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Stories from Sarah Kuta

The unfamiliar monk parakeets got to know each other slowly before moving on to behaviors like preening, pictured here.

Monk Parakeets Are Highly Social Birds, but They Slowly ‘Test the Waters’ When Making New Friends

The bright green parrots start with low-cost social behaviors—like sitting near each other without touching—when first interacting with unfamiliar birds within their species, possibly to avoid aggressive encounters, new research suggests

Mars regularly experiences dust storms, like this one captured by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in 2012. Scientists say they found evidence of "mini lightning" during some of these storms.

Scientists Say These Small Electrical Discharges May Be the First Direct Evidence of Lightning on Mars

Rather than big bolts of lightning as seen on Earth, NASA’s Perseverance rover recorded audio of small zaps similar to those from static electricity

The birch bark tar is covered in tooth marks and contains traces of saliva.

Ancient DNA Reveals That a Teenage Girl Chewed on This Wad of ‘Gum’ 10,500 Years Ago

Based on genetic material preserved in birch bark tar from Estonia, researchers found that the teen likely had brown hair and brown eyes

Researchers studied thousands of brain scans to see how the organ's architecture changes over a lifetime.

Your Brain Goes Through Five Distinct Epochs of Neural Wiring During Your Lifetime, New Research Suggests

These eras of brain architecture are marked by four major turning points, which occur around the ages of 9, 32, 66 and 83, according to a new study

Most of the canoes are still submerged in Lake Mendota, but archaeologists have recovered two of them.

Archaeologists in Wisconsin Unearth an Ancient ‘Parking Lot’ With 16 Dugout Canoes—Including One That’s 5,200 Years Old

The team has several theories about how Indigenous groups created and used the vessels, which were discovered during research over the past five years

Researchers found bird bones and jewelry, including this bowl-shaped brooch, in the grave.

Mysterious Viking Age Woman Found Buried With Scallop Shells Covering Her Mouth

Archaeologists discovered the unusual ninth-century grave on a farm along the coast of central Norway

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has approved the specifications of THOR-5F, a female crash test dummy developed by Humanetics.

Will This Newly Approved Crash Test Dummy Make Car Accidents Less Deadly for Women?

The government approved the specifications of THOR-05F, marking a first step toward the government and manufacturers potentially using the dummy in future car safety tests. But it still represents only the smallest women in the United States

The log boats were all made the same way, but each one is unique.

These Ancient Log Boats Unearthed in England Were Each Carved From a Single Tree Trunk 3,000 Years Ago

First discovered in 2011, three vessels are the centerpiece of a new exhibition about craftsmanship and transportation methods in Bronze Age Britain

The Altamura Man was discovered in a cave in southern Italy in 1993.

Stunningly Well-Preserved Neanderthal Skull Suggests the Species’ Large Noses Weren’t Adapted for the Cold

A new study analyzes the nasal cavity of the “Altamura Man,” a Neanderthal who died between 130,000 and 172,000 years ago

European starlings were the best at imitating R2-D2's multphonic sounds because they can control both sides of both sides of the syrinx independently, the researchers say.

Birds Are Beeping and Booping like R2-D2. Their Mimicked Sounds Are Helping Unlock the Secrets of Avian Communication

European starlings were better than parrots at imitating R2-D2’s high-pitched chattering, possibly because of their special control over a vocal organ

T. oblongifolia thrives in Death Valley's high temperatures.

This Shrub Thrives in Death Valley’s Scorching Temperatures. Where Do Its Heat-Tolerant Superpowers Come From?

Tidestromia oblongifolia thrives in high heat—and scientists think it may hold the key to making food crops more resilient amid global warming

The painting was rehung in its original place at the church during a ceremony earlier this month.

This Painting Hung at a Church in Mexico for 200 Years Before It Was Stolen in 2001. Now, It’s Finally Returning Home

Titled “St. Francis of Assisi,” the 1747 standing portrait of the church’s namesake was stolen in 2001, along with several other items

Two new studies explored the impact beavers have on bats and pollinator insects.

Beavers are Dam Good for Biodiversity, Bringing Bats, Butterflies and Other Critters to Their Neighborhoods

Two new studies suggest that the semi-aquatic rodents provide food and habitat for bats and pollinator insects within their engineered ecosystems

Members of the Haíɫzaqv (Heiltsuk) Nation caught the crafty female wolf on camera.

Watch a Wolf Cleverly Raid a Crab Trap for a Snack. It Might Be the First Evidence of a Wild Canid Using a Tool

Footage from British Columbia shows just how intelligent wild wolves can be, but scientists are divided as to whether the behavior constitutes tool use

Many fans have developed parasocial relationships with Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, pictured here in January 2025 at the AFC Championship Game in Kansas City, Missouri.

Feel a Connection to a Celebrity You’ve Never Met? Your Bond May Be ‘Parasocial,’ Which Is Cambridge Dictionary’s Word of the Year for 2025

The term is used to describe “a connection that someone feels between themselves and a famous person they do not know,” according to the dictionary

Researchers used drones to capture high-resolution aerial imagery of the Band of Holes.

Thousands of Mysterious Holes Dot the Landscape in Peru. Archaeologists Say They May Finally Know Why

New research suggests the Band of Holes functioned as a barter marketplace before becoming an accounting system for the Inca

Concrete Coral by artist Leandro Erlich features 22 concrete cars submerged roughly 20 feet deep about 780 feet off the coast of Miami Beach.

Miami Beach’s Newest Art Installation Is Underwater—and It Doubles as a Habitat for Fish and Coral

Crews lowered 22 concrete cars to the ocean floor to create “Concrete Coral,” an installation by artist Leandro Erlich. The piece is the first phase of a project called REEFLINE

Amabala, a 5-year-old female who was born in captivity, is raising four healthy cubs.

Watch Four Furry and Adorable Cheetah Cubs on the Smithsonian National Zoo’s Online Feed

The “strong, active” and “vocal” babies were born during the government shutdown, and they and their 5-year-old, first-time mother, Amabala, are thriving

Charles I and his wife Zita, photographed around 1916, fled to Switzerland at the end of World War I.

The Florentine Diamond Was Thought to Be Lost to History. It’s Actually Been Safely Tucked Away in a Canadian Bank Vault All Along

Empress Zita of Bourbon-Parma wanted the jewel’s location to be kept secret for 100 years after the death of her husband, Charles I, in 1922. Their descendants now plan to display it at a museum

Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, is leading a project to compile the names of as many Jewish Holocaust victims as possible.

Researchers Have Identified the Names of Five Million Victims Murdered in the Holocaust

Led by Israel’s Yad Vashem, the initiative has been underway since the 1950s. But it recently got a boost from artificial intelligence, which is helping humans search through the records

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