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The new Museum Hotel Antakya in Turkey "floats" above ancient ruins.

Virtual Travel

New Hotel in Turkey ‘Floats’ Above Ancient Ruins

Closed due to COVID-19, the Museum Hotel Antakya looks forward to welcoming guests with its blend of luxury and history once restrictions are lifted

7,000-year-old dog feces from China's Anhui province

Artificial Intelligence Gives Researchers the Scoop on Ancient Poop

The computer program can identify canine versus human feces based on DNA sequences in samples

A male lemur with clearly visible scent glands on its wrists.

For Male Lemurs, Love Stinks—and Scientists Now Know Why

A newly identified trio of chemicals may help the primates find a mate

As scientists stay home amid the COVID-19 pandemic, crucial weather and climate data aren't being collected.

How COVID-19 Interferes With Weather Forecasts and Climate Research

‘The break in the scientific record is probably unprecedented,’ one ecologist says

The unique scent of rain may actually be a chemical signal used by bacteria to attract this tiny arthropod, called a springtail.

New Research

How Rain Evolved Its Distinct Scent—and Why Animals and Humans Love It

New research reveals the ancient symbiotic relationship behind geosmin, the chemical compound responsible for the scent of fresh rain

A virtual view of the Red Monastery, one of five Egyptian heritage sites newly detailed in 3-D

Virtual Travel

Take a Free Virtual Tour of Five Egyptian Heritage Sites

The sites include the 5,000-year-old tomb of Meresankh III, the Red Monastery and the Mosque-Madrassa of Sultan Barquq

A conceptual diagram, showing the installation of a telescope in a crater on the far (dark) side of the moon.

The Far Side of the Moon May Someday Have Its Own Telescope, Thanks to NASA Funding

The project hasn’t yet been greenlit, but a proposal just got major funding to explore the potential for the lunar observatory

Farm workers loading apples onto a truck in an orchard, circa 1965.

Cool Finds

Ten Apple Varieties Once Thought Extinct Rediscovered in Pacific Northwest

The “lost” apples will help restore genetic, culinary diversity to a crop North America once produced in astonishing variety

Delicate blossoms might get knocked down, but they get up again.

New Research

How Flowers Marvelously Evolved Resilience

Blossoms contort and twist back into optimal pollination position after getting bumped and battered

MLB employees, including players, executives and stadium workers, are participating voluntarily and their results will be anonymous—so this research will not expedite the return of baseball season.

Major League Baseball Players Pitch In for a Major COVID-19 Study

Major League Baseball players and team employees to participate in 10,000-person COVID-19 study

The Mayor, a crested gecko, takes a feet-on approach to appreciating art.

Covid-19

Miniature Gecko Art Gallery Premieres on the Heels of Viral London Gerbil Museum

The creator behind the reptilian repertoire hopes many more pet museums are in the works

Flamingos mingle in a small group at the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust at Slimbridge in England.

New Research

Flamingos in Captivity Pick Favorite Friends Among the Flock

These cliques wear pink every day of the week

An image of the April 2012 Lyrid meteor shower raining down on Earth, taken from the International Space Station.

How To Watch April’s Lyrid Meteor Shower From Home

Though not as plentiful as the Perseids in summer, the Lyrids can serve up some serious fireballs

Capitol Hill Books is one of several independent bookstores selling "mystery bags."

Covid-19

Local Bookstores Offer ‘Mystery Bags’ of Quarantine Reading

Buyers can ask for a mix of their favorite genre or seek booksellers’ recommendations

Health care workers at Stanford and the University of Massachusetts who have placed smiling portraits of themselves on the outside of their protective gear

Covid-19

Portrait Project Reveals the Faces Behind Health Care Workers’ Protective Gear

Doctors and nurses are attaching smiling photos of themselves to the outside of their protective gear to maintain connections with patients

"[W]e again have the collective opportunity to reduce usage of scarce items—both for the community at large and particularly for those on the frontline of this crisis," says curator Lora Vogt.

Covid-19

Cook These Quarantine-Friendly World War I Recipes

An online exhibition from the National WWI Museum and Memorial features recipes detailed in 1918 cookbook

An art installation by Raul Walch, created for the "Life, art, pandemic and proximity" project, is seen in Berlin on April 12, 2020.

Covid-19

Berlin Artists Turn Their Balconies Into Mini Galleries

Some 50 artists around the Prenzlauer Berg district displayed works of art for passersby to enjoy

Fragments of a large early Neolithic vessel that was likely used to process meat stew

Cool Finds

Traces of Millennia-Old Milk Help Date Pottery Fragments to Neolithic London

These dairy products are no longer edible, but they’re still valuable to researchers

Artist's conception of SN2016aps, a supernova that was brighter and released more energy than any other ever observed by astronomers.

New Research

Astronomers Spy Brightest Supernova Ever Seen

A star 100-times more massive than the sun exploded with 10-times more energy than a normal-sized supernova

"A Peep into the Life of a Data Scientist"

Poo-Sniffing Peeps, Miss Ameripeep and More Emerge Victorious in #PeepYourScience 2020 Competition

Blending marshmallows with scientific rigor, the contest offers levity during a difficult time

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