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— Fred Hoyle

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Updated: 4 hours 48 min ago

What Google’s New AI Fruit Fly Can Teach Us about Real Behavior

8 hours 48 min ago

To learn how to move, groom itself and flap its wings, a fruit fly AI devoured hours of video of real insects

Categories: Astronomy

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample Is Already Rewriting Solar System History

9 hours 48 min ago

Scientists have scarcely begun studying pristine material from asteroid Bennu brought back to Earth by the OSIRIS-REx mission, but have already found several surprises

Categories: Astronomy

Global Warming Is Slowing the Earth’s Rotation

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 1:15pm

Drastic polar ice melt is slowing Earth’s rotation, counteracting a speedup from the planet’s liquid outer core. The upshot is that we might need to subtract a leap second for the first time ever within the decade

Categories: Astronomy

First-Ever Magnetic Map of Milky Way’s Black Hole Reveals a Mystery

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 12:00pm

Polarized light from Sagittarius A*, our galaxy’s supermassive black hole, shows swirling magnetic fields that may hint at the presence of an unseen jet

Categories: Astronomy

Baltimore Bridge Collapse Wreaks Havoc on Coal, Car Supply Chains

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 11:30am

The sudden destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge at the Port of Baltimore has implications for some of the largest U.S. energy industries

Categories: Astronomy

Why Do Colors Change during a Solar Eclipse?

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 11:00am

When the moon fully eclipses the sun, it’s not just the sky that changes. Your eyes do, too

Categories: Astronomy

'Uncertain,' a New Podcast Series on the Joys of Not Knowing

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 10:00am

Does the word "uncertainty" make you nervous? Would you say it kinda describes the state of the world these days? Enter Uncertain, a new limited podcast series from Scientific American, that will change the way you think about that word.

Categories: Astronomy

Does Long-Term Benadryl Use Increase Dementia Risk?

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 8:30am

Benadryl, which contains diphenhydramine, is a drugstore mainstay and just one medication out of many that could possibly damage brain health

Categories: Astronomy

How Animal Brains Tell Friends from Strangers

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 8:00am

A small section of the mouse brain’s hippocampus uses specific neural codes to denote social familiarity and identity

Categories: Astronomy

Solar Eclipse Experiment Will Fly a Kite to Avoid Cloudy Skies

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 7:30am

A kite-borne experiment will observe the sun’s mysterious corona during the upcoming total solar eclipse

Categories: Astronomy

Viral Genetics Confirms What On-the-Ground Activists Knew Early in the Mpox Outbreak

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 7:00am

Molecular biology could have changed the mpox epidemic—and could stop future outbreaks

Categories: Astronomy

How Visually Impaired People Can Experience Solar Eclipses

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:45am

Scientists have created a guide to the 2024 total solar eclipse for the visually impaired that includes tactile graphics

Categories: Astronomy

Mucus Saves Your Life Every Day

Wed, 03/27/2024 - 6:00am

The slimy substance is so powerful that doctors once made hog stomach mucus milkshakes to treat ulcers.

Categories: Astronomy

Orca Groups with Radically Different Cultures Are Actually Separate Species

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 8:00pm

“Resident” and “transient” killer whales, or orcas, have unique hunting habits and genetics, proving they are in fact separate species

Categories: Astronomy

7 Books SciAm Recommends So Far in 2024

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 4:45pm

Here are seven fiction and nonfiction books we recommend from the past few months. They involve broken hearts, killer robots and epic failed experiments

Categories: Astronomy

Why Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapsed after Strike by Container Ship

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 4:30pm

A large container ship “totally removed” a critical pier from Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge

Categories: Astronomy

How a Rare Islamic Astrolabe Helped Muslims, Jews and Christians Tell Time and Read Horoscopes

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 12:30pm

A rare Islamic astrolabe discovered in Verona, Italy, reveals how the instrument passed through different countries and cultures

Categories: Astronomy

How to Talk to Kids about Cancer

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 10:30am

A social worker explains ways that parents can gently share news about their cancer diagnosis with their children

Categories: Astronomy

Why Some Songs Make Everyone Want to Dance

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 9:00am

A syncopated rhythm may prompt our brain to find the beat

Categories: Astronomy

How Do Animals Respond to a Total Solar Eclipse?

Tue, 03/26/2024 - 8:00am

Scientists are finally getting their hands on enough data to begin to understand how animals react to a total solar eclipse

Categories: Astronomy