How air pollution may make it harder for pollinators to find flowers
Air pollution may blunt the signature scents of some night-blooming flowers, jeopardizing pollination. When the aroma of a pale evening…
Forests might serve as enormous neutrino detectors
Neutrino detectors don’t grow on trees. Or do they? Forests could one day be used to spot ultra-high-energy neutrinos, a…
‘Countdown’ takes stock of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile
CountdownSarah ScolesBold Type Books, $30 The United States is on a mission to modernize its aging nuclear weapons stockpile. And…
Did the James Webb telescope ‘break the universe’? Maybe not
Reports that NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope broke the universe may have been exaggerated. In its first images, JWST captured…
The blood holds clues to understanding long COVID
When I talk to immunologist Paul Morgan, he’s on the hunt for potentially life-altering drugs. He’s got a call with a…
Here’s why pain might last after persistent urinary tract infections
Urinary tract infections are painful, inconvenient and incredibly common. For decades, doctors haven’t had any leads on why, even after…
The desert planet in ‘Dune’ is plausible, according to science
Frank Herbert’s science fiction novel Dune has been praised for its worldbuilding. Herbert created complex societies, religions and economic systems…
Giant tortoise migration in the Galápagos may be stymied by invasive trees
After trudging upslope for weeks, a giant tortoise slows its hundreds of cumbersome kilograms to a stop. Dense woods defended…
More than 1 billion people worldwide are now estimated to have obesity
It’s no secret that global obesity rates have been rising over the past few decades. But a new analysis quantifies…
Waterlogged soils can give hurricanes new life after they arrive on land
Once a hurricane makes landfall, it’s usually the beginning of the end for the storm. But a tropical cyclone passing…
