World’s Smallest Reptile Fits on Your Fingertip
The world’s smallest male reptile can fit right on your fingertip – if its massive genitals don’t get in its way. Meet Brookesia nana, an extremely tiny species of chameleon…
Stunningly Preserved 220-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Footprint Discovered by 4-Year-Old
A four-year-old girl stunned paleontologists after she found a perfectly-preserved dinosaur footprint that dates back 220 million years. Lily Wilder made the discovery on January 23 while walking along a…
Here’s How a 635 Million-Year-Old Microfossil May Have Helped Thaw ‘Snowball Earth’
An international team of scientists in South China accidentally discovered the oldest terrestrial fossil ever found, about three times more ancient than the oldest known dinosaur. Investigations are still ongoing…
Beetle Parents Engage in a Smelly War of Disinformation to Keep Their Nests
Biologists are accustomed to hearing stories of microbes manipulating their host – a fungus that turns ants into suicidal zombies, a protozoan that makes rats seek out cat urine –…
World’s Driest Desert Was Once Transformed Into a Fertile Oasis by Bird Poop
The Atacama Desert has a fearsome reputation. The world’s driest non-polar desert, located along the Pacific coast of northern Chile, constitutes a hyperarid, Mars-like environment – one so extreme that…
Aircraft Could Cut a Big Chunk of Their Emissions Just by Riding The Winds
Modern-day aircraft already make use of jet streams to save time and fuel, but a new study shows that by being a bit smarter about how they ride these winds,…
28 Trillion Tonnes of Ice Have Melted Since 1994, on Track With Worst-Case Scenarios
All over the world the rate of ice melt is accelerating with climate change, on land and in water, in the northern hemisphere and the southern hemisphere. Since 1994, satellite…
Shark Deaths Have Left a ‘Gaping Hole’ in Ocean Life, Chilling Report Shows
Overfishing has wiped out over 70 percent of some shark and ray populations in the last half-century, leaving a “gaping, growing hole” in ocean life, according to a new study.…
Wombats Are The Only Animals Who Poop Cubes, And We Now Know How
Patricia Yang has seen a lot of poop. In her time studying the dynamics of bodily fluids, the award-winning scientist has witnessed her share of cows dumping watery pies, rodents…
The Tragic Mystery of The Dyatlov Pass Incident Has a New Scientific Explanation
One of the most enduring and tragic mysteries of recent Russian history may finally have a solution, with scientists saying they have a plausible explanation for what could have ultimately…
Crushing Diamonds With Forces Greater Than Earth’s Core Reveals They Are ‘Metastable’
Diamonds can handle a little pressure. Actually, revise that – diamonds can handle a lot of pressure. In a series of new experiments, scientists have found that diamonds retain their…
As if They Weren’t Weird Enough, Naked Mole Rats Have Culture-Based Dialects
We are utterly delighted to welcome the shrivelled skin sacks known as naked mole rats into the elite ranks of animals with confirmed vocal dialects. Their chirps differ based on…
In a World First, Physicists Narrow Down The Possible Mass of Dark Matter
We may not know what dark matter is, but scientists now have a better idea of what to look for. Based on quantum gravity, physicists have worked out new, much…
The Full Moon Changes How People Sleep Without Us Ever Realising, Says Study
In modern times, a great deal of research has focused on the way that artificial light sources mess up our sleep and health, due to the unnatural effects of illumination…
Tantalizing Evidence Hints Ancient Humans Had Stone Tools Before Opposable Thumbs
The evolution of the opposable thumb is often placed hand-in-hand with the rise of stone tools. Without the ability to grasp or manipulate objects with power and precision, some scientists…
2020 Is The Year Europe Created More Energy From Renewables Than Fossil Fuels
For the very first time, the European Union is generating more energy from renewables than from fossil fuels. A newly published report confirms that in 2020, wind, solar, hydropower and…
Man Cracks Open an Agate, Discovers The Cookie Monster Inside
You never know what you’re going to get when you crack open a geode-like rock called an agate, but a new specimen is even more surprising than usual: It looks…
Mysterious Phenomenon Could Be Making The Atlantic Ocean Grow Bigger Every Year
The oceans are not as equal as you might think. Scientists estimate that the Atlantic Ocean is actually growing wider by several centimetres every year. At the same time, the…
Signs of Unusual Symptoms Spread on Twitter Well Before Official COVID-19 Reports
People in Europe were tweeting about a “dry cough” more than usual as early as January 2020, newly analysed data reveal. While social media has played a key role in…
The Average Person Is Potentially a Lot Fatter Than a Typical Elephant
Captive elephants are not as healthy as their native counterparts. Under the care of zookeepers, these large terrestrial mammals have shorter life spans and far lower birth rates. Obesity from…
Radar Scans Uncover an Alaskan Fort Built to Scare Off Russia
The Shís’gi Noow or “sapling fort” was built by the Tlingit people in Alaska at the start of the 19th century: one last physical barrier to advancing Russian forces. Now,…
A Physicist Has Worked Out The Math That Makes ‘Paradox-Free’ Time Travel Plausible
No one has yet managed to travel through time – at least to our knowledge – but the question of whether or not such a feat would be theoretically possible…
Archaeologists in Turkey Have Discovered a Mysterious Ancient Kingdom Lost in History
It was said that all he touched turned to gold. But destiny eventually caught up with the legendary King Midas, and a long-lost chronicle of his ancient downfall appears to…
The First People to Settle in The Americas Brought Their Dogs With Them
How far back can the story of humans and dogs be told? When and where did this ancient relationship begin? New DNA evidence suggests our connection with canines can be…
One of The Largest Whale Carcasses Ever Found Has Washed Up in Italy
The carcass of an enormous finback whale (Balaenoptera physalus) was discovered near the Italian port of Sorrento earlier this week, the Italian Coast Guard said in a Facebook post. Officials…
How Mutualistic Bonds Between Species Can Morph Into Evolutionary Battles
If you saw the first episode of David Attenborough‘s new BBC series Perfect Planet, you will have seen the astounding bloodsucking behaviour of the vampire finches. These small birds exist…
Unusual Wasp Partnerships Help Non-Native Figs to Thrive in Hawaii
While surveying the Hawaiian island of Kauai in search of invasive plants in 2017, botanist Kelsey Brock spotted something unusual: a few nonnative species of figs seemed to be settling…
Change Doesn’t Happen Overnight, But Research Shows How Social Movements Succeed
One was kickstarted by a school kid and her placard; another took flight after a hashtag went viral. Years later, these powerful social movements – demanding action on climate and…
Your Body Makes 3.8 Million Cells Every Second. Most of Them Are Blood
Deep within, on a cellular scale, your body is in a constant state of activity to keep you alive. Among those processes is the turnover of cells, replacing the cells…
Super Efficient Jellyfish-Inspired Robot Could Become a Restorer of Coral Reefs
A robot inspired by the shape and delicate underwater movements of a jellyfish, allowing it to safely explore endangered coral reefs, was unveiled by British scientists on Wednesday. According to…
COVID-19 Recovery Plans Must Be Green to Meet Paris Climate Goals, Say Scientists
The amount of carbon dioxide that we can still emit while limiting global warming to a given target is called the “remaining carbon budget,” and it has become a powerful…
Spitting Cobra Venom Didn’t Evolve to Kill – Just to Put Us in a World of Pain
Like pappy used to say: if you see it writhe and hiss, give it a miss. Humans have passed on similar nuggets of wisdom since time immemorial, giving us a…
A New Method Has Been Enlisted to Help Save Elephants, And It Involves Space
Conservationists have started using satellite imagery to count elephants from space, a technique that British experts hope will help protect threatened populations in Africa. Researchers at the University of Oxford…
Ingenious ‘Wrinkled’ Graphene Could Be The Most Promising Water Filter Yet
Graphene continues to dazzle us with its strength and its versatility – exciting new applications are being discovered for it all the time, and now scientists have found a way…
Mind-Blowing Video Reveals The Formation of Salt Crystals From Individual Atoms
The formation of crystals is one of the most commonplace processes you can probably think of. Every time you freeze water into ice cubes, for instance, you’re creating crystalline structures.…
How to Have a COVID-Safe Car Ride, According to Science
Sharing a car with someone is one of the riskiest things you can do without cohabitating, as far as coronavirus transmission goes. While taking a car may feel like a…
Groundbreaking New Laser System Cuts Through Earth’s Atmosphere Like It’s Nothing
To artists and romantics, the twinkling of stars is visual poetry; a dance of distant light as it twists and bends through a turbulent ocean of air above our heads.…
Scientists Think These Ridiculous Bones May Belong to New Largest-Ever Dinosaur
Scientists have unearthed massive, 98-million-year-old fossils in southwest Argentina they say may have belonged to the largest dinosaur ever discovered. Human-sized pieces of fossilized bone belonging to the giant sauropod…
Climate Change Could Shift Earth’s Tropical Rain Belt, Threatening Food Security For Billions
A new study suggests a potential change in tropical rain belt patterns could threaten the livelihoods and food security of billions of people. Today, the tropical rain belt brings with…
Giant Predatory Worms Once Roamed The Ancient Seabed, Scientists Say
Through a careful analysis of fossilised seafloor layers dating back some 20 million years, scientists have reconstructed the lair of a giant underwater worm that would most probably have lain…
A Horrible Condition Turning Starfish Into Goo Has Finally Been Identified
In 2013, the lives of millions of sea stars were mysteriously extinguished. Limbs that were once strong, probing arms searching for sustenance, shrivelled and tore themselves away from the rest…
‘Brain Androgyny’ Is Surprisingly Common And May Boost Mental Health, Scientists Say
From advertising to the workplace, it is often assumed that men and women are fundamentally different – from Mars and Venus, respectively. Of course, we all know people who are…
Male Mantises Evolved a Vital Trick to Avoid Being Decapitated After Sex
A male Springbok praying mantis looking for a hook-up doesn’t have to worry about a female stealing his heart away. There is, however, a very good change she’ll bite his…