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New Research

The study found that the human particpants and rats jerked their heads in a similar rhythm as the songs played. 

Watch These Rats ‘Dance’ to the Rhythms of Mozart, Lady Gaga and Queen

Moving accurately to a song’s beat was long thought to be a skill unique to humans, but new research suggests rats can do it, too

Winchcombe meteorite

Meteorites May Have Brought Water to Earth and Mars

Rare, carbon-containing rocks could have created conditions suitable for life on both planets, two new studies suggest

New research suggests earbuds may be an affordable, low-stigma alternative to hearing aids for some people.

Are AirPods the Hearing Aids of the Future?

New research suggests that personal sound amplification products like earbuds may help some people hear better in certain scenarios

Researchers analyzed teeth from a carp-like fish.

New Research

Early Humans May Have Cooked Fish 780,000 Years Ago

New research adds to the debate about when humans began cooking with fire

A sonogram of a human fetus. 

Doctors Treated a Child for a Genetic Disease Before She Was Born

Treating fetuses for the enzyme deficiency might prevent early disease progression

Cows produced more saliva and snot, were wobbly on their feet and moved their tongues around a lot after eating high-cannabinoid hemp.

Cows That Ate Hemp Produced Milk With THC and CBD

New research adds insights to the debate over using industrial hemp as livestock feed

An illustration of the under-ice river

A Massive Freshwater River Is Flowing Under Antarctica’s Ice

The 285-mile-long stretch of meltwater is longer than the Thames and could speed ice loss

If Yonatan Adler's theory proves correct, then Judaism is, at best, Christianity’s elder sibling and a younger cousin to the religions of ancient Greece and Rome.

Is Judaism a Younger Religion Than Previously Thought?

A new book by an Israeli archaeologist makes the stunning claim that common Jewish practices emerged only a century or so before Jesus

Previous research has demonstrated that crows can make tools and recognize faces.

Scientists Suggest a New Layer to Crows’ Cognitive Complexity

The birds may be able to grasp a pattern-forming concept once thought to be unique to humans

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Octopuses Caught on Camera Throwing Debris at Each Other

Scientists say this is the first time they have documented the behavior among the tentacled sea creatures

An Astatotilapia burtoni fish with a barcode attached to its head. 

This Fish Eats Its Own Young

Some female cichlids counter the stress of protecting their offspring by munching on them, study suggests

The Taposiris Magna Temple west of the ancient city of Alexandria

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Discover 4,300-Foot-Long Tunnel Under Ancient Egyptian Temple

Researchers have been digging near the Taposiris Magna Temple in hopes of finding Cleopatra’s long-lost tomb

Human red blood cells at 1,000 times magnification. 

Scientists Perform First Transfusions of Lab-Grown Blood

A clinical trial is testing how lab-grown cells might help patients with blood disorders and rare blood types

An illustration of a springtail jumping

Springtails Are Nature’s Tiny Gymnasts, Videos Reveal

The insect-like creatures that leap through the air with remarkable control might inspire new jumping robots

New research finds that excessive alcohol consumption is killing Americans during their prime working years.

Alcohol Caused One in Eight Deaths of Working-Age U.S. Adults

CDC research shows excessive drinking is killing Americans in the “prime of their life”

Psilocybe cubensis mushrooms, a species of psychedelic mushrooms

Psychedelic Mushroom Chemical May Help Treat Depression

A new study found the drug temporarily relieved symptoms for some patients, but it needs to be tested in larger and longer trials, experts say

Nearly ten percent of all deer-vehicle collisions occur in the two weeks surrounding the time change in the fall.

 

Deer-Car Collisions Rise When Daylight Saving Time Ends

Forgoing the “spring forward, fall back” pattern could save 33 human lives, 37,000 deer and more than $1 billion per year, study suggests

Car companies are only required to test vehicle safety using crash dummies modeled after men.

The First Female Crash Dummy Has Arrived

Women are more likely to get injured in car crashes, but the currently available test dummies don’t reflect the average female body

An Anopheles stephensi mosquito feeds on a human. 

Invasive Mosquito Tied to Malaria Outbreak in Ethiopia

The species can survive the dry season and infect residents of urban areas

HAARP's antennas

Why Scientists Are Sending Radio Signals to the Moon and Jupiter

Researchers conducted wide-ranging experiments at Alaska’s HAARP facility, known for atmospheric research and conspiracy theories

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