Woman walking on California beach finds ancient mastodon tooth
A woman taking a Memorial Day weekend stroll on a California beach found something unusual sticking out of the sand: a tooth from an ancient mastodon. ⌘ Read more

Tropical depression forms in Gulf of Mexico on first day of hurricane season
A tropical depression formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday, the official first day of the Atlantic hurricane season. ⌘ Read more

Soaring rhetoric: NASA mission will carry Poet Laureate Ada Limón’s words to Jupiter
A new work by U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón, written for an upcoming NASA mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa, is a glance at outer space that returns back to Earth. ⌘ Read more

Newly discovered stone tools drag dawn of Greek archaeology back by a quarter-million years
Deep in an open coal mine in southern Greece, researchers have discovered the antiquities-rich country’s oldest archaeological site, which dates to 700,000 years ago and is associated with modern humans’ hominin ancestors. ⌘ Read more

Underwater forest’s recovery offers hope for marine restoration across the globe
Human activity has degraded ecosystems and damaged biodiversity around the world, but ecosystem restoration offers hope for the future. Scientists studying the restoration of underwater seaweed forests which provide other species with food and shelter have found that 10 years of restoration efforts have helped a damaged forest regrow to richness and strength comparable to forests that have never been disturbed. ⌘ Read more

Study identifies boat strikes as a growing cause of manatee deaths in Belize
The endangered Antillean manatee faces a growing threat from boat strikes in Belize, according to a new study that raises concerns about the survival of what had been considered a relatively healthy population. ⌘ Read more

Honey bee colony aggression linked to gene regulatory networks
Collective behaviors are present across many different animal groups: schools of fish swimming in a swirling pattern together, large flocks of birds migrating through the night, groups of bees coordinating their behavior to defend their hive. ⌘ Read more

Firms withheld pesticide toxicity data from EU: study
Several major agrochemical companies did not disclose to European Union authorities studies assessing the toxic effects of pesticide ingredients on brain development, research said on Thursday. ⌘ Read more

Ticks prove resilient to extreme temperatures
Tick season is here, along with the increased danger of Lyme disease, and it turns out the tiny arachnids are even tougher than scientists previously thought. ⌘ Read more

‘How do we know what we don’t know?’: Scientists completely define the process of methylation
UNSW Sydney researchers, for the first time, have completely defined the essential cellular process known as methylation. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the landmark study emphasizes the essential role methylation plays in the creation of proteins. ⌘ Read more

Warming climate could turn ocean plankton microbes into carbon emitters
New research finds that a warming climate could flip globally abundant microbial communities from carbon sinks to carbon emitters, potentially triggering climate change tipping points. The findings are published in Functional Ecology. ⌘ Read more

Secret industry documents reveal that makers of PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ covered up their health dangers
The chemical industry took a page out of the tobacco playbook when they discovered and suppressed their knowledge of health harms caused by exposure to PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), according to an analysis of previously secret industry documents by UC San Francisco (UCSF) researchers. ⌘ Read more

Revealing the secrets of freshwater streams
Beneath the surface of a freshwater stream, animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms create complex patterns of biodiversity. Brooke Penaluna, research fisheries biologist at the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, studies these dynamics, which can be complicated. ⌘ Read more

New research analyzes socioecological influences on carbon in agroecosystems
Researchers from Michigan State University, with colleagues from the University of South Dakota, recently published a paper analyzing socioecological influences on carbon in agroecosystems in the journal Landscape Ecology. ⌘ Read more

Color-changing material indicates when medications get too warm
Some foods and medicines, such as many COVID-19 vaccines, must be kept cold. As a step toward a robust, stable technique that could indicate when these products exceed safe limits, researchers in ACS Nano report a class of brilliantly colored microcrystals in materials that become colorless over a wide range of temperatures and response times. As a proof of concept, the team packaged the color-changing materials into a vial lid and QR … ⌘ Read more

Study investigates the behavior of X-ray binary GX 349+2
Using the AstroSat spacecraft and the Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) onboard the International Space Station (ISS), Indian astronomers have observed an X-ray binary known as GX 349+2. Results of the observational campaign, published May 24 on the arXiv preprint server, deliver important insights into the behavior and nature of this system. ⌘ Read more

Four ways to advance equity and justice goals in climate action planning
Municipal climate action plans often identify equity and justice as goals, but engagement with these concepts is mostly rhetorical. A new study from the University of Waterloo details how planners can bridge the gap and challenge the current state of climate change and social inequity. ⌘ Read more

Can phrases like ‘isn’t it?’ or ‘right?’ compromise classroom learning? New study answers
Classroom education, in an ideal sense, must engage all students in a constructive discussion with the teacher, making it the latter’s responsibility to utilize different inclusive strategies. To bring the attention of distracted students back to the classroom discussion, teachers often have to use different methods to remind them that they are an equal and important part of this shared activity. This task can … ⌘ Read more

1 in 5 US teachers feel carrying gun to class would make schools safer. More than half disagree, finds survey
U.S. teachers are divided on whether arming themselves would make schools safer, with one in five saying they would be interested in carrying a gun to school, according to a nationally representative survey conducted by the RAND Corporation. ⌘ Read more

Quarter-ton marsupial roamed long distances across Australia’s arid interior, reveals 3D-scanning study
One of Australia’s first long-distance walkers has been described after Flinders University paleontologists used advanced 3D scans and other technology to take a new look at the partial remains of a 3.5 million year old marsupial from central Australia. ⌘ Read more

Study: False assumptions about election malfeasance could create a ‘death spiral’ for democracy
In October 2020, two rival candidates for office in Utah made an unusual television ad together. Incumbent Republican Gov. Spencer Cox and his Democratic challenger, Chris Peterson, appeared in the same spot to note they were both “dedicated to the American values of liberty, democracy, and justice for all people,” as Cox said, and that “our common values transcend our political differences,” a … ⌘ Read more

Hidden in plain sight: Windshield washer fluid is an unexpected emission source
Exhaust fumes probably come to mind when considering vehicle emissions, but they aren’t the only source of pollutants released by a daily commute. In a recent Environmental Science & Technology study, researchers report that alcohols in windshield washer fluid account for a larger fraction of real-world vehicle emissions than previous estimates have suggested. Notably, the levels of these non-fuel-derived gases will l … ⌘ Read more

Venice’s Grand Canal turns bright green due to fluorescein
The spectacular transformation of a stretch of Venice’s Grand Canal to fluorescent green was due to fluorescein, a non-toxic substance used for testing wastewater networks, local authorities said on Monday. ⌘ Read more

China’s ‘space dream’: A Long March to the Moon and beyond
China successfully launched the latest mission to its Tiangong space station on Tuesday, with a crew that includes its first civilian astronaut. ⌘ Read more

Humans evolved to walk with an extra spring in our step, shows foot arch study
A new study has shown that humans may have evolved a spring-like arch to help us walk on two feet. Researchers studying the evolution of bipedal walking have long assumed that the raised arch of the foot helps us walk by acting as a lever which propels the body forward. ⌘ Read more