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Wild orcas offer humans food. Could they be trying to make friends — or manipulate us?
By Patrick Pester published
Researchers have documented orcas dropping prey and other marine life in front of humans, as if offering us food. The orcas' motives are uncertain, but the sharing behavior could be an attempt at a cross-species relationship or manipulation.

Oldest and most complete ancient Egyptian human genome ever sequenced reveals ties to Mesopotamia
By Perri Thaler published
In a first, researchers have sequenced the complete genome of a man from ancient Egypt, and the results reveal that he had genetic ties with Mesopotamian DNA.

'A completely new phenomenon': Astronomers spot a planet causing its star to constantly explode
By Ben Turner published
Astronomers have spotted an alien planet orbiting so closely to its home star, the planet's magnetic field is triggering massive solar flares to erupt. This is the first time a planet has been seen influencing its host star.

James Webb telescope discovers tentacled 'jellyfish' galaxy swimming through deep space
By Perri Thaler published
A possible new "jellyfish" galaxy discovered by the James Webb Space Telescope could deepen our understanding of galaxy evolution and star formation.

First-ever evidence of star 'double detonation' captured in stunning image
By Ben Turner published
An explosion captured in a new image could help astronomers to better understand the "standard candles" at the center of a major cosmological mystery.

Chemotherapy can make healthy blood cells 'look old'
By Patrick Sullivan published
Researchers have identified ways in which chemotherapy can damage healthy cells and found that some drugs can add decades of "age" to otherwise normal blood cells.

Zapping the brain may help boost math skills, study hints
By RJ Mackenzie published
A study suggests that carefully controlled electrical stimulation of the brain may improve math skills, most significantly in people with weaker connections in a specific part of the brain.

2 'new stars' have exploded into the night sky at once — potentially for the first time in history
By Harry Baker published
Astronomers have spotted another never-before-seen "nova" blaze to life in the night sky. This may be the first time that simultaneous stellar explosions have been visible to the naked eye in recorded history.

Bear's new metal tooth is world's biggest-ever crown
By Patrick Pester last updated
Lake Superior Zoo in Minnesota announced it has given a brown bear the world's largest dental crown, with the bear now sporting a silver-colored metal canine

Rare snowfall in Atacama Desert forces the world's most powerful radio telescope into 'survival mode'
By María de los Ángeles Orfila published
The ALMA radio telescope array in the Atacama Desert temporarily halted operations after a rare snowfall blanketed the base camp last week.

Man's body crawling with parasitic worms after infected kidney transplant at US hospital
By Anna Rogers published
A second transplant patient also became infected, leading their doctors to surmise that their new kidneys were likely to blame.

ChatGPT could pilot a spacecraft shockingly well, early tests find
By Paul Sutter published
In a recent contest, teams of researchers competed to see who could train an AI model to best pilot a spaceship. The results suggest that an era of autonomous space exploration may be closer than we think.

Scientists discover never-before-seen part of human cells
By Christoph Schwaiger published
Scientists say they captured 3D images of a new organelle they're calling a "hemifusome," which may be a recycling center in human cells.

'Puzzling' bronze discs adorned with lion heads discovered in Roman-era grave
By Aristos Georgiou published
The bronze artifacts may have served as coffin handles for a burial in what is now Israel, but the true nature of the find remains unclear.

Watch mud volcano erupt beneath a crown of flames in Taiwan
By Patrick Pester published
The Wandan mud volcano has erupted in Taiwan, sending bubbling mud shooting into the air as locals ignite ejected gases with burning rags.

New blood test detects cancers 3 years before typical diagnosis, study hints
By Kamal Nahas published
Free-floating DNA carrying cancerous mutations was detected in blood three years before any other signs of cancer appeared. If approved as a test, doctors might detect cancers sooner and treat them before they spread.

New viruses identified in bats in China
By Brian Owens published
Bats found near orchards harbor pathogens that could be passed to livestock or humans.

'Never been seen before': First images from new ISS solar telescope reveal subtle 'fluctuations' in sun's outer atmosphere
By Harry Baker published
NASA's new "CODEX" telescope has snapped its first photos of the sun's outer atmosphere, revealing previously imperceptible changes that could help scientists better predict potentially dangerous space weather events.
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