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— Dr. Lee De Forest

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An Enormous Meteorite, Bird Flu in Washington State and a Troubling Scurvy Case Study

Mon, 10/28/2024 - 5:00am

We cover a 3.26-billion-year-old meteorite impact, the spread of bird flu and a scurvy case study that serves as a cautionary tale in this week’s news roundup.

Categories: Astronomy

Shaken Baby Syndrome Has Been Discredited. Why Is Robert Roberson Still on Death Row?

Sat, 10/26/2024 - 8:00am

Convicted of a crime that never happened, Roberson’s case is a prime example of how the U.S. legal system often fails to recognize advances in scientific knowledge

Categories: Astronomy

Climate Goal “Will Be Dead Within a Few Years” Unless World Acts, U.N. Warns

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 10:00am

The world is well on track to blow past a goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius that many countries have put at the center of their climate efforts

Categories: Astronomy

Iconic Bird of American Horror Stories Faces Its Own Terrifying Fate

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 9:00am

The Whip-Poor-Will’s shrill, death-proclaiming song populates the works of Stephen King and H.P. Lovecraft. But the bird itself has fallen on hard times. Could it become a ghost of Halloweens past?

Categories: Astronomy

These Are the Rumors and Misinformation to Watch for on Election Day

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 8:30am

We can anticipate many false claims as we approach the U.S. presidential election—including untrue allegations of mass voting by noncitizens or of “suspicious vans” outside polling booths—and should quickly counter them, a misinformation expert says

Categories: Astronomy

This Is Your Robot Brain on Mushrooms

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 8:00am

New rolling, hopping robots navigate via fungus

Categories: Astronomy

The Unsettled Science behind Weight-Loss Drugs for Teens

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 7:00am

Wegovy and similar weight-loss medications are becoming widely prescribed for teenagers with obesity, but little is known about their long-term effects

Categories: Astronomy

The Surprising Story of How Peaches Became an Icon of the U.S. Southeast

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 6:00am

The Spanish brought peaches to the U.S., but Indigenous peoples spread the fruit across the eastern half of the U.S.

Categories: Astronomy

Treat or Trick? Astronomical Objects Are Beautiful—And Creepy

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 5:45am

If you’ve ever seen faces in clouds, these heavenly entities will leave you haunted

Categories: Astronomy

Celebrating Spooky Lake Month with Its Creator Geo Rutherford

Fri, 10/25/2024 - 5:00am

An open body of water can be particularly eerie. It’s part of what led creator and author Geo Rutherford to make her viral videos on Spooky Lakes.

Categories: Astronomy

Hurricane Helene Disrupted Abortion Care in the South

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 12:15pm

Damage from Hurricane Helene forced the only abortion clinic in western North Carolina to shutter, disrupting health care for pregnant people across a large region

Categories: Astronomy

These Hornets Can Thrive on Just Alcohol without Getting Buzzed

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 11:30am

Social wasps can hold their liquor

Categories: Astronomy

The Forgotten Developer of Tamoxifen, a Lifesaving Breast Cancer Therapy

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 10:00am

Her name was on the patent for tamoxifen, but Dora Richardson’s story was lost until now

Categories: Astronomy

Apples Have Never Tasted So Delicious. Here’s Why

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 10:00am

Apple experts divide time into “before Honeycrisp” and “after Honeycrisp,” and apples have never tasted so good

Categories: Astronomy

Climate Change Is Raising the Temperature on Global Conflict

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 7:00am

In a new book, a long-time foreign correspondent examines the underappreciated links between climate change and violent conflict

Categories: Astronomy

Anyone Can Learn Echolocation in Just 10 Weeks—And It Remodels Your Brain

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 5:45am

Human echolocation repurposes parts of the brain’s visual cortex for sound, even in sighted people

Categories: Astronomy

The Daring Russian Geneticist Whose Experiments on Silver Foxes Explained Domestication Has Died

Thu, 10/24/2024 - 5:00am

Lyudmila Trut devoted her life to studying the process of domestication by selectively breeding friendly foxes

Categories: Astronomy