Reporting world updates to you
Scientists have puzzled for years over why Venus, despite being similar to Earth in size, mass, and overall structure, has no moon. New research from UC Riverside suggests a striking possibility: Venus may once have had a moon, only to eventually pull it back into the planet. Previous explanations generally…
New research from Colorado State University suggests that irrigating U.S. crops may deliver a surprisingly large climate benefit by allowing farmers to produce more food without converting additional natural land into agriculture. Irrigation increases crop yields, which means the same amount of food can be grown on a smaller area.…
Scientists have long debated where the raw material that formed Earth originally came from. Although our planet sits in the inner Solar System, many researchers have proposed that 6-40 percent of its building material arrived from the outer Solar System, beyond Jupiter. That idea has been especially important for explaining…
For most of modern astronomy, rings were associated only with the Solar System’s giant planets: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. That picture changed in 2013, when astronomers discovered two dense rings around Chariklo, a small object only about 250 kilometers across that travels between Saturn and Uranus, nearly 17 times…
A diet high in ultra-processed foods may be linked to unhealthy changes inside thigh muscles, according to new research involving people at risk for knee osteoarthritis. Researchers found that participants who ate more ultra-processed foods tended to have greater amounts of fat within their thigh muscles, even after accounting for…
Many diseases that lead to vision loss have something important in common: they gradually damage the retina, the layer of light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye that makes sight possible. Scientists understand many of the physical changes that occur as retinal degeneration progresses, but they know far less…
Older adults may be able to shift important markers of aging in a surprisingly short amount of time simply by changing what they eat. New research from the University of Sydney found that Australians aged 65 to 75 who reduced either dietary fat or animal-based protein showed signs of a…
When Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai erupted beneath the South Pacific in January 2022, the explosion ranked among the most powerful volcanic events of the modern era. But researchers have now uncovered an unexpected consequence of that eruption: the enormous volcanic cloud appears to have helped destroy some of the methane pollution…
A tough leg day may have an unexpectedly simple boost: the smell of chocolate. According to a new study published in Frontiers in Physiology, exposure to chocolate aromas before and during resistance exercise helped participants complete more repetitions without making the workout feel more difficult. “Exposing moderately trained men to…
The GunaiKurnai, an Australian Aboriginal nation, are recognized as the traditional custodians of Gippsland and the southern Victorian Alps. Caves within their lands have long been linked to spiritual practices. Accounts recorded in the 19th century, together with oral traditions, describe them as places where powerful learned women and men…
Researchers have found that the human brain begins undergoing broad changes in the way its genome is regulated starting in midlife. The findings may help explain why age is the strongest risk factor for neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. In a new study published in Science, scientists used advanced…
A remarkably preserved fossil from northeastern Spain is giving scientists a rare look at the skin, soft tissues, and possible coloration of an ancient crocodile relative that lived about 125 million years ago. The new study, published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, provides the first detailed description…
A mathematical shape that drew global attention for solving a decades-old puzzle is now revealing an unexpected connection to physics. Researchers have found that structures based on the shape can make light form unusual chiral patterns, pointing to new ways of exploring how geometry can influence optical behavior. In a…
Supermassive black holes may have a much larger influence on their surroundings than scientists previously realized. New observations suggest that winds driven by these enormous objects can carry energy across roughly 300,000 light-years, reaching far beyond the galaxies that host them. Researchers found that the energy associated with these winds…
In the 1950s, New World screwworm infestations inflicted enormous losses on U.S. livestock producers. In the Southwest alone, the pest caused an estimated $50 million to $100 million in damage each year before a major eradication campaign eliminated it from the United States and pushed its range south to Panama.…
Knee braces, water therapy, and exercise may be among the most effective drug-free options for people with knee osteoarthritis, according to a large analysis published in the open-access journal PLOS One. The research was led by Yuan Luo of the First People’s Hospital of Neijiang, China. Knee osteoarthritis (KOA) is…
Congenital heart disease affects roughly two out of every 100 newborns worldwide, making it one of the most common types of birth defects. Yet scientists are still working to understand exactly why these heart abnormalities develop. Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have now identified a previously unknown cellular mechanism…
Plague is often linked to rats, packed medieval cities, and the devastating epidemics that tore through Europe during and after the Middle Ages. But new research published in Nature suggests the disease was already a deadly threat 5,500 years ago. At that time, it was killing people in small, mobile…
A coral reef off the coast of Benin that was thought to be dead for decades has been found alive and apparently healthy. Surveys conducted in the 1960s, which were primarily designed to locate productive fishing grounds, identified what appeared to be a deep-water coral reef. At the time, researchers…
Cancer is strongly associated with age. The longer people live, the more opportunities their cells have to accumulate damage that can contribute to tumor growth. But cancer is increasingly being diagnosed in younger adults, and each newer generation appears to face a greater risk than the one before it. That…
Scientists at the Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute (Stevens INI) at the Keck School of Medicine of USC have uncovered evidence that two neighboring types of brain tissue may work together to support thinking abilities later in life. Their findings suggest that the condition of the brain’s…
A chemistry concept taught to generations of students may need to be explained very differently, according to an international team of researchers who say a long-accepted textbook description does not match modern evidence. The issue centers on the inductive effect, a fundamental idea in structural organic chemistry used to describe…
A common and frequently missed cause of high blood pressure may be easier to detect with help from a wearable device that tracks hormone changes throughout the day and night. New research published in Science Translational Medicine focuses on primary aldosteronism, a hormone disorder that may affect up to one…
A new study suggests that saltwater crocodiles born or raised in captivity may not try to return to their breeding centers once they are released into the wild. The finding could help conservationists improve efforts to restore declining crocodile populations. Finding the way back home is an important behavior across…
In April 1917, the German submarine UC-30 was making its way through waters near Rømø after abandoning a mission to Ireland because of engine problems. The vessel had turned back toward Germany and was close to reaching home. It never arrived. UC-30 was carrying 18 mines and six torpedoes, leaving…
Low vitamin D levels may make recovery from breast cancer surgery more painful and increase the need for opioid painkillers, according to research published in Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine. The findings suggest that breast cancer patients with vitamin D deficiency (below 30 nmol/L) could potentially benefit from supplementation before…
Inflammation is one of the immune system’s most important defenses. When the body detects an infection or injury, it sends out alarm signals that recruit immune cells and other cells to eliminate the threat and begin repairing damaged tissue. This response is essential, but it is supposed to shut down…
Volcanoes are fed by enormous underground networks of magma and gas, but those systems do not always behave the same way. Even a single volcano can produce eruptions through very different processes. A Cornell-led research team has now shown just how dramatically those pathways can vary at Mount Etna in…
Weather can dramatically reshape the Arctic’s frozen surface, and some storms appear to be far more destructive than others. Arctic cyclones often bring unusually warm, turbulent conditions that can shrink and fracture sea ice. Their effects can become much more severe when several cyclones arrive in rapid succession, keeping the…
A chemical associated with sucralose, the artificial sweetener sold as Splenda®, damaged DNA in laboratory experiments and disrupted a model of the intestinal lining. Those findings, published in 2023, raised questions about a little studied substance that researchers detected in some samples of the sweetener. But the laboratory results are…