Science News Today

Science News Today produces evidence-based reporting on discoveries and developments in biology, physics, chemistry, astronomy, health and medicine, Earth sciences, archaeology, and technology. Our reporting draws on peer-reviewed research, original scientific studies, and other reliable scientific sources. Articles published under this byline reflect a collaborative editorial process that may include research, source verification, fact-checking, writing, and editing, rather than the work of a single author. Science News Today takes editorial responsibility for content published under this byline. For more information about our standards and practices, please see our Editorial Policy.

Articles by Science News Today

The Technology That Could Rewrite Human Destiny

The Technology That Could Rewrite Human Destiny

istockphoto-1138637857-612×612

The Mind’s War Between Desire and Discipline

Tharsis with belemnites in their mouths and gill apparatus from the Solnhofen Archipelago. a) J. Geppert specimen from the Eichstätt or Solnhofen Basin. Credit: J. Geppert and procured with permission by J. Geppert). b) S. Schäfer specimen from the Eichstätt Basin. S. Schäfer and procured with permission by S. Schäfer. a) Gebbert and b) Schäfer in Ebert and Kölbl-Ebert 2025

The Fish That Choked on Ancient Squid and Fossilized Its Last Breath

From complete bones to tiny fragments. At the Neumark-Nord 2/2B sites, imported bones were initially smashed open to extract marrow from the hollow cavities (see A; arrows indicate hammerstone impacts on an aurochs humerus). Afterward, the bones were crushed and chopped into smaller pieces (shown in B to F, again from a humerus as seen in A) to facilitate the extraction of grease from both the spongy and compact bone tissue. Approximately 2,000 tiny bone fragments accidentally came into contact with fire after boiling, resulting in typical coloration (ranging from dark brown and black to white) and texture commonly found in heated bones. Credit: Kindler, LEIZA-Monrepos

Neanderthals Had a Secret Fat Factory That Helped Them Survive the Ice Age

Unfolded energy spectra of SXP31.0. Credit: arXiv (2025). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2506.19601

The Star That Defies Physics Pulses with Mysterious Cosmic Rhythm

Just 15 minutes after its closest approach to Pluto on July 14, 2015, NASA's New Horizons spacecraft looked back toward the sun and captured this near-sunset view of the rugged, icy mountains and flat ice plains extending to Pluto's horizon. The smooth expanse of the informally named icy plain Sputnik Planum (right) is flanked to the west (left) by rugged mountains up to 11,000 feet (3,500 meters) high, including the informally named Norgay Montes in the foreground and Hillary Montes on the skyline. To the right, east of Sputnik, rougher terrain is cut by apparent glaciers. The backlighting highlights more than a dozen layers of haze in Pluto's tenuous but distended atmosphere. The image was taken from a distance of 11,000 miles (18,000 kilometers) to Pluto; the scene is 780 miles (1,250 kilometers) wide. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute

A Spacecraft Just Took a Celestial Selfie That Proved a 200-Year-Old Theory

Credit: NASA

This Forgotten Star Cluster Could Hold Secrets of the Milky Way’s Past

When the periderm is wounded ethylene escapes and oxygen enters through the injury site. These changes act as warning signals that trigger the plant to begin regenerating the periderm. Credit: Alexey Shapiguzov

Plants Don’t Have Nerves But They Know When They’re Hurt

The eruption of the underwater Hunga volcano emitted the highest plume of ash ever recorded—an event that was visible from Earth-observing satellites. Credit: NOAA

The Underwater Eruption That Suffocated the Deep Sea

istockphoto-1343554467-612×612

Bumble Bees Are Eating the Wrong Foods and It’s Hurting Their Health

A table top experiment typical of the setup. The size is more or less equal to the size of an ordinary dining table. Credit: Ola Jakup Joensen

The Tiny Quantum Machine That Could Hear the Universe and Heal the Body

Illustration depicting the formation of TTGs in a two-stage mantle plume-sagduction model. Credit: Science Advances (2025). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adr9513

Scientists Discover a Hidden Force That Built Early Earth

discovery-alert-scient

Two Hidden Planets Discovered Dancing in a Cosmic Merry-Go-Round

pig-kidney-transplant

This Pig Kidney Survived in a Human Body for 61 Days and Changed Everything

Woman hand checking lumps on her breast for signs of breast cancer on white background. Healthcare concept. Cancer self check; healthy girl.

One Hormone Combo Raises Cancer Risk While Another May Lower It

Two-photon microscopy captures axonal segments in a living brain, enabling researchers to quantify structural changes in specialized areas under noninvasive low-intensity repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). A zoomed-out survey of the brain area (A) shows complex networks of neurons, visible via fluorescent marker. Insets (B and C) show specialized axonal endings (termed "boutons") where synapses form. TB axon: "terminaux boutons" are short protrusions from the axon shaft typically connecting neurons in a local area. EPB axon: "en passant boutons" are small bead-like structures along axons typically connecting distal regions. Credit: B. Fulopova (Queen's University).

Magnetic Brain Pulses Awaken Lost Connections in Alzheimer’s

g-neuron-56a792cd5f9b58b7d0ebd043

The Brain’s Sugar Secret Could Be the Key to Beating Alzheimer’s

Cytomegalovirus. Credit: CDC/Dr. Edwin P. Ewing, Jr. (PHIL #958), 1982.

The Secret Door That Lets a Silent Virus Harm Newborns

istockphoto-533998615-612×612

Your Gut Might Be Behind Your Binge Eating and Diet Struggles

hippocampus

What Are Memories Made Of If Even Neuroscientists Can’t Agree

Woman suffering migraine and complaining sitting on a couch at home

The Weight Loss Medication That Might Stop Migraines

Imagine a tool to measure how fast you're aging… while you're still reasonably healthy. From a single MRI of your head, researchers can measure your aging rate and predict your risk of dementia and disability years into the future, while you might still have a shot at improving your health. Credit: Ethan Whitman, Duke University

Your Brain Holds the Secret to How Long You’ll Stay Healthy

MitoTRACER for lineage tracing of cell–cell transfer of mitochondria. Credit: Nature (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09176-8

How Cancer Steals Power from Nerves to Spread Through the Body

Neurons stained for lipid droplets. Credit: Ryan lab

Your Brain Burns Fat When It’s Hungry for Thoughts

ImageForNews_813514_17514285688096538

Plastic Found in Human Reproductive Fluids Sparks Alarming Questions

lab-grown-tiny-hearts

Scientists Grow Mini Human Hearts That Could Transform Medicine

3D Illustration Concept of Human Respiratory System Lungs Anatomy

Why Non-Smokers Are Getting Lung Cancer at Alarming Rates

Graphical abstract. Credit: Cell (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2025.06.001

Scientists Discover a Natural Molecule That Fights Inflammation and Aging Like Exercise

Graphical abstract. Credit: Cell Metabolism (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2025.05.011

Scientists Discover a Hormone in Fat That Extends Lifespan in Obese Mice

istockphoto-74409357-612×612

Scientists Discover the Secret Healing Power Hidden Inside Your Cheek