October 11, 20244 min readHumanity’s Origins Paint Our Ancestors as Lovers, Not FightersFossil and gene discoveries paint an ever-more-intertwined history of humans combining with vanished species like NeandertalsBy Daniel VerganoThe reconstructed face of Krijn, the oldest Neanderthal found in the...
The spider-tailed horned viper uses its distinctive lure to trick birds into approachingMatthijs Kuijpers/Alamy The Genetic Book of the DeadRichard Dawkins (Yale University Press (US, out now); Apollo (UK, 17 October)) The late, great evolutionary biologist William Hamilton apparently used to correspond on...
A reconstruction of male and female Neanderthals based on the La Chapelle-aux-Saints fossilsS. ENTRESSANGLE/E. DAYNES/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY NEANDERTHALS WERE PRONE TO DEPRESSION, he said. He said they were prone to addiction, too, and especially smoking. Although it was likely, he...
The British Indian Ocean Territory or Chagos IslandsCPA Media Pte Ltd / Alamy The UK’s decision to return control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius will spark a raft of political, military and social changes. But one overlooked aspect is...
The Tesla Cybercab has no steering wheel and no pedalsTesla At a glitzy event held at Warner Bros. Studios Burbank in California, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the Cybercab: a robotic, self-driving taxi. Musk said that the vehicle, which has...
SpaceX’s Starship rocket before its first test flight in 2023SpaceX SpaceX has had a Starship ready and waiting for its fifth test flight since August, and now the company claims that it could launch as soon as this weekend. What...
October 11, 20243 min readEnlisting Microbes to Break Down ‘Forever Chemicals’Bacteria can degrade particularly tough PFAS varietiesBy Saima S. Iqbal A group of bacteria has proved adept at destroying the ultratough carbon-fluorine bonds that give “forever chemicals” their name. This...
October 10, 20243 min readWhy Hurricane Milton Caused So Many TornadoesAs Hurricane Milton barreled across Florida, it triggered dozens of tornadoes. Here’s how that process occursBy Meghan BartelsA home is seen after it was hit by a tornado in Fort...
This fluorescent technique can precisely measure minuscule distancesSteffen J. Sahl / Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences The tiniest “ruler” ever is so precise that it can measure the width of a single atom within a protein. Proteins and other...
October 10, 20243 min readFEMA Spent Nearly Half Its Disaster Budget in Just 8 DaysWithout more funding, FEMA may be forced to restrict spending and suspend rebuilding projectsBy Thomas Frank, Anne C. Mulkern & E&E NewsA crane sits on the...
