Science Quickly
Episodes
Real Laughs Motivate More Guffaws
07 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Honest, involuntary laughter cued people to laugh more at some really bad jokes than they did when hearing forced laughter. Learn more about your a...
Extinction Wipes Out Evolution's Hard Work
05 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
By killing off many of New Zealand’s endemic birds, humans destroyed 50 million years’ worth of evolutionary history. Christopher Intagliata repor...
London Is Crawling with Drug-Resistant Microbes
03 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Nearly half of bacteria gathered in public settings around the city were resistant to two or more commonly used antibiotics, such as penicillin and er...
Male Black Widows Poach Rivals' Approaches
01 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Mating is risky business for black widow males—so they hitchhike on the silk threads left by competitors to more quickly find a mate. Christopher In...
Babies Want Fair Leaders
31 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Babies as young as a year and a half want leaders to fix situations in which they see someone else being treated unfairly. Learn more about your ...
Parrots Are Making the U.S. Home
30 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Released or escaped parrots are now living in most states and are breeding in at least 21. For some, it’s a second chance at survival. Learn more ab...
Science News Briefs from All Over
29 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A few brief reports about international science and technology from Guatemala to Australia, including one about the first recorded tornado in Nepal. L...
Tourist Photographs Help African Wildlife Census
25 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Photographs snapped by safari tourists are a surprisingly accurate way to assess populations of African carnivores. Christopher Intagliata reports. ...
For Ants, the Sky's the Compass
23 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Computer modeling revealed that insects with a celestial compass can likely determine direction down to just a couple degrees of error. Christopher In...
Why Two Moonships Were Better Than One
20 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Engineer John Houbolt pushed for a smaller ship to land on the lunar surface while the command module stayed in orbit around the moon. Learn more a...
One Small Scoop, One Giant Impact for Mankind
19 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Just before Neil Armstrong climbed back into the lunar module, he scooped up a few last-minute soil samples--which upturned our understanding of plane...
Investigating the Zombie Ant's "Death Grip"
18 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers dissected the jaws of ants infected with the Ophiocordyceps fungus to determine how the fungus hijacks the ants' behavior. Christopher ...
Attractive Young Females May Have Justice Edge
16 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Youths rated as attractive were less likely to have negative encounters with the criminal justice system—but only if they were women. Christopher In...
Tobacco Plants Made to Produce Useful Compounds
15 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A proof-of-concept study got transgenic tobacco plants to make a useful enzyme in their chloroplasts, not nuclei, minimizing chances for transfer to o...
Rhinos and Their Gamekeepers Benefit from AI
11 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Starting in 2017, an artificial intelligence monitoring system at the Welgevonden Game Reserve in South Africa has been helping to protect rhinos and ...
Backpack Harvests Energy as You Walk
10 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The pack produces a steady trickle of electricity from the swinging motion of your stuff. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad c...
Why Baseballs Are Flying in 2019
09 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
An analysis of the 2019 edition of the Major League baseball points to reasons why it's leaving ballparks at a record rate. Learn more about your a...
Some Hot Dog Histology
03 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A lab analysis found that even an all-beef frankfurter had very little skeletal muscle, or "meat." So what’s in there? Christopher Intagliata repor...
Mind and Body Benefit from Two Hours in Nature Each Week
01 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
People who spent at least two hours outside—either all at once or totaled over several shorter visits—were more likely to report good health and p...
Scientist Encourages Other Women Scientists to Make Themselves Heard
30 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Geneticist Natalie Telis noticed few women asking questions at scientific conferences. So she publicized the problem and set about to make a change. C...
Male Bats Up Mating Odds with Mouth Morsels
27 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Males that allow females to take food right out of their mouths are more likely to sire offspring with their dining companions. Learn more about your...
Scientists Fool Flies with "Virtual Tastes"
26 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
By switching fruit flies' sensory neurons on and off with light, scientists were able to create the sensation of sweet or bitter tastes. Christopher I...
Wheat Plants "Sneeze" and Spread Disease
25 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Wheat plants' leaves repel water, which creates the perfect conditions for dew droplets to catapult off the leaves—taking pathogenic spores for the ...
Elite Runners' Microbes Make Mice Mightier
24 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Mice that were fed bacteria isolated from elite athletes logged more treadmill time than other mice that got bacteria found in yogurt. Learn more abou...
Science News Briefs from around the World
23 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A few brief reports about international science and technology from Canada to Kenya, including one about how humans thousands of years ago in what is ...
Antiperspirant Boosts Armpit and Toe-Web Microbial Diversity
21 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Rather than wiping microbes out, antiperspirants and foot powders increased the diversity of microbial flora in armpits and between toes. Christopher ...
Monkey Cousins Use Similar Calls
17 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Two monkey species who last shared a common ancestor 3 million years ago have "eerily similar" alarm calls. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
How Millipedes Avoid Interspecies Sexual Slips
16 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Millipedes, often blind, have come up with clever physical signals to ward off sexual advances from members of wrong species. Learn more about your...
You Contain Multitudes of Microplastics
13 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
People appear to consume between 74,000 and 121,000 microplastic particles annually, and that's probably a gross underestimate. Learn more about yo...
A Biodegradable Label Doesn't Make It So
12 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At the third Scientific American “Science on the Hill” event, “Solving the Plastic Waste Problem”, one of the issues discussed by experts on C...
High School Cheaters Nabbed by Neural Network
06 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers trained a neural network to scrutinize high school essays and sniff out ghostwritten papers. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more ab...
Preserved Poop Is an Archaeological Treasure
04 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Anthropologists found parasite eggs in ancient poop samples, providing a glimpse of human health as hunter-gatherers transitioned to settlements. Chri...
Remembering Murray Gell-Mann
03 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Murray Gell-Mann, 1969 Nobel Laureate in Physics who identified the quark, died May 24th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...
Bonobo Mothers Supervise Their Sons' Monkey Business
29 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Some wild female bonobos introduce their sons to desirable females—then make sure their relations won’t be interrupted by competing males. Karen H...
Music May Orchestrate Better Brain Connectivity in Preterm Infants
28 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Preterm babies who listened to music in the neonatal intensive care unit had brain activity that more closely resembled that of full-term babies. Chri...
Icy Room Temperatures May Chill Productivity
23 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A new study suggests women's performance on math and verbal tasks increases as room temperature rises, up to about the mid 70s F. Christopher Intaglia...
Bird Beak Shapes Depend on More Than Diet
22 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A study found that only a small percentage of bird beak shape variation is dependent on diet, with other factors like display and nest construction ...
Ancient Gum Gives Archaeologists Something to Chew On
20 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Chewing gums discovered in western Sweden contain the oldest human DNA found in Scandinavia. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad ...
Nobelist: Harness Evolution as a Problem-Solving Algorithm
17 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Frances Arnold, the Caltech scientist who shared the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, says evolution can show us how to solve problems of sustainability...
Unread Books at Home Still Spark Literacy Habits
16 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up in a home filled with books enhances enhances intellectual capacity in later life, even if you don't read them all. Learn more about your a...
Kid Climate Educators Open Adult Eyes
15 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A study finds that kids, especially daughters, are effective at teaching their parents about climate issues. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...
Penguin Poop Helps Biodiversity Bloom in Antarctica
14 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Ammonia from penguin poop gets carried on Antarctic winds, fertilizing mosses and lichens as far as a mile away. Christopher Intagliata reports. Lea...
Ancient Whiz Opens Archaeology Window
13 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The residue of ancient urine can reveal the presence of early stationary herder-farmer communities. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone...
U.S. Coral Reefs Do $1.8 Billion of Work Per Year
08 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
By dampening the energy of waves, coral reefs protect coastal cities from flooding damage and other economic losses. Christopher Intagliata reports. ...
Could Air-Conditioners Help Cool the Planet?
06 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers want to outfit air conditioners with carbon-capture technology. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ...
Chemists Investigate Casanova's Clap
02 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In his memoirs, the womanizing writer Giacomo Casanova described suffering several bouts of gonorrhea—but researchers found no trace of the microbe ...
Software Sniffs Out Rat Squeaks
01 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Algorithms learned to sift ultrasonic rat squeaks from other noise, which could help researchers who study rodents’ emotional states. Lucy Huang rep...
New Model Aims to Solve Mystery of the Moon's Formation
30 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists propose that the moon could have formed when a Mars-sized object slammed into an Earth covered in magma seas. Christopher Intagliata report...
Cats Recognize Their Names—but May Not Respond
29 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Felines move their ears, heads and tails more when they hear their names compared to when they hear similar words. Jim Daley reports. Learn more abou...
Science News Briefs from All Over
27 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A few brief reports about international science and technology from Liberia to Hawaii, including one on the discovery in Northern Ireland of soil bact...
Hurricane Maria Rain Amount Chances Are Boosted by Climate Change
26 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The likelihood of an event like Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, and of its massive precipitation, is fivefold higher in the climate of today than it w...
Harder-Working Snakes Pack Stronger Venom
25 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Snake venom toxicity depends on snake size, energy requirements and environmental dimensionality more than on prey size. Learn more about your ad c...
River Dolphins Have a Wide Vocal Repertoire
24 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Freshwater dolphins are evolutionary relics, and their calls give clues to the origins of cetacean communication in general. Christopher Intagliata re...
Honeybees Can Put Two and Two Together
23 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The tiny brain of a honeybee is apparently able to calculate small numbers' addition and subtraction. Annie Sneed reports. Learn more about your ad ch...
4/20 Traffic Accidents Claim Curbed
20 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A deeper data dive calls into question a 2018 study that found a spike in fatal traffic accidents apparently related to marijuana consumption on this ...
Hyena Society Stability Has Last Laugh
19 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Female hyenas keep their clans in line by virtue of their complex social networks. Jason G. Goldman reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...
Gluten-Free Restaurant Foods Are Often Mislabeled
18 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
One in three gluten-free dishes tested at restaurants contained gluten—especially GF pizzas and pastas. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more a...
What Chickens Can Teach Hearing Researchers
17 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At an April 9th event sponsored by the Kavli Foundation and produced by Scientific American that honored Nobel and Kavli Prize winners, neuroscientist...
Nobelist Says System of Science Offers Life Lessons
16 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At an April 9th event sponsored by the Kavli Foundation and produced by Scientific American that honored Nobel and Kavli Prize winners, economist Paul...
Squeezed Potassium Atoms Straddle Liquid and Solid
12 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At extreme pressures, potassium atoms can be both liquid and solid at the same time, a phase of matter known as "chain melt." Christopher Intagliata ...
Urban Coyote Evolution Favors the Bold
11 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Coyotes become fearless around people in just a few generations—which isn’t good for their longterm co-existence with humans in cities. Jason G. G...
Computers Turn an Ear on New York City
10 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
NYU’s “Sounds of New York City” project listens to the city—and then, with the help of citizen scientists, teaches machines to decode the soun...
Whitening Strips Alter Proteins in Teeth
09 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Hydrogen peroxide in whitening treatments penetrates enamel and dentin, and alters tooth proteins. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about yo...
Infrared Light Offers a Cooler Way to Defrost
08 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Light tuned to a specific frequency warms ice more than water—which could come in handy for defrosting delicate biological samples. Adam Levy report...
Spider Monkeys Optimize Jungle Acoustics
04 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The monkeys lower the pitch of their "whinnies" when they're far from the rest of their group, which might help the calls travel further through jungl...
Tennessee Whiskey Relies on Missing Ingredients
02 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Food chemists precisely measured how charcoal filtration contributes to Tennessee whiskey's smoother flavor. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn mor...
There's a Word for Today
01 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
English lacks some words that other languages pack with meaning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Bumblebee Queens Prefer Layovers to Nonstop Flights
28 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Scientists tracked bumblebee queens with radar when they emerged from hibernation and found the bees take only brief flights en route to a new nest. ...
Scenic City Sights Linked to Higher Happiness
26 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Tracking the location and mood of 15,000 people, researchers found that scenic beauty was linked to happiness—including near urban sights like bridg...
Tech's Brain Effect: It's Complicated
25 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
We don't yet know what the immersion in technology does to our brains, but one neuroscientist says the answer is likely to be that there's good, there...
Daylight Brings Toxic Beetles Together for Safety
22 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
During daylight hours, hundreds of bombardier beetles of multiple species will congregate together to more effectively ward off any predators not afra...
Solar Jets Cause Standing Waves in Earth's Magnetic Field
19 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When jets of charged particles from the sun hit our magnetosphere, some of the ensuing ripples travel toward the northern and southern poles and get ...
Sing Solo for Higher Fidelity
18 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
By tracking duetting choir singers, researchers found that when an individual singer's pitch drifts off tune their partner’s tend to too. Christophe...
Edible Insect Breeding Led to Larger but Not Necessarily Better Larvae
14 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers aiming to lower the cost of mealworms were able to double the worms' size, but the larger larvae had fewer eggs and weaker offspring. Chri...
Busting Earth-Bound Asteroids a Bigger Job Than We Thought
12 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A new model suggests smashing killer space rocks with insufficient force could let gravity pull the pieces back together. Christopher Intagliata repor...
Weekday–Weekend Sleep Imbalance Bad for Blood Sugar Regulation
11 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Weekday sleep deprivation with weekend make-up sleeping seems to be worse for blood sugar control than even chronic sleep deprivation alone. Learn mor...
Warm-Blooded Animals Lost Ability to Heal the Heart
07 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Thyroid hormone, which helps warm-blooded animals regulate body temperature, also appears to put a halt on heart regeneration. Christopher Intagliata ...
Animal Migrations Track with Wikipedia Searches
06 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
By analyzing nearly 2.5 billion Wikipedia page views, researchers found species searches reflect seasonal animal migrations and plant blooming. Christ...
Baseball Commish Talks Big Data
05 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At a sports technology conference, baseball commissioner Rob Manfred addressed issues including an automated strike zone and advanced analytics. Le...
Background Music Might Stifle Creativity
04 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Volunteers who listened to music solved fewer word puzzles than others who worked in silence. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ...
Science News Briefs from around the Globe
03 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A few brief reports about international science and technology from Greenland to Palau, including one on the discovery of a trove of mummified cats in...
Budding Yeast Produce Cannabis Compounds
28 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Biologists have taken the genes that produce cannabinoids in weed and plugged them into yeast, making rare and novel compounds more accessible. Christ...
Who Has "the Right Stuff" for Mars?
26 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Humans traveling to Mars will be required to operate with a degree of autonomy human astronauts have never had, due to communication delays. Christoph...
Grandma's Influence Is Good for Grandkids
25 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Grandmothers can enhance the survival of grandchildren. That is, unless grandma’s too old or lives too far away. Karen Hopkin reports. Learn more ab...
Should Robots Have a License to Kill?
23 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Artificial intelligence experts, ethicists and diplomats debate autonomous weapons. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. ...
Warming Climate Implies More Flies—and Disease
20 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The incidence of foodborne illness could jump in a warming world, due to an increase in housefly activity. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more ...
Light-Skin Variant Arose in Asia Independent of Europe
19 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A new genetic study of Latin Americans provides evidence that gene variants for lighter skin color came about in Asia as well as in Europe. Christophe...
Teach Science Process over Findings
18 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Seismologist and policy advisor Lucy Jones says science education needs to teach how science works more than just what it finds out. Learn more about ...
Human Diet Drugs Kill Mosquitoes' Appetite, Too
16 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When researchers fed mosquitoes a drug used to treat people for obesity, the insects were less interested in hunting for their next human meal ticket....
Grazing Deer Alter Forest Acoustics
15 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Deer populations have exploded in North American woodlands, changing forest ecology—and how sounds, like birdsong, travel through the trees. Christo...
Elephant Weight Cycles with New Teeth
14 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Elephants have six sets of teeth over their lives, sometimes two sets at once. At those times, they can extract more nutrition from food and put on we...
Finally Over for Mars Rover
13 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The rover Opportunity has called it quits after working for more than 14 years on Mars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoi...
Our Brains Really Remember Some Pop Music
11 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Although millennials' memory of recent pop tunes drops quickly, their ability to identify top hits from the 1960s through 1990s remains moderately hig...
Biologists Track Tweets to Monitor Birds
08 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Conservation biologists can track the whereabouts of endangered species by the sounds they make, avoiding cumbersome trackers and tags. Christopher In...
Desalination Could Cause Ecological Sea Change
07 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
An environmental assessment of the nation's largest desalination plant finds mixed results. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad c...
Different Humpback Whale Groups Meet to Jam
06 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Humpback populations from the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet up south of Africa and trade song stylings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...
Rocking Helps Adults Sleep Too
05 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Adult humans, as well as mice, slept better when gently rocked. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Targeting Certain Brain Cells Can Switch Off Pain
04 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
By turning off certain brain cells, researchers were able to make mice sense painful stimuli—but not the associated discomfort. Karen Hopkin reports...
Neandertal Spears Were Surprisingly Deadly
31 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Javelin throwers chucking replicas of Neandertal spears were able to hit targets farther away, and with greater force than previously thought to be po...
"Rectenna" Converts Wi-Fi to Electricity
30 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers built a small, flexible device that harvests wi-fi, bluetooth and cellular signals, and turns them into DC electricity. Christopher Intagl...