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Smart News / Smart News Science

Lichens Do Not Age

One Harvard scientist hopes to find clues to immortality by studying lichens, the frilly, crusty green growths that appear on tombstones and old trees

The crew of the Kulluk were rescued from the oil drilling platform by the U.S. Coast Guard on Saturday, December 29.

Arctic Offshore Drilling Still Going Poorly As Shell’s Rig Runs Aground

The recent mishap is part of a string of troubles that Shell has encountered in its efforts to drill in the frigid Gulf

Adam Lanza’s DNA Will Tell Us Nothing

Genetics is a powerful tool, but it will not tell us why Adam Lanza killed those people

Seared Atlantic salmon with sturgeon caviar, braised leeks and pureed potato.

Genetically Modified Salmon Should Be Headed to a Plate Near You

Designed to bulk up twice as fast as a regular fish, Frankenfish should get FDA approval soon

This box turtle is very disappointed in your flagrant disregard for turtlekind.

It’s Not Safe for Turtles to Cross the Road, Humans Make Sure of That

Some motorists go out of their way to hit turtles that are trying to cross the road

Barrels of fuel encased in snow at the Lake Ellsworth drilling site.

Antarctica’s Subglacial Lake Ellsworth Will Keep Its Secrets For Now

After a decade of planning, and two weeks in the field, the Lake Ellsworth drilling program was cancelled for the year

Just Before Sealing the Deal, Male Peacocks Announce to All Other Ladies ‘We’re About to Do It’

Called a “hoot-dash” display, scientists puzzle over the purpose of this seemingly braggadocios bellow

Key to Getting Holiday Shopping Right, Science Says, Is to Trust Your Gut

Skip the holiday season melt downs by not over-thinking gifts for family or close friends, researchers advise

New research suggests that most Arctic mammals may actually benefit from climate change. Arctic specialists like the Arctic fox, however, may not do quite so well.

Most Arctic Animals Should Deal With Climate Change Just Fine

New research suggests that most Arctic mammals will actually be helped, not hurt, by climate change

Instead of Dieting After the Holidays, Take the Bus

Driving just 1 mile less per day is more effective at reducing weight than cutting back on 100 calories per day

How Will Life on Earth Survive the Actual Apocalypse?

What will life be like for the last holdouts during the actual end of the world?

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Food Can Give You a Hangover

The connection between specific foods and migraines is tough to prove

Even NASA Doesn’t Know Exactly What Causes Motion Sickness (But There Is a Way to Avoid It)

Fluorescence images of uncompressed (left) and compressed (right) colonies of malignant breast epithelial cells. Compressed colonies are smaller and more organized.

Giving Breast Cells a Little Squeeze Can Stop Cancerous Growth

Good news for breasts: simply giving would-be malignant mammary cells a little squeeze helps guide them back to a normal growth pattern

A photo of an eastern cougar, date unknown.

Eastern Cougar ‘Ghost Cat’ Declared Extinct

The eastern cougar is extinct. But did it ever exist in the first place?

Entire Microbe Communities Live Up in the Clouds

Thousands of feet above your head, microbes are living—and reproducing—in the tiny drops of water that make up clouds

Crayfish Have Been Secretly Spreading a Deadly Frog Epidemic

The more we can learn about how chytrid fungus spreads and attacks, the better chances we have at saving the world’s amphibians

The IPCC’s famous “hocket stick” chart of global temperatures.

Is the U.N. Climate Report More Trouble Than It’s Worth?

Several mainstream scientists are expressing doubts about the necessity of the IPCC reports

Images A, C, E and G show the new species E. bazinga, the others the E. ignita.

A Brand New Bee Was Just Named After Sheldon From ‘The Big Bang Theory’

Andre Nemesio and his team just named a brand new orchid bee Euglossa bazinga, after the catch phrase used by Sheldon Cooper

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NASA Assures Us the World Won’t End on Friday

NASA points out the illogic of this apocalypse scenario and misconceptions that caused the false notion of an end-of-the-world prophesy to come about

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