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Smart News / Smart News Science

New Research

Coral Reefs Need Fewer Rats and More Bird Poo

A study of rat-infested islands in the Chagos show that a lack of seabirds—and their guano—degrades surrounding coral ecosystems

To track down food and ensure the survival of the colony, worker bees must draw on their knowledge of smells, patterns and efficient routes to and from the hive

‘Safe’ Levels of Pesticide Still Hamper Bees’ Memory and Ability to Learn

Scientists analyzed data from more than 100 experiments detailed in 23 studies

A Roman fish processing factory in the city of Baelo Claudia

New Research

Romans May Have Hunted Whales to Extinction in Their Home Waters

New analysis suggests that right and gray whales were not only once present in the Mediterranean Sea but likely common in the region

An 8,000-year-old skull found in Gua Cha, Malaysia, provided DNA used in the study

New Research

Ancient DNA Offers Insight on Origins of Southeast Asia’s Present-Day Population

Researchers sequenced 26 genomes using DNA samples dating as far back as 8,000 years

The unusual placement of the victims' limbs (the right humerus, or upper arm bone, in yellow, is tossed across the right femur, or thigh bone, in red) suggests they were strewn haphazardly across the burial pit rather than carefully buried.

7,000-Year-Old German Grave Shows New Side of Neolithic Brutality

The eight men and one woman bear signs of precisely inflicted blunt force cranial trauma, suggesting they were victims of mass execution

New Research

Researchers Find More Evidence for the Higgs Boson

Analysis of years of data from the Large Hadron Collider shows evidence the particle decays into bottom quarks

New Research

Pink Was the First Color of Life on Earth

Researchers have found bright pink pigments in 1.1 billion year old fossils of cyanobacteria drilled in West Africa

This image, taken in 2016 by NASA's Operational Land Imager (OLI) on the Landsat 8 satellite, shows an algal bloom covering 33 square miles, or about 4 percent, of Lake Okeechobee. This year's bloom is significantly bigger, covering 90 percent of the lake.

A Toxic Algal Bloom Is Spreading in Florida’s Waterways

The bloom started last month in Lake Okeechobee, but has quickly spread to waterways on both coasts

Obscured by tarnish and miscellaneous defacements, the plates offered no trace of the images they had once held

Art Meets Science

Particle Accelerator Reveals Hidden Faces in Damaged 19th-Century Daguerreotype Portraits

Using an experimental X-ray fluorescence process, researchers mapped contours of the plates and produced digital copies of images previously lost to time

No calves have been born over the past three years, and the current orca population is only 75

Pacific Northwest Orca Population Hits 30-Year-Low

Declining salmon population, pollution and noise disturbance pose largest threats to the killer whales’ survival

A black eastern quoll with white spots decked out with its GPS collar.

Endangered Eastern Quolls Are Born on Mainland Australia for the First Time in 50 Years

Three of the feisty marsupials, which had been reintroduced to the wild, were found with joeys in their pouches

Snazzy as they are, stripes will not save you from the perils of dehydration.

Settling a Heated Debate—Do Zebra Stripes Keep These Animals Cool?

Researchers from Hungary and Sweden investigated whether black and white stripes are actually better at keeping the heat at bay

Cool Finds

This Beer Was Developed For Breast Cancer Patients

A Czech brewery’s Mamma Beer is alcohol free and slightly sweet to help overcome the metallic taste of “chemo mouth”

Recyclable lids will be used on all Starbucks cold drinks except the Frappuccino.

Starbucks Vows to Ditch Plastic Straws by 2020. How Will the Oceans Change?

Straws make up a small portion of ocean waste, but banning straws can be an important first step to cutting down on other plastics

Archaeologists discovered evidence of an array of foods, including herring, eel, cod, apples, raspberries, cherries and rye bread

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Unseal 17th-Century Danish Latrines to Discover Copenhageners’ Dietary Habits

The Danish finds reveal their owners’ rich diet of fish and meat, fruits, spices—and the presence of parasites, including tapeworms and roundworms

Trending Today

Australian Reptiles And a Toad Named After Gollum on Latest Endangered Species Update

The IUCN Red List shows Oz’s reptiles are in trouble as well as flying foxes, a Jamaican rodent and a New Guinea butterfly

An African grey parrot, probably thinking intelligent thoughts.

Unique Brain Circuitry Might Explain Why Parrots Are So Smart

Their bird brains are not bird-brained

The antibiotic-resistant superbug MRSA

New Research

New “Immunobiotic” Could Treat Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs

The drug, which combines antibiotics and the body’s immune system, shows promise in early stages of testing

A dog buried in Western Illinois 10,000 years ago is one of the oldest dogs known in the Americas, and the oldest dog burial in the world. These native American dogs were almost entirely wiped out when European colonists arrived.

New Research

European Dogs Devastated Indigenous American Pup Populations

Disease, cultural change wiped out pre-contact populations, leaving no trace of ancient dogs’ DNA in modern counterparts

Whoooo, me? This surprised owl took first place in the Audubon Photography Awards.

Peep the Stunning Winners of the Audubon Society’s Photo Contest

You’ll want to tweet these.

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