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Smart News / Smart News Science

A worker prepares a hot air balloon during a festival in Ba Vi National Park, west of Hanoi, Vietnam.

Good News

Good News

Uplifting stories to brighten your day

Acid-spewing tawny crazy ants, formerly called raspberry crazy ants, have been spreading through the gulf coast in recent years.

A Killer Fungus Is Annihilating Invasive ‘Crazy Ants’ in the United States

Entomologists are hopeful the pathogen could slow the insects’ spread through the country

Bats, rodents, hedgehogs, and shrews are mammals among the orders that are predicted to have the most undescribed mammals. (Pictured: a bicolored shrew)

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Study Finds Hundreds of Mammals Are Waiting to Be Discovered

New species may be hidden in areas that have more comprehensive geographic ranges with high variability in temperature and precipitation

Scientists claim that the rock used to carve the Venus of Willendorf statue likely came from Italy.

New Research

3-D Scans Show 30,000-Year-Old Stone Sculpture Dug Up in Austria Likely Came From Italy

Scientists suspect an ancient limestone carving known as the Venus of Willendorf traveled hundreds of miles across the Southern Alps

After analyzing the DNA of 50 domestic cats, researchers identified regions along the two genes that code for Fel d 1 that the team could cut and edit with CRISPR.

Researchers Are Closer to Creating Hypoallergenic Cats Using CRISPR Technology

The allergen-causing protein Fel d 1 was removed from feline cells using the gene-editing tool

The flamingo in Cox Bay near Port Lavaca, Texas. 

Good News

Flamingo That Escaped From a Zoo in Kansas Is Spotted Once Again in Texas 17 Years Later

The zoo hasn’t made any plans to catch the bird, saying any attempts might harm the flamingo and other wildlife

Pluto's icy volcanic region, with possible past eruptions marked in blue.

Pluto’s Hidden Ice Volcanoes Hint at the Possibility of Life

The discovery suggests the dwarf planet may be harboring a subsurface liquid ocean

Aedes aegypti can carry several diseases, including yellow fever, dengue and Zika virus. 

Why a U.S. Company Plans to Release 2.4 Billion Genetically Modified Mosquitoes

The insects, created by biotech firm Oxitec, will be non-biting males engineered to only produce viable male offspring, per the company

High social media use may simply be a coping mechanism, rather than a cause, of adolescents' mental health challenges. 

The Future of Mental Health

Negative Effects of Social Media May Impact Adolescent Girls and Boys at Different Ages

A new study suggests certain ‘windows’ of development when youngsters appear most sensitive to technology

Vampire bats are found in caves and forests throughout Central and South America and often prey on livestock at night for a quick bite.  

Missing Genes Allow Vampire Bats to Survive on All-Blood Diets

Genes linked to taste receptors, insulin secretions, and stomach were absent in the flying mammals

The participants could have been exposed to microplastics through air, water and food, but also through personal care products like toothpaste or lip gloss that might have been accidentally ingested, dental polymers, parts of implants or tattoo ink residues.

Microplastics Detected in Human Blood in New Study

Researchers found plastic in the blood of 17 of 22 of study participants, or about 77 percent

When corals are stressed, they will expel their algal partner in a process called coral bleaching.

Mass Coral Bleaching Hits Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

Unusually warm waters are stressing sensitive corals, causing the fourth major bleaching event in the last seven years

Neural data are decoded and analyzed in real time to control the speller software.

Good News

Brain Implants Allow Paralyzed Man to Communicate Using His Thoughts

This study marks the first time a completely paralyzed patient regained the ability to communicate at length, researchers say

Researchers are getting closer to creating a birth control pill for those with testes, according to findings presented this week at a meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Male Birth Control Pill Expected to Start Human Trials This Year

The new non-hormonal pill was 99 percent effective at preventing pregnancy in mice

The near-complete dinosaur fossil was sold at auction at Christie's to an anonymous buyer in October 2020 and many speculated that the dinosaur was lost to science.

Stan the T. Rex Will Be the Star of a New Museum in Abu Dhabi

The natural history museum will chronicle the story of the universe and life on Earth with a focus on the Arabian Peninsula’s flora and fauna

Most of Wyoming's collisions with wildlife are with mule deer.

Wyoming Now Has an App for Collecting Roadkill

Locals can use a new feature on the state’s 511 app to claim and report carcasses to wildlife officials

In standard pizzas, yeast produces bubbles during fermentation, which causes the dough to rise and develop an airy texture.

Italian Scientists Create Rising Pizza Dough Without Yeast

Exposing the dough to high-pressure gasses can create a similar rise as fermentation

Researchers chose to focus on lettuce because the plant has been grown numerous times aboard the International Space Station and would provide a way for astronauts to eat fresh greens besides only canned and freeze-dried foods.  

Innovation for Good

Genetically Modified Lettuce May One Day Help Space Travelers Fight Bone Loss

The vegetable could provide fresh leafy greens to astronauts’ diet while providing a new way to transport and consume medications in the cosmos

Each sensor is unique in size and ranges between 10 to 50 milliliters in diameter and weighs about 30 milligrams.

Innovation for Good

Tiny, Solar-Powered Sensors Fly Through the Air Like Dandelion Seeds

The battery-free devices could be used to gather environmental data over long distances and provide insights into an ecosystem’s health

Under the proposed rules, companies would need to divulge climate-related risks that are likely to impact the business.

SEC Proposes New Climate Change Disclosures for Companies

The proposal passed on a 3–1 vote, and the public will now have around 60 days to submit comments

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