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Smart News / Smart News Science

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Earthquakes Are Basically Gold Factories

In the cracks between tectonic plates, veins of gold appear

Ecotourists Have Changed Stingrays’ Behavior—And Not for the Better

There might be a dark side to the so-called “interactive ecotourism” business

Hundreds of Emaciated Stranded Sea Lion Pups Are Washing Ashore in California

No one knows what is causing the unprecedented strandings, and the number of pups in need of help is only increasing

This cliff swallow has built a nest beneath a road.

Are Birds Evolving to Avoid Cars?

New research suggests that perhaps, for some animals, evolution might be kicking in and helping birds adapt to avoid cars

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Beautiful Monarch Butterflies Basically Aren’t Migrating Anymore

Over the past two years, the migration has shrunk by nearly 60 percent, the latest in a long-term plummet

Space suits might not be this sexy, but sex is space is bound to happen.

Are We Ready to Have Babies in Space?

As technology progresses, and people talk seriously about trips to Mars or other planets, the questions of love and sex in space become more pressing

Not the baby in question

A Woman With Five Transplanted Organs Has a Baby

A woman whose liver, pancreas, stomach, large intestine and small intestine all began lives in another person’s body has given birth to a life of her own

A simulation of a particle collision as seen by the Large Hadron Collider’s CMS experiment.

Eight Months Later, Physicists Double Down on Claim of Higgs Particle Discovery

No longer Higgs-like, now just Higgs

Lake Vostok has been cut off from the environment for ages beneath the thick Antarctic ice.

Brand New, Never Before Seen Bacteria Found in Frozen Antarctic Lake—Maybe

Scientists are revealing, then recanting, then reaffirming their claim to have discovered a new type of bacteria

Anesthetists, At Least, Report That Only an Unlucky Few Are Aware During Surgery

Researchers used to think about one in 500 people are conscious during surgery, but new research puts that number at one in 15,000

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An Otter Learns to Play Therapeutic Basketball at the Oregon Zoo

Zookeepers show that it is possible to teach an old otter new tricks

Cloth Coated in Fish Sperm DNA Doesn’t Burn

Coated in sperm DNA and set on fire, this cotton cloth just doesn’t want to burn

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Eclipses Look Even More Gorgeous From Outer Space

With roiling red Sun and the black disk of Earth, eclipses don’t get much prettier than this

A map showing increasing (blue) and decreasing (red) plant growth over the past 30 years.

A Warming Climate Is Turning the Arctic Green

The world is getting warmer, and the Arctic is getting greener

This lion is hungry–for meatloaf!

Can Humans and Lions Truly Be Friends?

They’ve certainly tried

Life on Earth May Have Been Seeded by Comets

Researchers at UC Berkeley recently added evidence to the idea that life on earth came from a comet

Female Butterflies Can Sniff Out Inbred Males

Unlike in humans, butterfly females can actually distinguish between inbred and outbred males by their scent

We did it! Gold stars for everybody!

2012 Saw the Second Highest Carbon Emissions in Half a Century

For more than 50 years observations from Hawaii have tracked rising carbon dioxide. We’re still ignoring those warnings

A black and white (left) and color (right) map of Mercury’s surface.

Behold, The First Full Map of Mercury

“Every square meter of Mercury’s surface” in one gorgeous map

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2000-Pound Camels Used to Live in the Arctic

Living in the forest alongside bears and beavers, the ancient Canadian Arctic camel

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