Laura Geggel

As an editor for Live Science, Laura Geggel edits and writes pieces on general science, including the environment, archaeology and amazing animals. She has written for The New York Times, Scholastic, Popular Science and Spectrum, a site covering autism research. Laura grew up in Seattle and studied English literature and psychology at Washington University in St. Louis before completing her graduate degree in science writing at NYU. When not writing, you'll find Laura playing Ultimate Frisbee. 

Articles by: Laura Geggel

A swordfish (Xiphias gladius) left part of its "sword" sticking out of the shark it killed.

Whodunit solved when 'sword' is found embedded in thresher shark

By Laura Geggel

It's a mystery why a swordfish stabbed a thresher shark to death, but it's possible they were competing for food.

Rockefeller, the stowaway owl found in the Norway Spruce taken to Rockefeller Center, all wrapped up in a sweater.

Tiny owl found hiding in the Rockefeller Christmas tree isn't going home. Here's why.

By Laura Geggel

The owl found in the Rockefeller Christmas tree isn't going back to his original territory. Here's why.

Here is the ancient Egyptian depiction of the Big Dipper, seen here in the shape of a bull's leg. It includes seven stars and is tied to a stake by a goddess in hippo form (right). The Big Dipper is considered the manifestation of the evil god Seth, who murdered his brother Osiris. The goddess prevents Seth from reaching Osiris in the underworld — a myth made possible because the constellation never dips below the horizon.

Ancient Egyptian temple reveals previously unknown star constellations

By Laura Geggel

The ancient Egyptian temple was covered with soot, dirt and bird droppings.

This illustration shows what may have happened to the ceratopsian and tyrannosaur just before they died and were fossilized about 67 million years ago.

Cretaceous cold case of 'dueling' T. rex and Triceratops may finally be solved

By Laura Geggel

The T. rex and Triceratops were discovered in 2006, but this sale marks the first time scientists will be able to study them in detail.

The extinct human relative Paranthropus robustus evolved rapidly during a turbulent time due to local climate change.

1st instance of microevolution in early human relative discovered

By Laura Geggel

Changes previously thought to be sex differences in a human relative are actually due to microevolution, a new study finds.

The twin infants' double burial was unearthed in Krems am Wachtberg, Austria.

31,000-year-old burial holds world's oldest known identical twins

By Laura Geggel

About 31,000 years ago, identical twin boys died, but not at the same time, a new analysis of their remains shows.

A heron likely regretted eating an eel after it burst out in midair.

Alien-like photo shows eel dangling out of heron's stomach in midair

By Laura Geggel

The eel probably thought "not today" as it burrowed out of the heron's stomach.

The male (left) and female (right) mummies first found in Saqqara, Egypt in 1615.

Archaeologists finally peer inside Egyptian mummies first found in 1615

By Laura Geggel

Ancient painted mummies found in Egypt more than 400 years ago were finally examined with CT scans.

The ancient child's skull and jaw are fragmented. The diagonal lines show where ochre pigment was found.

Rare ancient burial contains child whose arms and legs were removed

By Laura Geggel

8,000 years ago in Indonesia, a child was buried without their leg and arm bones, a common practice at that time and place.

A digitally created view of the two octagonal viewing towers by the tiltyard.

Jousting yard where Henry VIII nearly died just discovered 5 feet under

By Laura Geggel

Radar technology has revealed exactly where Henry VIII had a traumatic brain injury while jousting.

The detailed carving of Apollo is smaller than a dime.

2,000-year-old seal depicting Greek god Apollo found in Jerusalem

By Laura Geggel

A 2,000-year-old carved gem bears the likeness of Apollo, and it was likely owned by a Jew.

Spooky blurry image of a skull against a black background.

13 disturbing Halloween horrors come to life

By Laura Geggel

Here is the science behind 13 Halloween horrors come to life.

Sue the T. rex suffered from a big toothache due to three tiny, weird-looking teeth.

Sue the T. rex had a terribly painful infection when she died

By Laura Geggel

An infection, not bad genetics, are likely the reason for Sue's weird teeth.

The sacrificed llamas were adorned with colored string earrings and necklaces.

Sacrificed llama mummies unearthed in Peru

By Laura Geggel

These five naturally mummified llamas were sacrificed by the Inca about 500 years ago.

The 13-foot-long (4 meters) slab has between 25 to 39 handprints and 39 to 42 footprints made by pterosaurs in the late Jurassic. (Key: Definite and possible footprints in red and orange; definite and possible handprints in blue and purple.)

Corgi-size pterosaurs walked in the rain 145 million years ago

By Laura Geggel

Researchers in Wyoming have discovered a pterosaur trackway dating to 145 million years ago.

It took archaeologists about one week to refurbish the ancient cat outline.

New Nazca Line geoglyph discovered: A 120-foot-long cat

By Laura Geggel

The latest Nazca Line depicts a giant cat.

Sarah Boessenecker, who wasn't involved with the research but helped collect the fossils, finds 24 million-year-old shark teeth from a construction site in South Carolina.

24 million-year-old nursery for baby megasharks discovered in South Carolina

By Laura Geggel

The discovery of nearly 90 shark teeth, largely from young sharks, indicates there was a shark nursery here 24 million years ago.

Researchers have found a toe claw (shown in yellow, second from left) and jawbone (shown in blue, third from left) of baby tyrannosaurs that lived between 75 million and 70 million years ago in North America. For scale, here are reconstructions of the tyrannosaur babies compared with an adult Albertosaurus tyrannosaur (left) and lead researcher Gregory Funston.

1st of their kind baby tyrannosaur fossils unearthed

By Laura Geggel

It's rare to find tyrannosaur baby bones, but now researchers have two: a toe claw and a jawbone.

A modern dugong (top right) shown over the Eastern Desert of Egypt, which was home to ancient Sirenia about 40 million years ago.

Adorable ancient sea cows once swam through now-bone dry Egyptian desert

By Laura Geggel

Ancient marine beasts used to swim in what is now Egypt's Eastern Desert.

The Tyrannosaurus rex dinosaur fossil skeleton nicknamed "Stan" is displayed in a gallery at Christie’s auction house in New York City on Sept. 17, 2020.

Stan the T. rex just became the most expensive fossil ever sold

By Laura Geggel

A Tyrannosaurus rex called Stan ended up on the auction block because of a lawsuit. Here's how it happened.

Archaeologist Arnold Muhl shows early medieval fibulae, a part of women's clothing, that were discovered in the cemetery. This and other artifacts from the excavation are now in the workshop of the Landesmuseum für Vorgeschichte (State Museum for Prehistory) in Germany. 

Germanic lord buried with a harem of 6? Not quite, but the real story is fascinating.

By Laura Geggel

A Germanic aristocrat is just one of 80 newly discovered ancient burials.

The cleaned cranium of the 15- to 18-year-old teenager, whose face was mutilated in Anglo-Saxon England.

Skull reveals Anglo-Saxon teen's nose and lips were cut off 1,100 years ago

By Laura Geggel

A young woman's nose and lips were cut off in about A.D. 800, likely as a punishment.

A full moon reflects on the Patuxent River in Maryland in 2013.

How to see the full moons on Oct. 1 and Halloween

By Laura Geggel

This event happens only once in a blue moon.

A man, two women and an infant were buried in this grave about 2,500 years ago in what is now Siberia.

Ancient Siberian grave holds 'warrior woman' and huge weapons stash

By Laura Geggel

Four Iron Age people buried with ample weapons may have died of an infection 2,500 years ago.

The remains of the Stone Age dog. Notice its teeth in the middle of the photo.

Stone Age dog may have been buried with its master

By Laura Geggel

After the dog's burial, rising sea levels flooded the region.