galaxies moving 3 million miles per hour

Cosmology
a star blasting multi-colored jets of energy out of its left and right side against a background of dark space

Dying stars build humongous 'cocoons' that shake the fabric of space-time

By Briley Lewis published 7 June 23

New simulations show that dying stars release enormous "cocoons" of gas that may rattle with space-time ripples called gravitational waves.

Black Holes
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archaeology

A man in a red shirt holds a scanner with a green light. He is scanning the concrete-like remains of a human burial that sits in a white container against a wall.

'Liquid gypsum' burial from Roman Britain scanned in 3D, revealing 1,700-year-old secrets

By Hannah Kate Simon published 8 June 23

About 1,700 years ago, liquid gypsum was poured over the remains of an elite family in Roman Britain.

Romans
A side-by-side view of a facial approximation of King Tut.

King Tut's likeness revealed in vivid new facial approximation of ancient Egyptian pharaoh

By Jennifer Nalewicki published 7 June 23

Researchers created a facial approximation that reconstructs what the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun may have looked like.

Ancient Egyptians
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Health

left photo shows a close up photo of a person's tongue. The right image shows a microscopic scan of tissue sampled from the tongue

Mysterious bump on a man's tongue had an 'extremely rare' cause

By Nicoletta Lanese published 8 June 23

A dentist noticed a lump on a patient's tongue, and it turned out to have an unusual cause.

Health
Smiling, cheerful young woman is wearing a protective lead apron (patient). She is talking with female doctor who is turning on x-ray machine for foot scanning in a modern hospital.

Do you really need to wear a lead apron to get an X-ray?

By Joshua A. Krisch published 7 June 23

Lead aprons were designed to protect reproductive organs from radiation. But are they actually necessary?

Health
in the foreground, there's a computer screen showing a mammogram. Blurred in the background, we can see a medical provider in a white coat assisting a patient at a mammogram machine

AI predicts 5-year breast cancer risk better than standard tools — but we aren't sure how it works

By Carissa Wong published 6 June 23

Artificial intelligence models can use breast imaging data to pinpoint those at highest risk of getting breast cancer in the next five years, better than a standard approach.

Breast Cancer
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Animals

A yellowish octopus against a black background

Octopuses 'rewire' their brains to adapt to different ocean temperatures

By Kiley Price published 8 June 23

Octopuses edit their RNA to adapt to fluctuating temperatures, from the warm waters of summer to chilly ocean temperatures in winter.

Octopuses
Two domestic cats cuddling; one is orange and white and the other is black and white

Gene therapy could be used as birth control for cats, small study suggests

By Jennifer Nalewicki published 8 June 23

A new study shows that gene therapy could be an effective form of birth control for cats.

Domestic Cats
a chimpanzee sitting in water holding its hands and looking at the camera with green vegetation behind

Primates have been masturbating for at least 40 million years

By Hannah Osborne published 7 June 23

Researchers reconstructed the evolutionary origins of primate masturbation and found it was an ancestral trait that goes back to the ancestor of all moneys and apes.

Monkeys
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Human Behavior

Members of Divaz dance group join participants in the Juneteenth Music Festival and parade on June 17, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. Organizers say that this is one of Denver's longest-running parades, dating back to the 1950s.

What is Juneteenth?

By Mindy Weisberger last updated 5 June 23

Juneteenth is a federally-recognized American holiday observed on June 19. It is also known as Emancipation Day and Black Independence Day. In 2023, it falls on a Monday.

Warfare
Japanese Unit 731 staff carrying a body from one of the unit's facilities.

World War II 'horror bunker' run by infamous Unit 731 discovered in China

By Ben Turner published 30 May 23

A bunker discovered near the city of Anda in northeast China is believed to be the largest test site of Imperial Japan's infamous Unit 731, which conducted horrifying human experiments during the 1940s.

Warfare
A 1920s illustration of an ancient Greek Bireme that has two decks of oars.

What is the 'ship of Theseus' thought experiment?

By Meg Duff published 27 May 23

The Greek writer Plutarch proposed this question: If a ship's planks are replaced over time due to wear and tear until none of the original pieces remain, is it still the same ship?

Human Behavior
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Physics & Mathematics

A 14-sided shape tiled endlessly without repeating a pattern

Mathematicians end decades-long quest to find elusive 'vampire einstein' shape

By Paul Sutter published 6 June 23

Researchers have discovered a new 14-sided shape called the Spectre that can be used to tile a surface without ever creating a repeating pattern, ending a decades' long mathematical hunt.

Mathematics
Red and blue bar magnet or physics magnetic with iron powder magnetic field on white background.

Why do magnets have north and south poles?

By Laurel Hamers published 30 April 23

Spinning electrons may help explain why magnets have north and south poles.

Physics & Mathematics
8 Einstein rings in a grid

Dark matter's secret identity could be hiding in distorted 'Einstein rings'

By Harry Baker published 27 April 23

Researchers may be a step closer to identifying dark matter after studying unusual cases of gravitational lensing caused by "dark matter halos" surrounding distant galaxies.

Dark Matter
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Chemistry

Uranium nitrate called uranyl, with uranium ore, radioactive material on isolated white background_RHJ via Getty Images

Scientists discover 1st 'neutron-rich' isotope of uranium since 1979

By Robert Lea published 15 April 23

Scientists have synthesized a previously unknown isotope of uranium, uranium-241, that may start to disappear after just 40 minutes.

Elements
A selection of images showing seedlings growing in a lab vs. computerized models.

Alan Turing's famous mathematical model was right all along, chia seed experiment reveals

By Jennifer Nalewicki published 5 April 23

For the first time, scientists using chia seed experiments have confirmed that Alan Turing's mathematical model can explain patterns seen in nature.

Chemistry
Best chemistry sets - Girl and boy playing with chemistry set_Thames & Kosmos

Best chemistry sets 2023: amazing at-home chemistry sets for kids and adults

By Jake Green last updated 7 December 22

Get the reaction you're looking for with the best chemistry sets for kids and adults.

Chemistry
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Tech

Science kit deals - Kid doing science

Science kit deals 2023: Fun & educational STEM sets on offer at Amazon, Target, and more

By Kimberley Snaith published 5 April 23

From microscopes to robotic unicorns, we’ve rounded up some of the best science kit deals from around the web.

Tech
Laptop and assorted desk gadgets - best office gadgets and toys

Best office gadgets and toys 2023: Useful tools and fun toys for your desk

By Susan Arendt published 5 April 23

Having the best office gadgets and toys at your disposal transforms your personal space into a luxe working environment.

Tech
Best science kits for kids - Two cute children at chemistry lesson making experiments on white background.

Best science kits for kids 2023: Fun experiments for children of all ages

By Mihaela Bozukova published 5 April 23

Inspire your children to learn about the world with the best science kits for kids.

Tech
VIEW MORE

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