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Smart News / Smart News Science

A man sorts through rubbish in Guiyu, the world’s largest center for electronic waste.

China Acknowledges It Has a Problem With Pollution-Laden ‘Cancer Villages’

This is most likely the first that authorities dubbed pollution-laden problem locations “cancer villages” in an official report

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Chemicals in Water May Be Messing With Otters’ Sexual Mojo

Scientists examined hundreds of otters to arrive at these grim findings

Ask Smithsonian 2017

Could a Whale Accidentally Swallow You? It Is Possible

Whale sharks probably can’t fit you down their esophagus, but mariners claim that sperm whales have swallowed people in the past

A golden mole

For Female Golden Moles, Size Does Matter

Females judge potential mates by their penis sizes, which they use to gauge a male’s attractiveness for copulation

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Artificial Wetland Uses Bacteria to Clean Pharmaceuticals From Sewage

By harnessing bacteria to do the heavy lifting, a way to clean pharmaceuticals from waste water

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Dolphins May Have Names for One Another

Whether dolphin vocalizations should be considered names and are used in a way comparable to humans remains contested, but research suggests that they may

Brace Yourselves, the Drought’s Not Close to Over Yet

Unless we get a lot of rain, soon, the U.S. is heading for another summer of drought

An experimental 3D representation of the nebula IC 1396

Amazing Astrophotography Lets You See Nebulae in 3D

Gorgeous animated gifs give depth to stunning nebulae

Superior navigation in men isn’t an evolutionary adaptation from our cavemen days, new research shows. Photo: Steve Drake, Beckman Institute, U. of I.

Men Are Better Navigators Than Women, But Not Because of Evolution

Navigational abilities may be a side effect of higher testosterone levels

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Fossils of Four New Species of Whale Found Under a California Highway

The fossils could fill in gaps in what scientists know of the evolutionary steps between toothed to toothless baleen whales

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Amateur Naturalists Are Discovering All Kinds of New Insect Species

More and more, amateurs are contributing to the discovery of new species, especially of insects - but can they keep ahead of the extinction curve?

Geneticists Think They Can Fix Tasteless Tomatoes

By identifying the genes that control the production of volatile chemicals, we could soon turn the bland tomato’s flavor back on

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Moles Can Smell in Stereo

We see and hear with eyes and ears process those images and sounds single pieces of information. It turns out moles do the same thing, except with smell

The 50th parallel

Europe Is Warmer Than Canada Because of the Gulf Stream, Right? Not So Fast

A long-accepted explanation for a warm Europe is up for debate

In Space, Infectious Diseases Reveal Their True Nature

It turns out that microgravity might reveal a thing or two about the nasty bacteria

Chimpanzees Remember Things Faster Than You Do

Chimpanzees are several times stronger than us, generally healthier, and research suggests that they might have better memories too

Guess What the Most Abundant Organism on Earth Is?

If you had to guess the most abundant organism on the planet, you might think of ants, or maybe bacteria. But a newly discovered virus might trump them all

Appreciate Weird, Adorable Pangolins Before They’re Gone

Across Asia, a plague of hunting has hit pangolins, though it’s not too late to save these intriguing creatures from extinction

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Massive Meteor Breaks Up Over Russia, Sends Dozens to Hospital

The mid-air explosion of a 10-ton meteor injured more than 500 people

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In the Middle East, Supplies of Fresh Water Are Dwindling

A 2007 drought, and an over-reliance on groundwater, means the the Middle East’s aquifers are fading

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