The city of Pompeii in southern Italy has taught us a lot about the lives of the ancient Romans. The discovery of this city, covered in a thick blanket of ash and smoke after the nearby Mt. Vesuvius volcano erupted in 79 CE, has allowed the...
Read full story →
On the surface, mangrove forests, the narrow strips of tangled trees and plants in salt or brackish water along tropical and subtropical coastlines, don’t look particularly inviting. But they hide treasures. Recently, for example, a major biodiversity survey on a Cambodian mangrove forest revealed the presence of...
Read full story →
The relationship between dogs and humans goes back thousands of years, but that doesn’t mean man’s best friend didn’t compete with other animals for affection. A new analysis of the buried remains of a 1,500-year-old fox in northwestern Argentina suggested that humans and the canid species...
Read full story →
Scientists recently discovered that a gene variant may play a role in determining if a person is a leftie or a rightie, the Smithsonian Magazine reported. The prevailing research has attributed the determining factors to brain asymmetry, with left-handed individuals exhibiting dominance in the right hemisphere. This...
Read full story →
Archeologists unearthed dozens of pottery fragments on an island on the Great Barrier Reef dating back 2,000 to 3,000 years, marking the oldest pottery ever found in Australia, Science Alert reported. Crafted from locally sourced clay and sand, the pottery challenges colonial stereotypes and showcases the...
Read full story →
The Toba super-eruption 74,000 years ago left a lake 62 miles long and 1,600 feet deep in Indonesia, a testament to the largest known natural disaster in the last 2.5 million years – its effects were felt around the globe. For decades, the common belief has...
Read full story →
Global warming is widely credited for causing ice to melt at both the Earth’s poles, leading to a rise in sea levels. And that in turn is shifting water, causing our planet to spin more slowly, Scientific American reported. Combined with other forces that alter Earth’s rotation...
Read full story →
Many dog owners swear their pooches understand them. Now, a new groundbreaking study shows they actually might. The research suggests that canines possess a more sophisticated understanding of human language than previously recognized, the Los Angeles Times reported. To arrive at that conclusion, neuroscientist Marianna Boros and her...
Read full story →
A new genetic analysis is shedding new light on the ancestral lineage and enduring presence of North America’s Blackfoot Indigenous peoples, Science Magazine reported. Conducted collaboratively by a team of geneticists and Blackfoot community members, the study provided further support to Indigenous oral traditions and archeological...
Read full story →
Most spiders have more than two eyes – but not daddy longlegs. These basement-dwelling arachnids – which are technically not spiders – are known to have only two forward-facing peepers. However, this wasn’t always the case, the Smithsonian Magazine reported. Daddy longlegs belong to an arachnid group known...
Read full story →
Is talent innate? According to an analysis of Ludwig van Beethoven’s DNA, not so much. Scientists reviewed the famed German composer’s genetics and found a low predisposition for beat synchronization, Science Alert reported. Beat synchronization is the ability to recognize and keep up with rhythm, which previous...
Read full story →
Shark skin has captivated both fishermen and scientists in how it enables the marine predators to achieve astonishing speeds underwater. Packed with small, anvil-shaped structures known as denticles, some species can swim at speeds topping 43 miles per hour – far outpacing Olympic swimmers who might...
Read full story →
Scientists recently unveiled a global archive containing records and specimens of more than 4,400 preserved human brains, dating back several millennia, Newsweek reported. These brains, sourced from 213 unique locations across the world, range from approximately 12,000 years old to as recent as the 20th century. Led...
Read full story →
Scientists recently employed artificial intelligence (AI) to refine the flavors of Belgian beers and enhance their quality, the Guardian reported, attempting to dissect the intricate relationships that motivate human aroma perception. In their paper, lead researcher Kevin Verstrepen and his team analyzed the chemical composition of...
Read full story →
Entomologist James Tweed came across the hairy insect by accident while camping in the rainforests of Australia’s Queensland. He initially thought it was bird poo, Popular Science reported. The mysterious beetle puzzled Tweed and his colleagues because there was no scientific record of such a species. In...
Read full story →
Research has shown that play is vital for the young chimpanzee’s physical and psychological development. Great apes, such as gorillas and bonobos, engage in some form of play, too, such as tickling, joking and chasing each other. But during periods of food scarcity, chimps usually tone...
Read full story →
Too much meat isn’t good for the planet or for human health, researchers say, so the hunt is on for alternatives. Ostriches, alligators and insects have been sneaking their way onto menus. Now, a recent study has proposed that snake meat could be a sustainable replacement for...
Read full story →
Many mammals feed their young with milk – amphibians and other creatures, not so much. Now, Brazilian biologists have discovered a species of amphibian feeding its offspring a milk-like secretion rich in nutrients, NPR reported. In their study, they explained that the worm-like amphibian is a caecilian,...
Read full story →
Some individuals, to blow off steam, go for a run. Unfortunately, researchers now say that it is counter-productive in dealing with anger, New Atlas reported. In their study, they addressed a psychoanalytic theory popularized by Sigmund Freud called ‘catharsis,’ which calls for physical and verbal expressions to...
Read full story →
It’s officially spring, which means it’s time to break out the mops and dusters in that annual modern ritual that fills many with dread: The spring clean. Turns out, ancient humans did this, too, according to National Geographic. One of the earliest known references to spring cleaning...
Read full story →You don't have credit card details available. You will be redirected to update payment method page. Click OK to continue.