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Smart News / Smart News Science

A nurse administers an Ebola vaccine on August 7.

Researchers Have Finally Found an Effective Treatment for Ebola

Two treatments have been found to reliably help patients resist the deadly virus—just nine months after a clinical trial began

Trending Today

Rare Lightning Strikes Detected 300 Miles From North Pole

Cool temps, low moisture and a stable atmosphere usually prevent thunderstorms from developing in the Arctic

Trump Administration Overhauls How the Endangered Species Act Is Enforced

Critics say that the new rules limit much-needed protections for at-risk wildlife

A previous strain of the TR4 fungus led banana producers to switch from the Gros Michel strain to the now-dominant Cavendish variety

A Banana-Destroying Fungus Has Arrived in the Americas

The so-called Panama disease targets bananas’ vascular systems to prevent fruit from growing

Astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley assigned to first SpaceX crewed launch test out their new space suits.

Future of Space Exploration

Astronauts Test Out Their Sleek New SpaceX Flight Suits

The SpaceX designed pressure suits are more form fitting and maneuverable than the Space Shuttle’s orange suits

An adult Goliath frog caught by a local frog hunter.

How Did the World’s Largest Frog Get So Big? Possibly by Building Its Own Ponds

A new study documents the unique nest-building habits of the Goliath frog

Nom, nom, nom.

New Research

Researchers Think They Know Why Cats Eat Grass

Contrary to popular belief, grass only occasionally makes cats vomit

Every 30 seconds, the United States loses the equivalent of nine Grand Canyons to human development

The U.S. Loses a Football Field-Sized Patch of Nature Every 30 Seconds

A new report outlines the benefits offered by preserving 30 percent of the country’s remaining natural land and oceans by 2030

The Fincha Habera rock shelter in the Ethiopian Bale Mountains served as a residence for prehistoric hunter-gatherers.

Archaeologists Uncover Evidence of an Ancient High-Altitude Human Dwelling

A trove of artifacts have surfaced in Ethiopia’s Bale Mountains, at a rocky site more than 11,000 feet above sea level

Cool Finds

Fossil Trees Reveal the Oldest Known Forest in Asia

The grove of lycopsid trees is 365 million years old and covers 2.7 million square feet

New Research

The Scientists Who Stared at Gulls

A new study suggests that watching the birds as they approach will slow them down or scare them off

Would you drink it?

Why Scientists Are Making Vodka in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone

It’s perfectly safe to drink, according to a new report

Trending Today

A Crashed Spacecraft Might Have Put Earth’s Most Indestructible Organisms on the Moon

The microscopic tardigrades were part of a lunar library sent aboard the Beresheet lander that crashed last April

Reconstruction of the giant parrot Heracles, with small New Zealand wrens for scale.

This Chonky Ancient Bird Is the World’s Largest Known Parrot

Discovered in New Zealand, the bird has been dubbed ‘Squawkzilla’

Neonics are responsible for 92 percent of the increase in U.S. agricultural toxicity

Toxic Pesticides Are Driving Insect ‘Apocalypse’ in the U.S., Study Warns

The country’s agricultural landscape is now 48 times more toxic to insects than it was 25 years ago

July was the hottest month in recorded history.

Trending Today

Last Month Was the Hottest July in Recorded History

The EU’s weather satellites show the global average was 0.072 higher than July 2016, the previous record holder

Kiwi birds are native to New Zealand.

It Will Take New Zealand 50 Million Years to Recover Its Lost Bird Biodiversity

Half of the country’s unique avian taxa have gone extinct since humans came to the island

Saber-toothed cats likely ambushed plant-eating prey in forests, not open grassland

Fossils Reveal Why Coyotes Outlived Saber-Toothed Cats

Contrary to popular belief, carnivorous cats and canines probably didn’t hunt the same limited pool of prey

Some of the plastic trash pulled from the stomachs of flesh-footed shearwater chicks.

New Research

Eating Even One Piece of Plastic Has Health Consequences for Baby Seabirds

A study of fleshy-footed shearwater babies found plastic increased their cholesterol, impacted their kidneys and disrupted normal growth

Ngwevu intloko skull

After 30 Years, a South African Dinosaur Is Identified as a New Species

The fossil, held for decades at the University of Witwatersrand, was previously thought to belong to the most common dinosaur species in South Africa

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