If you think the Amazon jungle is completely wild, think again
Welcome to the somewhat civilized jungle. Plant cultivation by native groups has shaped the landscape of at least part of South America’s Amazon forests for more than 8,000 years, researchers…
Quantum counterfeiters might succeed
Scientists have created an ultrasecure form of money using quantum mechanics — and immediately demonstrated a potential security loophole. Under ideal conditions, quantum currency is impossible to counterfeit. But thanks…
Most Americans like science — and are willing to pay for it
Americans don’t hate science. Quite the contrary. In fact, 79 percent of Americans think science has made their lives easier, a 2014 Pew Research Center survey found. More than 60…
Volcanic eruptions nearly snuffed out Gentoo penguin colony
Penguins have been pooping on Ardley Island off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula for a long, long time. The population there is one of the biggest and oldest Gentoo…
Readers puzzled by proton’s properties
Proton puzzlerUncertainty over the proton’s size, spin and life span could have physicists rethinking standard notions about matter and the universe, Emily Conover reported in “The proton puzzle” (SN: 4/29/17,…
Top 10 discoveries about waves
Physics fans are a lot like surfers. Both think waves are really fun. For surfers, it’s all about having a good time. For physicists, it’s about understanding some of nature’s…
Flight demands may have steered the evolution of bird egg shape
The mystery of why birds’ eggs come in so many shapes has long been up in the air. Now new research suggests adaptations for flight may have helped shape the…
The moon might have had a heavy metal atmosphere with supersonic winds
The infant moon may have had a thick metal atmosphere, where supersonic winds raised waves in its magma ocean. That’s the conclusion of a new simulation that calculates how heat…
CRISPR adds storing movies to its feats of molecular biology
Short film is alive and well. Using the current trendy gene-editing system CRISPR, a team from Harvard University has encoded images and a short movie into the DNA of living…
Baby-led weaning won’t necessarily ward off extra weight
When my younger daughter was around 6 months old, we gave her mashed up prune. She grimaced and shivered a little, appearing to be absolutely disgusted. But then she grunted…