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Smart News / Smart News Science

The narwhal-beluga hybrid skull.

New Research

This Bizarre Whale Is a Beluga-Narwhal Hybrid

A new study documents what may be the first-known evidence of breeding between the two species

To lower one's risk of contracting infection, avoid eating raw or undercooked shellfish and cover open wounds with bandages before venturing into the water

Warming Waters May Be Driving Flesh-Eating Bacteria to East Coast Beaches

Patients can contract vibriosis by eating raw or undercooked shellfish, particularly oysters, or handling infected animals while sporting an open wound

John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz, the creators of BASIC.

New Hampshire Is First State to Install Highway Marker to Computer Programming

The roadside sign is dedicated to BASIC, a computer programming language developed at Dartmouth College in 1964

The hydrogel mimics the epiphragm, a temporary adhesive layer that hardens when dried and softens when rehydrated with water

New Research

Snail-Inspired Super Glue Can Support the Weight of a 200-Pound Human

The adhesive offers both impressive strength and reusability, avoiding the problems posed by strong but irreversible glues and vice versa

Boaty McBoatface, awaiting orders.

New Research

Results of Boaty McBoatface’s First Research Mission Published

The little yellow submarine named by the internet explored the Southern Ocean, finding surface winds drive mixing in the deep abyss

The bear was only a few years old and had become comfortable around humans.

A Young Black Bear Was Put Down After Humans Fed It, Took Selfies

The more food bears obtain from humans, the more likely they are to lose their natural fear of us

Archaeologists unearthed the cannonballs while excavating the ruins of Zishtova Fortress in Bulgaria

Cool Finds

Trove of Cannonballs Likely Used by Vlad the Impaler Found in Bulgaria

The primitive projectiles probably date to the Romanian ruler’s 1461 through 1462 siege of Zishtova Fortress

Deerfield Beach Pier with fisherman at dawn.

633 Divers Cleaned Up a Florida Beach—and Broke a World Record

The event marked the largest-ever underwater cleanup effort

The team studied heritability of behavioral traits in three breeds: Maine Coon, Ragdoll and Turkish Van

Your Cat’s Attitude Actually Is Closely Linked to Its Breed, Survey Shows

Nearly half of breed behavioral differences can be attributed to hereditary factors

I can haz Snausage?

New Research

Dogs Evolved a Special Muscle That Lets Them Make ‘Puppy Dog Eyes’

Wolves don’t have the muscle to make that classic wide-eyed gaze, suggesting strong evolutionary pressures were at play in our pooches

The tough little egg made it all the way through the digestive system of a coscoroba swan like this one.

New Research

A Swan Swallowed This Fish Egg, Pooped It Out—and Then 49 Days Later, It Hatched

The new study is one of the first to demonstrate fish egg dispersal via avian fecal matter

Minnesota Will Pay Residents to Grow Bee-Friendly Lawns

Leaving lawns untreated and allowing flowering plants to grow can help support the endangered rusty patched bumblebee

A spotted salamander inside a pitcher plant.

Pitcher Plants Have Been Quietly Snacking on Baby Salamanders

It was previously thought that the plants rarely ate vertebrate animals

New Research

Decades After DDT Was Banned, It Still Impacts Canadian Lakes

A study of sediment cores in remote bodies of water shows the insecticide is still present in high levels, likely altering ecosystems

Francis Collins speaks during the Children's Tumor Foundation's 40th Anniversary at American Museum of Natural History on October 22, 2018.

N.I.H. Director Vows to Decline Invitations to All-Male Speaking Panels

“It is not enough to give lip service to equality,” Francis Collins said, “leaders must demonstrate their commitment through their actions”

The specimen is the first (partial) carcass of an adult Pleistocene steppe wolf—an extinct lineage distinct from modern wolves—ever found

Cool Finds

A Perfectly Preserved 32,000-Year-Old Wolf Head Was Found in Siberian Permafrost

Given the head’s state of preservation, researchers are hopeful that they can extract viable DNA and use it to sequence the wolf’s genome

New Research

Pterosaurs May Have Flown as Soon as They Hatched

A new analysis of the flying reptile’s embryos indicates the bones needed for flight were highly developed in the egg

Participants likely used wooden bowls known as braziers to burn cannabis and release its mind-altering vapors

Cool Finds

The First Evidence of Smoking Pot Was Found in a 2,500-Year-Old Pot

A new study suggests ancient humans used cannabis to commune with nature, spirits or even the dead

Fledgling tree finches may be infested in the nest.

Parasites Are Ruining the Love Songs of Darwin’s Finches

The larvae of an invasive fly warp the birds’ nostrils, which in turn impacts their ability to stay in tune

Speech2Face has its limitations, including a gender bias that led it to associate higher-pitched voices with women and lower-pitched ones with men

Artificial Intelligence Generates Humans’ Faces Based on Their Voices

In trials, the algorithm successfully pinpointed speakers’ gender, race and age

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