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Pygmy raccoons live only on Mexico's Cozumel Island.

These Adorable, Critically Endangered Pygmy Raccoons in Cozumel Are Teaching One Another to Turn Trash Into Toy Balls

The observations offer rare evidence of a skill being passed among raccoons. But the work also highlights the effects of human pollution at the popular tourist destination

If a theoretical dark matter particle interacts with liquid xenon in an underground tank, these light sensors should detect the resulting flash of light. 

Scientists May Have Finally Detected a Hint of Dark Matter, the Mysterious, Invisible Stuff That Holds the Universe Together

A South Dakota-based instrument built to detect theoretical dark matter particles has sensed a particle interaction that’s difficult to explain with known phenomena. But more data is needed to confirm that the strange substance—which scientists have never directly observed—is, indeed, the culprit

The treasure was found at a home in Rebild, a municipality in northern Denmark.

Cool Finds

Routine Yard Work Reveals a Trove of Viking Silver—the Largest Treasure of Its Kind Ever Discovered in Denmark

The collection includes coins, jewelry, silver bars and a tiny artifact shaped like Thor’s hammer. Experts say the roughly 700 items were buried during the tenth century

The Silver Snoopy pin, awarded to NASA astronauts and employees for "outstanding achievements related to human flight safety or mission success."

A New York City Exhibition Celebrates Snoopy’s Enduring Influence on Art and Fashion

The beloved “Peanuts” character’s many costumes and brand collaborations are featured in a new showcase

An artistic rendering of the ESA's Mercury Planetary Orbiter in the foreground and JAXA's Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter in the background near Mercury.

After an Eight-Year Journey, Two Spacecraft Have Begun Their Arrival to Mercury, the Inner Solar System’s Most Mysterious Planet

The BepiColombo mission, by the European Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, is only the third to study our smallest planetary neighbor

Since calorie restriction is known to slow aging, researchers wanted to know if GLP-1s—which curb appetite—could do the same.

GLP-1 Weight-Loss Drugs Can Slow Aging and Extend Life Span, Mouse Study Suggests

Older female mice—equivalent in age to 60-year-old women—given daily injections of the active ingredient in Ozempic lived about 12 percent longer than animals that didn’t receive the drug

The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco is coated in a protective paint called International Orange.

Why Does Rain Eat Through Protective Coatings on Metal Structures? Researchers Propose a New Idea: Electrically Charged Droplets

Scientists long attributed rain damage to physical abrasion and chemical degradation from acidic substances. A new study offers a third idea, which could help researchers develop longer-lasting coatings and preserve important objects

Study co-author Lisa Tauxe inserts samples into a thermal demagnetizer.

New Research

Researchers Have Figured Out How to Spot Fake Ancient Pottery Using the Earth’s Magnetic Field

The magnetic North Pole has shifted over the millennia, leaving clues in the minerals that make up clay antiquities

Between 5 and 10 percent of personality differences can be explained by the identified genetic variants, according to the study.

Part of Your Personality Is Encoded in Your Genes. Huge Analysis Links Characteristics to More Than 1,200 Common Genetic Variants

A new meta-analysis pooled data from more than one million people to look at the crossover between DNA and the “Big Five” personality traits: openness to experience, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and neuroticism

Scientists studied the fossils of prehistoric relatives of katydids.

Scientists Recreated the Long-Lost Chirps of Jurassic Insects. Listen to the Simulated Soundscape of 165 Million Years Ago

With artificial intelligence and careful modeling of fossilized wings, researchers reproduced how some extinct, katydid-like insects might have made noise

Williston Lake is the seventh-largest reservoir by volume in the world. 

A Lake in Canada Got a Mysterious New Island. Then, It Disappeared—and Now It’s Back

The floating forest appeared in a well-mapped reservoir in British Columbia. Its presence and vanishing act have puzzled locals and officials at the power utility that operates the lake, but other similar islands exist elsewhere

Observations by amateur astronomers and imagery from the Hubble Space Telescope have revealed a ten-sided shape around Saturn’s south pole.

A Mysterious Decagon Unexpectedly Appeared Around Saturn’s South Pole. The Ten-Sided Shape Seems to Be a Wave in the Atmosphere

Decades ago, scientists found a hexagon around Saturn’s north pole. Now, recent images reveal a decagon in the planet’s southern hemisphere—and it seems to have recently formed

Claude Monet's Bord des falaises à Pourville (1882) is the centerpiece of the auction, expected to sell for up to $17.4 million. 

Historic Trove of Monets, Renoirs and Other Impressionist Masterpieces Expected to Fetch Up to $50 Million on Auction Block This Fall

More than 60 paintings from the private estate of Paul Durand-Ruel, who shepherded Impressionism out from obscurity, will be up for sale

While no prediction tool is 100 percent accurate, experts have developed interactive maps to guide your leaf-peeping activities.

Leaf-Peeping Season Is Almost Here. These Interactive Maps Can Help You Figure Out When Fall Foliage Will Peak in Your Area

From the magnificent mountains of New England to the desert landscape of northern New Mexico, the tools can help you make the most of nature’s upcoming wardrobe change

The annual contest highlights not only birds but also their behaviors, habitats and threats.

These 20 Breathtaking Bird Images From the Audubon Photography Awards Capture the Wonder of the Winged World

The winners of the 17th annual contest reveal the beauty of birds, the splendor of their migratory journeys and the risks they face

Researchers have spent the past two years studying the interactions between common octopuses and blue crabs and perfecting breeding techniques.

Blue Crabs Have Taken Over the Adriatic Sea. To Fight Them Off, Italian Researchers Just Released Thousands of Baby Octopuses

Although prized in the United States, the crustaceans have been decimating ecosystems and the fishing industry in Italy. Experts hope that an army of natural predators—common octopuses—can help contain the invasive species’ spread

Egyptian officials announced the new discoveries last week.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover a 4,000-Year-Old Tomb With a False Door at Egypt’s Ancient Saqqara Necropolis

In addition to the tomb, which once belonged to a high-ranking official, excavations revealed a network of burial shafts that still held human remains and funerary objects

The ration kept an individual's daily intake of sugar at around 40 grams, about ten cubes of sugar. After the restriction ended, consumption of the sweetener nearly doubled.

World War II Sugar Rationing Data Hints That Limiting Intake of the Sweet Stuff Early in Life Lowers the Risk of Dementia and Cancer

For roughly a decade leading up to September 1953, the United Kingdom limited sugar purchases. Scientists studied health outcomes in people born during the ration and right after

The researchers have collected thousands of coral samples since 2006.

Corals Reveal El Niño Events Have Become Stronger in Recent Decades, Probably Because Humans Have Been Heating Up the Planet

Researchers used elements trapped within Galápagos corals to understand natural swings in the climate over the past millennium. They hint that variability has gone up over the past 40 years compared to preindustrial times

Alfie and Bailey, the first dogs whose genes were edited so they lack the allergy-inducing protein Can f 1.

Allergic to Dogs? These Gene-Edited Beagles Could Pave the Way to Your Dream Canine Companion That Won’t Trigger Sniffles

Geneticists altered Alfie and Bailey’s DNA so that they don’t produce a major allergen. However, canines like them are not currently commercially available, and some experts express ethical concerns about altering the animals’ genes

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