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New Research

New Research

Genetic Study Shows Skin Color Is Only Skin Deep

Genes for both light and dark pigmentation have been in the human gene pool for at least 900,000 years

This Mapping Tool Could Help Wilderness Firefighters Plan Escape Routes

Firefighters may soon get safety help from a new technology that assesses terrain and plots a course out

A man uses a mobile phone to photograph flowers placed on the names of concentration camps during the annual ceremony on Holocaust Remembrance Day at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Thursday, April 12, 2018.

Reconstructed Auschwitz Letter Reveals Horrors Endured by Forced Laborer

Marcel Nadjari buried his letter hoping it would one day reach his family

New Research

Researchers Sniff Out the Genes Behind the Smell of the World’s Stinkiest Fruit

The DNA of the durian, it turns out, is very complex and optimized for producing a wretched stench

Older, soot-covered horned larks on the left and cleaner specimens on the right

New Research

Sooty Bird Feathers Reveal a Century of Coal Emissions History

A story of pollution hides in the grime of museums’ birds specimens

Themira lohmanus

Cool Finds

New Species of Fly Found Breeding on Central Park Duck Droppings

The creatures are likely drawn to the area by the high concentrations of duck poop

Mad cow disease, like other prion diseases, is still not fully understood.

More Than 30 Years Since Their Discovery, Prions Still Fascinate, Terrify and Mystify Us

Figuring out what they were was just the beginning of a field of research into prions and prion diseases that’s still growing

Anne Frank in 1940

Investigators Are Turning to Big Data to Find Who Betrayed Anne Frank

Many experts believe that someone alerted Nazi authorities to the hiding place of Frank and her family, but the culprit has never been determined

A triple solar flare recorded in April, 2017

New Research

Could a Magnetic Shield Protect Earth From Space Weather?

A bad geomagnetic storm would fry the electric grid and cripple civilization for years—a space shield is cheap by comparison

Delightful or despicable? Your response could help neuroscientists understand the brain's basis for disgust.

New Research

What Stinky Cheese Tells Us About the Science of Disgust

Why does this pungent delicacy give some the munchies, but send others reeling to the toilet?

New Research

In a First, Archival-Quality Performances Are Preserved in DNA

Songs by Miles Davis and Deep Purple at the Montreux Jazz Festival will live on in the ultra-compact, long-lasting format

New Research

Da Vinci Had a Hand in the “Naked Mona Lisa”

A preliminary study suggests the master painter worked on the drawing called the “Mona Vanna”

Japanese sea slugs that washed ashore in Oregon in 2015

New Research

The 2011 Tsunami Flushed Hundreds of Japanese Species Across the Ocean

After the Fukushima disaster, a surprising number of coastal creatures survived a multi-year journey by clinging to floating debris

This NASA Landsat image shows the Mackenzie River surrounding the town of Inuvik, and the uniquely pock-marked landscape of this delta.

With Federal Funds Dwindling, Climate Scientists Turn to Unusual Partnerships to Study Methane in a Warming Arctic

As the urgency of climate change becomes tangible to those in the Arctic, federal funds are growing harder to come by

A bit of 3.95 billion-year-old graphite locked in quartz

New Research

This May Be the Oldest Traces of Life Yet Found

Bits of graphite, 3.95 billion years old, suggest life was churning away soon after Earth’s formation

Pandamonium

Panda Habitat Is Severely Fragmented, Placing Pandas at Risk

Despite recent habitat improvements, roads and development are isolating panda populations

New Research

Botanic Gardens May Be Endangered Species’ Best Bet

Survey shows the institutions preserve one third of Earth’s plant life and 40 percent of endangered plant species

The elusive Vangunu giant rat lives in trees, a habitat under attack from deforestation in the Solomon Islands.

New Research

Fall in Love With This Newly Discovered Giant Island Rat

The Vangunu rat is the first rodent species to come to light on the Solomon Islands in 80 years—and it’s already endangered

A cognitive scientist suggests that your baby learns from watching you struggle.

How Your Frustration Helps Your Baby Learn

Watching adults struggle with a difficult task can teach young children the value of hard work

Artist's impression of 288P

New Research

Hubble Spots Strange Pair of Space Rocks in the Night Sky

The duo, dubbed 288P, may help scientists better understand asteroid evolution

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