Science Quickly

Years Before COVID-19, Zombies Helped Prepare One Hospital System for the Real Pandemic

20 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

An educational experiment used escape rooms and the undead to set the stage for a terrible situation that would become all too real Learn more about ...

The Incredible, Reanimated 24,000-Year-Old Rotifer

17 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The last time this tiny wheel animalcule was moving around, woolly mammoths roamed the earth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/a...

Astronomers Find an Unexpected Bumper Crop of Black Holes

12 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In trying to explain the spectacular star trails of the star cluster Palomar 5, astronomers stumbled on a very large trove of black holes. Learn more ...

Inside Millions of Invisible Droplets, Potential Superbug Killers Grow

10 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New research has created microscopic antibiotic factories in droplets that measure a trillionth of liter in volume. Learn more about your ad choices. ...

The Secret behind Songbirds' Magnetic Migratory Sense

04 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A molecule found in the retinas of European robins seems to be able to sense weak magnetic fields, such as that of Earth, after it is exposed to light...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 12: Masking Up Again and Why People Refuse Shots

30 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewis and...

The Kavli Prize Presents: Understanding Touch [Sponsored]

22 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Ardem Patapoutian shared The Kavli Prize in Neuroscience in 2020 for answering a basic question: How does touch actually work? Learn more about your ...

Moths Have an Acoustic Invisibility Cloak to Stay under Bats' Radar

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New research finds they fly around on noise-cancelling wings Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

COVID, Quickly, Episode 11: Vaccine Booster Shots, and Reopening Offices Safely

16 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewi...

Your Brain Does Something Amazing between Bouts of Intense Learning

07 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New research shows that lightning-quick neural rehearsal can supercharge learning and memory. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/ad...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 10: Long Haulers, Delta Woes and Barbershop Shots

01 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewi...

This Newly Discovered Species of Tree Hyrax Goes Bark in the Night

23 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A study makes the case for the new species based on its looks, genes and sounds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

COVID, Quickly, Episode 9: Delta Variant, Global Vaccine Shortfalls, Beers for Shots

18 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewi...

Animal Kids Listen to Their Parents Even before Birth

16 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Human children: please take note of the behavior of prebirth zebra finches Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For African Elephants, Pee Could Be a Potent Trail Marker

11 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists found that elephants often sniff pathways—and seem especially attuned to urine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adch...

A 'Universal' Coronavirus Vaccine to Prevent the Next Pandemic

09 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A pan-coronavirus vaccine could be “one vaccine to rule them all,” and so far it has shown strong results in mice, hamsters, monkeys, horses and ...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 8: The Pandemic's True Death Toll and the Big Lab-Leak Debate

04 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewi...

Puppies Understand You Even at a Young Age, Most Adorable Study of the Year Confirms

03 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Researchers in the happiest lab in the world tested 375 pups and found they connected with people by eight weeks Learn more about your ad choices. Vis...

New 3-D-Printed Material Is Tough, Flexible--and Alive

02 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Made from microalgae and bacteria, the new substance can survive for three days without feeding. It could one day be used to build living garments, ...

Bats on Helium Reveal an Innate Sense of the Speed of Sound

28 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A new experiment shows that bats are born with a fixed reference for the speed of sound—and living in lighter air can throw it off. Learn more about...

The Dirty Secret behind Some of the World's Earliest Microscopes

26 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dutch scientist Antonie van Leeuwenhoek made extraordinary observations of blood cells, sperm cells and bacteria with his microscopes. But it turns o...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 7: The Coming Pandemic Grief Wave, and Mask Whiplash

21 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewi...

Math and Sleuthing Help to Explain Epidemics of the Past

20 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

One mathematician has spend decades uncovering the deadly calculations of pestilence and plague, sometimes finding data that were hiding in plain sigh...

Who Laps Whom on the Walking Track--Tyrannosaurus rex or You? Science Has a New Answer

14 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

An analysis of the animal’s walking speed suggests that T. rex’s walking pace was close to that of a human. It’s too bad the king of the dinosau...

Artificial Light Keeps Mosquitoes Biting Late into the Night

11 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It is like when your cell phone keeps you awake in bed—except mosquitoes do not doom scroll when they stay up, they feast on your blood. Learn more ...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 6: The Real Reason for India's Surge and Mask Liftoff

07 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you a new episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewi...

Male Lyrebirds Lie to Get Sex

04 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

It seems like the males will do anything, even fake nearby danger, to get females to stick around to mate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit meg...

Lovebirds Adore Our Inefficient Air-Conditioning

27 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The rosy-faced lovebirds that live in Phoenix appear to be free riding on our urban climate control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphon...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 5: Vaccine Safety in Pregnancy, Blood Clots and Long-Haul Realities

23 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you the fifth episode in our podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya ...

Beehives Are Held Together by Their Mutual Gut Microbes

20 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New research shows that members of a bee colony all have the same gut microbiome, which controls their smell—and thus their ability to separate fami...

These Endangered Birds Are Forgetting Their Songs

16 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Australia’s critically endangered regent honeyeaters are losing what amounts to their culture—and that could jeopardize their success at landing a...

To Fight Climate Change: Grow a Floating Forest, Then Sink It

12 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

A fast-growing front in the battle against climate change is focused on developing green technologies aimed at reducing humankind’s carbon footprint...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 4: The Virtual Vaccine Line and Shots for Kids

09 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you the fourth episode in a new podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tan...

Big Physics News: The Muon g-2 Experiment Explained

07 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Particles called muons are behaving weirdly, and that could mean a huge discovery. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Boston's Pigeons Coo, 'Wicked'; New York's Birds Coo, 'Fuhgeddaboudit'

05 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The two cities’ rock doves are genetically distinct, research shows. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imperiled Freshwater Turtles Are Eating Plastics--Science Is Just Revealing the Threat

31 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We know a lot about how sea turtles are threatened by our trash, but new research has just uncovered an underreported threat hiding inside lakes and r...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 3: Vaccine Inequality--plus Your Body the Variant Fighter

26 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you the third episode in a new podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tan...

Using Dragonflies as Contamination Detectors

24 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

By collecting the larvae of the fast flyers, researchers have turned the insects into “biosentinels” that can track mercury pollution across the c...

Smartphones Can Hear the Shape of Your Door Keys

18 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Can you pick a lock with just a smartphone? New research shows that doing so is possible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...

Chimpanzees Show Altruism while Gathering around the Juice Fountain

16 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New research tries to tease out whether our closest animal relatives can be selfless Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

COVID, Quickly, Episode 2: Lessons from a Pandemic Year

11 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we bring you the second episode in a new podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tan...

That Mouse in Your House--It's Smarter, Thanks to You

09 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists studied three varieties of house mice and found that those who had lived alongside humans the longest were also the craftiest at solving f...

Kangaroos with Puppy Dog Eyes

04 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

New research shows that when faced with an impossible task, the marsupials look to humans for help. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone...

COVID, Quickly, Episode 1: Vaccines, Variants and Diabetes

26 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today we begin a new podcast series: COVID, Quickly. Every two weeks, Scientific American’s senior health editors Tanya Lewis and Josh Fischman ...

Machine Learning Pwns Old-School Atari Games

25 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

You can call it the “revenge of the computer scientist.” An algorithm that made headlines for mastering the notoriously difficult Atari 2600 game...

E-Eggs Track Turtle Traffickers

22 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Decoy sea turtle eggs containing tracking tech are new weapons against beach poachers and traffickers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega...

Bromances Could Lead to More Romances for Male Hyenas

10 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Spotted hyena males do not fight for mates, so how are certain males shut out of the mating game? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.f...

A Heroic Effort to Measure Helium

05 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

After an intense game of cat and mouse with different particles, atomic physicists have measured the radius of the helium nucleus five times more prec...

Science News Briefs from around the World

01 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from around the world, including one from Costa Rica about decoy sea turtle eggs with the pot...

Scientists Take a Cattle Head Count in India

28 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The research team determined that the city of Raipur in central India has at least one street cow for every 54 human residents. Christopher Intaglia...

Ancient Dogs Had Complex Genetic Histories

21 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Some dog population genetics show similarities to ours, such as in the ability to digest grains. But other lineages differ.  Learn more about your ad...

Bees Use 'Bullshit' Defense to Keep Giant Hornets at Bay

11 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The prospect of death by giant hornet has pushed some Asian honeybees to resort to a poop-based defense system Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Humans May Have Befriended Wolves with Meat

07 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Unlike humans, wolves can subsist on protein alone for months—so scientists say we may have lobbed leaner leftovers their way. Christopher Intagliat...

How to Avoid Becoming a Meal for a Cheetah

06 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Researchers help farmers in Namibia avoid costly cattle losses by tracking big cat hangouts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...

How the Coronavirus Pandemic Shaped Our Language in 2020

01 Jan 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Linguist Ben Zimmer says the pandemic has turned us all into amateur epidemiologists utilizing terms such as “superspreader” and “asymptomatic...

Science News Briefs from around the Planet

28 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from around the world, including one from Panama about the toll lightning takes on tropical t...

Ravens Measure Up to Great Apes on Intelligence

22 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Juvenile ravens performed just as well as chimps and orangutans in a battery of intelligence tests—except for assays of spatial skills. Christopher ...

Baby Bees Deprive Caregivers of Sleep

21 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Bee larvae and pupae appear to secrete a chemical that does the work of a late-night cup of coffee for their nurses. Learn more about your ad choic...

How the Wolves Change the Forest

17 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

New research tracked the canines in northern Minnesota for years to see just how they reshape their ecosystems. Audio of wolves inside Voyageurs Nat...

Brain Sides Are Both Busy in New Language Learning

16 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A study of adults learning a new language found that speaking primarily activated regions in the left side of the brain, but reading and listening com...

A Nurse's Message about the COVID-19 Vaccine

15 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Nurse Kristen Choi says health care providers need to better educate patients about possible side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine. Christopher Intag...

Eye Treatment Stretches Mouse Sight Beyond Visible Spectrum

12 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Nanoparticles that attach to photoreceptors allowed mice to see infrared and near-infrared light for up to two months. Learn more about your ad cho...

This Bat Wears a Face Mask

11 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The wrinkle-faced bat covers its face with a flap of skin, seemingly as part of its courtship rituals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megapho...

The Denisovans Expand Their Range into China

02 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Evidence of the ancient humans was limited to a cave in Siberia. But now scientists have found genetic remains of the Denisovans in China. Christophe...

Undersea Earthquakes Reveal Sound Warming Info

30 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Travel time differences for sound waves produced by undersea earthquakes in the same place at different times can provide details about ocean warming....

Duckbill Dino Odyssey Ended in Africa

24 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A duckbill dinosaur jawbone found in Morocco means that dinosaurs crossed a large body of water to reach Africa.   Learn more about your ad choice...

Early Mammals Had Social Lives, Too

18 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Chipmunklike animals that lived among the dinosaurs appear to have been social creatures, which suggests that sociality arose in mammals earlier than ...

Science News Briefs from All Over

17 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from around the world, including one, from the dormant volcano Llullaillaco in Chile, about a...

Divide and Conquer Could Be Good COVID Strategy

12 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

COVID might be fought efficiently with fewer shutdowns by restricting activities only in a particular area with a population up to 200,000 when its ca...

Zebra Coloration Messes With Fly Eyes

10 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Horseflies misjudge landings on zebra patterns, compared with solid gray or black surfaces, which provides evidence for why evolution came up with the...

Science Sound(E)scapes: Head Banging and Howling in the Amazon

06 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Need a break from politics and the pandemic? You’re probably not in the Amazon rain forest right now, but we can take you there in audio. Today, in ...

Science Sound(E)scapes: Amazon Frog Choruses at Night

05 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Need a break from politics and the pandemic? You’re probably not in the Amazon rain forest right now, but we can take you there in audio. Today, in ...

Science Sound(E)scapes: Amazon Pink River Dolphins

04 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Need a break from politics and the pandemic? You’re probably not in the Amazon rain forest right now, but we can take you there in audio. Today, in ...

Frog Vocals Lead to Small Preference

03 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The concave-eared torrent frog's unusual ear anatomy lets it hear high-frequency calls, which gives a mating advantage to the littler males that sing ...

Science News Briefs from around the Globe

02 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from all over, including one from the United Arab Emirates about the the first interplanetary...

Election Science Stakes: Technology

01 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

We wrap up our preelection series with Scientific American senior editor Jen Schwartz, who talks about the possible effects of the election results on...

Election Science Stakes: Energy

30 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Scientific American senior editor Mark Fischetti and associate editor Andrea Thompson talk about this election and the future of U.S. energy research ...

Election Science Stakes: Environment

29 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Scientific American senior editor Mark Fischetti talks about how this election will affect environmental science and policy. Learn more about your ad ...

Election Science Stakes: Climate

28 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Scientific American’s associate editor for sustainability Andrea Thompson talks about how climate science and policy will be affected by this elect...

Election Science Stakes: Medicine and Public Health

27 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Scientific American’s senior medicine editor Josh Fischman talks about issues in medicine and public health that will be affected by this election...

Election 2020: The Stakes for Science

26 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Scientific American’s editor in chief sets up this week’s series of podcasts about how this election could affect science, technology and medicine...

Why Some Easter Island Statues Are Where They Are

25 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Many of the statues not along the coast are in places that featured a resource vital to the communities that lived and worked there. Learn more abo...

Acorn Woodpeckers Fight Long, Bloody Territorial Wars

23 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

More than 40 of the birds, in coalitions of three or four, may fight for days over oak trees in which to store their acorns. Learn more about your ...

Funky Cheese Rinds Release an Influential Stench

22 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The volatile compounds released by microbial communities on cheese rinds shape and shift a cheese’s microbiome. Christopher Intagliata reports.  Le...

Dinosaur Asteroid Hit Worst-Case Place

21 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The mass-extinction asteroid happened to strike an area where the rock contained a lot of organic matter and sent soot into the stratosphere, where i...

River Ecosystem Restoration Can Mean Just Add Water

20 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Planners returned water to the dry bed of Arizona’s Santa Cruz River in 2019, and various species began showing up on the same day. Learn more about...

3,000-Year-Old Orbs Provide a Glimpse of Ancient Sport

18 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Researchers say three ancient leather balls, dug up from the tombs of horsemen in northwestern China, are the oldest such specimens from Europe or Asi...

Humans Make Wild Animals Less Wary

16 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

From mammals to mollusks, animals living among humans lose their antipredator behaviors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...

Play Helped Dogs Be Our Best Friends

13 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The ancestors of today’s dogs already exhibited some playfulness, which became a key trait during domestication. Learn more about your ad choices. V...

Neandertal DNA May Be COVID Risk

10 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A stretch of Neandertal DNA has been associated with some cases of severe COVID-19, but it’s unclear how much of a risk it poses. Christopher Intagl...

Nobelist Talks CRISPR Uses

08 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

New Nobel laureate in chemistry Jennifer Doudna talks about various applications of the gene-editing tool CRISPR. Learn more about your ad choices...

Blue Whale Song Timing Reveals Time to Go

07 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Blue whales off California’s coast sing at night—until it’s time to start migrating, and they switch to daytime song. Learn more about your a...

New Nobel Laureate Talks Today's Virology

05 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Charles Rice, who today shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the discovery of the hepatitis C virus, talked about how rapidly research...

Greenland Is Melting Faster Than Any Time in Past 12,000 Years

03 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Researchers determined that Greenland is on track to lose more ice this century than during any of the previous 120 centuries. Christopher Intagliata ...

Sloths Slowly Cavort by Day Now

02 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The disappearance of their predators in a disturbed ecosystem has turned Atlantic forest sloths from night creatures to day adventurers. Learn more...

Dinosaurs Got Cancer, Too

28 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Researchers seeking evidence for cancer in dinosaurs found it in a collection of bones at a paleontology museum in Alberta. Learn more about your ...

Fluttering Feathers Could Spawn New Species

24 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Fork-tailed flycatchers make a fluttering sound with their wings—but separate subspecies have different “dialects” of fluttering. Christopher I...

Science News from around the World

22 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Here are some brief reports about science and technology from all over, including one from Israel about what DNA reveals about the Dead Sea Scrolls’...

These Small Mammals Snort to a Different Tune

17 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Hyraxes, which live in Africa and the Middle East, punctuate their songs with snorts. And the snorts appear to reflect the animals’ emotional state....

Ice Age Temperatures Help Predict Future Warming

16 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists determined that temperatures were 11 degrees cooler during the last ice age—and that finding has implications for modern-day warming. Jul...