Science

a colorful image of a human embryo at Day 11 under a microscope

Model human embryo, created from stem cells, survives past two weeks

A model human embryo capable of developing past day 14 could revolutionize our understanding of human development.

How years of fighting every wildfire helped fuel the Western megafires of today

The current approach to fire management poses unnecessarily high stakes for forests. Here’s why fighting every fire does more harm than good.

Paul Hessburg and Keala Hagmann and Susan J. Prichard

rows of black rock with the gloved hands of a scientist in the background

Planet Earth

Record-breaking amount of Earth’s mantle drilled out of ocean floor

Scientists aboard the JOIDES Resolution have retrieved “a staggering” amount of mantle rock from below the ocean floor.

Kristin Houser

Biology

Genetically engineered bacteria make living materials for self-repairing walls and cleaning up pollution

With just an incubator and some broth, researchers can grow reusable filters made of bacteria to clean up pollution and more.

Sara Molinari

Neuroscience

Three reasons “you” won’t return after this life

Entire religions are constructed around theories of an afterlife, but former monk Stephen Batchelor lists three reasons you won't come back.

Derek Beres

Animals

Scientists discover animal that doesn’t need oxygen to live

The parasite infects salmon and lives within the fish muscle, though scientists aren't quite sure how it breaks down nutrients for survival.

Stephen Johnson

Biology

Axolotls can regenerate their brains

Axolotls are a model organism researchers use to study a variety of topics in biology because of their regenerative abilities.

Ashley Maynard

Animals

World’s first cloned arctic wolf is now 100 days old

After two years of effort, China's Sinogene Biotechnology has created the world’s first cloned arctic wolf.

Kristin Houser

Genetics

Identical twins were raised in different countries. Here’s how they differ today.

After being separated as toddlers, two identical twins were raised apart in the US and South Korea.

Ross Pomeroy

Biology

When remains are found in a suitcase, forensics can learn a lot from the insects trapped within

The investigation of human remains in a suitcase can often represent a Pandora’s box, full of complicated problems.

Paola Magni

Planet Earth

1.7 billion years ago, Earth had a natural nuclear reactor

Seventeen natural sites possessing ancient nuclear reactions have now been found: evidence of Earth's first nuclear reactor.

Ethan Siegel

Meta can (kinda) guess what you’ve heard via your brain waves

Meta has created an AI that can tell what you’re hearing based on non-invasive brain scan measurements.

B. David Zarley

Physics

The true meaning of Einstein’s most famous equation: E=mc²

Although most people can name Einstein's most famous equation, E = mc², very few people can explain what it means.

Ethan Siegel

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