Science and Technolgy blog
A new study of young males with a history of serious offenses finds that certain individual characteristics, rather than environmental influences, are strongly associated with gun violence among those who already carry firearms. While both individual and environmental factors were…
Wrinkle ridges that formed in the past 160 million years suggest recent geological activity on the moon.
A new study published in Frontiers in Psychology suggests that feeling lonely can be a significant predictor of how well our brains function as we age, particularly for those who openly acknowledge their loneliness. However, the connection between loneliness and…
A study of skeletons from a cave in Poland has revealed widespread evidence of cut marks and fractures suggestive of cannibalism.
New research has found that people are unable to determine whether a poem was written by a human or generated by AI. Despite this, they tended to give more favorable ratings for qualities such as rhythm and beauty to AI-generated…
Looking at AI art shows that machines may never truly understand the human mind, as there are states of mind that can never be automated.
NASA shares an iconic image of carbon dioxide ice erupting in geysers when Martian winter turns to spring.
Political discussions in the United States often appear to be dominated by voices from the far left and far right. A new study published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology has found that people generally believe this emphasis on…
Nuclear bunkers aren’t a foolproof way to stay safe during a nuclear attack. Here’s why.
A new study published in the Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics suggests that the way the brain processes language and arithmetic facts may play an important role in how well middle-aged and older adults manage their money. The findings indicate…
Was a powerful cosmic explosion seen by the Einstein Probe launched by a supermassive black hole snacking on a star, by a gamma-ray burst, or by something entirely new?
A new study published in The Journal of Creative Behavior has found that while anxiety can lead to generating a larger number of ideas, especially when thinking about negative possibilities, it may come at the cost of originality. Researchers found…
New research provides evidence that a pattern glare test can be used successfully to detect subclinical autism and schizotypy traits. Participants with high levels of schizotypy tended to report more pattern glare illusions. The study was published in Cognitive Neuropsychiatry.…
A new form of black hole archeology, linking spin to gas and dust, has revealed that these cosmic titans spin faster than expected.
The 8-inch, bright pink slug has been isolated in a “sky island” for millions of years.
Bipedal robots have found navigating uneven terrain a steep challenge but a new hardware upgrade means they can detect their environment and respond quicker than ever before.
A new study published in Scientific Reports has investigated how different types of playfulness in adults relate to their romantic attachment styles and experiences of jealousy. The researchers found that certain types of playfulness are linked to more secure attachment…
The US Department of Transportation has ordered states to kill their implementation plans related to the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program, according to a memo obtained by WIRED that was later made public. The decision appears to halt in its…
Life of the party Margaret S. Collins, the first Black female entomologist in the United States to earn a Ph.D., overcame racism and sexism to become a field biologist and termite expert, life sciences writer Susan Milius reported in “Termite…
Editor in chief Nancy Shute discusses the audacious ways scientists are considering to combat Earth’s rising sea levels.
New research indicates that highlighting diversity in recruitment materials can unintentionally trigger politically motivated decisions that favor White candidates among conservatives, while prompting liberals to favor Black candidates. This suggests that simply signaling a commitment to diversity might not reduce…
A new study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders shows that individuals with depression exhibit slower and less variable activity in the part of the brain responsible for processing what we see. Researchers found that the visual area at…
Flies are attracted to our pungent “cloud of effervescence,” experts say.
Feb. 8, 2025: Our weekly roundup of the latest science in the news, as well as a few fascinating articles to keep you entertained over the weekend.
Grants paid by the federal government have two components. One covers the direct costs of performing the research, paying for salaries, equipment, and consumables like chemicals or enzymes. But the government also pays what are called indirect costs. These go…
It’s the year 2000 all over again, because I’ve just spent the past week playing The Sims, a game that could have had a resurgent zeitgeist moment if only EA, the infamous game publisher, had put enough effort in. A…
A new study published in the Journal of Marriage and Family has shed light on a persistent trend in American politics: unmarried voters are more inclined to support Democratic presidential candidates compared to their married counterparts. Researchers found that this…
Health officials in Texas are battling a growing measles outbreak in an area that has some of the state’s lowest vaccination rates and highest non-medical exemptions. On January 30, officials reported two measles cases in unvaccinated, school-aged children in Gaines…
The primary contractor for the Space Launch System rocket, Boeing, is preparing for the possibility that NASA cancels the long-running program. On Friday, with less than an hour’s notice, David Dutcher, Boeing’s vice president and program manager for the SLS…
Newly discovered Quipu, a superstructure in which galaxies group together in clusters and clusters of clusters, is the largest known structure in the universe in terms of length, scientists claim.
On Wednesday, a New York-based app developer named Isaac Gemal debuted a new site called WikiTok, where users can vertically swipe through an endless stream of Wikipedia article stubs in a manner similar to the interface for video-sharing app TikTok.…
Researchers have extracted ancient proteins from australopithecine fossils and determined whether they were male or female — a first for human evolution studies.
Can manipulative, narcissistic, or callous individuals be seen as attractive? Some researchers have suggested that Dark Triad traits may enhance short-term desirability, making individuals appear confident, bold, or even seductive. However, a new study using controlled facial images and personality…
The Department of Education (DOE) was sued Friday by a California student association demanding an “immediate stop” to Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) “unlawfully” digging through student loan data to potentially dismantle DOE. “The scale of the intrusion…
There are only two licensed professional sports games included in Wikipedia’s “List of video games notable for negative reception.” Do not be fooled, however: WWE 2K20 and eFootball 2022 are just the outliers, arriving so poorly crafted as to cause…
A woman’s contraceptive implant ended up in her lung; doctors believe the device migrated because it wasn’t inserted in her upper arm properly.
The United Kingdom issued a secret order requiring Apple to create a backdoor for government security officials to access encrypted data, The Washington Post reported today, citing people familiar with the matter. UK security officials “demanded that Apple create a…
La Niña and record cold temperatures in the U.S. should have made Earth cooler, but January 2025 was still the hottest on record, with an average global warming of 3.15 F (1.75 C) above pre-industrial levels.
A new study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research has found that regular participation in dance classes can help ease depression in people with Parkinson disease. The research shows that both mood scores and brain activity in a…
Life isn’t so easy for automotive manufacturers right now. Take Porsche, which just published preliminary financial numbers for last year and projections for 2025. While things aren’t Tesla levels of bad, they’re not exactly great. Sales were down 28 percent…
If you watched the 2007 documentary King of Kong or followed the controversy surrounding score-chaser Billy Mitchell, you know all about Donkey Kong‘s famous kill screen. For over four decades, no one was able to pass the game’s 117th screen…
The main component of common cuttlefish ink — melanin — strongly sticks to shark smell sensors, possibly explaining why the predators avoid ink.
Unusual weather patterns and climate change have been driving stark changes in the northwestern state. Now, new satellite images show the extent of this transformation.
The adult orcas swam around the ice demonstrating how to pull a seal off by its tail.
The James Webb Space Telescope has captured a belching protostar in its infancy. By studying the dust grains whirling around it, astronomers hope to better understand how solar systems like our own take shape.
A new study has found that the use of a common type of antidepressant medication is not associated with diminished feelings of romantic love. The research, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, provides the first empirical evidence addressing long-standing…
The spring morning is cool and bright in the Sierra de San Pedro Mártir National Park in Baja California, Mexico, as a bird takes to the skies. Its 9.8-foot wingspan casts a looming silhouette against the sunlight; the sound of…
A new study published in The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse has discovered that sleep problems may be a key factor in how cannabis use affects memory, highlighting the importance of sleep quality for cognitive health. THC, the…
It’s been a month now since we first heard rumors that the Switch 2’s new Joy-Cons could be slid across a flat surface to function like a computer mouse. Now, a newly published patent filed by Nintendo seems to confirm…
The rumor mill’s most reliable sources have been pointing to a refresh for Apple’s low-end $429 iPhone SE to land early this year, and Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports that the launch could be coming “as early as next week.” The…
