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Smart News / Smart News Science

The star Betelgeuse, as seen by the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array.

A Giant Star Is Dimming, Which Could Be a Sign It Is About to Explode

Most astronomers, however, say it’s unlikely that the star Betelgeuse will go supernova anytime soon

Employees are contributing to the initiative by supplying reusable cups, plates and utensils for meetings, as well as bringing used plastic packaging materials from home.

Art Meets Science

A Hawaii Museum Has Eliminated the Sale of All Single-Use Plastics

The Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Honolulu hopes to set a positive example in the fight for a more sustainable future

These gene-edited tomatoes grow in grape-like clusters, rather than on long vines.

Gene-Edited Tomatoes Grow in Bunches Like Grapes, Making Them Ideal for Urban Farming

Growing food in urban environments could have important implications for sustainability—if we can produce crops that thrive in tight spaces

Starting in the summer of 2020, it will be illegal in the United States to purchase tobacco products, including e-cigarettes and vaping devices, under the age of 21.

The Public Health Benefits of Raising the Age for Buying Tobacco Products to 21

Advocates say the new provision will save lives—but some question whether it goes far enough

An image of the center of the Milky Way galaxy, where a red and yellow "candy cane" feature was recently observed by astronomers

A Cosmic ‘Candy Cane’ Was Spotted at the Heart of the Milky Way

The festive feature is made up of a long stream of high-energy particles where stars may be forming

The petite creation measures 10 micrometers long, or roughly a tenth of the diameter of the average human hair.

This Microscopic ‘Gingerbread’ House Is Smaller Than a Human Hair

Although it doesn’t taste great, the silicon house highlights the capabilities of electron microscopy

Laboratory experiments suggest the tooth-like scales of the puffadder shyshark can be degraded by acidifying oceans

Acidifying Oceans Could Corrode the Tooth-Like Scales on Shark Skin

A laboratory experiment hints at another sobering consequence of acid-heavy ocean waters on marine life

It's hard enough to talk about our feelings. Now, try doing it across languages.

The Meanings Behind Words for Emotions Aren’t Universal, Study Finds

Certain emotions may be universal. But the way humans describe their feelings, it seems, is not

X-ray analysis revealed a hidden landscape depicting the birth of Christ.

Cool Finds

Nativity Scene Discovered Beneath 16th-Century Painting of John the Baptist’s Beheading

Experts hope further examination will yield insights on the canvas’ age, background and history

Minoan single-use cup alongside a paper cup from Air India

Cool Finds

For Easy Clean-Up After Parties, Minoans Used Disposable Cups

A 3,500-year-old single-use vessel is part of a new display at the British Museum that explores our long-standing relationship with trash

How many sheep?

Dogs’ Brains Naturally Process Numbers, Just Like Ours

Scientists stuck 11 dogs in fMRI scanners to see if their brains had a knack for quantity

A rancher tends to several small feral hogs in a pen in Texas. But in the wild, these hogs are considered invasive—and they're headed north.

Feral Pigs Are Invasive, Voracious and Resilient. They’re Also Spreading

The destructive swine are expanding their range in the United States and appear to be encroaching from Canada

CT scan of a newborn panda cub.

Pandamonium

Panda Bears Have Teeny Tiny Babies, and We Don’t Know Why

Panda moms are 900 times bigger than their cubs and a new study disputes the theory it’s related to hibernation

An artist impression of Cheops, the CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite, with an exoplanet system in the background

Three Things to Know About Europe’s New Exoplanet Space Telescope

CHEOPS is the first exoplanet satellite devoted specifically to learning more about the thousands of planets we have already found

The shores of Mount Athos, a monastic sanctuary where women have been banned for more than 1,000 years

Cool Finds

Possible Female Remains Discovered on Greece’s All-Male Monastic Peninsula

The identity and sex of the individual have yet to be confirmed, but could mark a first for the sacred Mount Athos

Recent excavations in the ancient Greek city of Pylos revealed a gold pendant featuring the likeness of Hathor, an Egyptian goddess who was a protector of the dead.

Cool Finds

Artifacts in Gold-Lined Tombs Hint at Ancient Greek Trade Relationships

The gilded graves, built some 3,500 years ago, likely housed high-status individuals who displayed their wealth with objects from abroad

An infant mountain gorilla from the Katwe group in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda.

Endangered Mountain Gorilla Populations Are Growing

But the animals remain threatened with extinction

Dead mussels along the Clinch River.

Trending Today

Scientists Don’t Know Why Freshwater Mussels Are Dying Across North America

Mussel species are dying en mass in rivers across the Pacific Northwest, Midwest and South—likely from unidentified pathogens

No need to flee for this nasty little critter.

Some Moths Taste So Bad That They Don’t Bother Fleeing From Bats

A new study offers an explanation as to why some moth species fly erratically in the face of danger, while others do not

An endangered White's seahorse.

Trending Today

Undersea ‘Hotels’ Deployed to Help Sydney’s Endangered Seahorses

Captive breeding and microhabitats may help restore White’s seahorse whose population plummeted 90 percent in the last decade

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