discoveries

Read the latest news stories about recent scientific discoveries on Newser.com

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Wreck of Ship That Tried to Warn the Titanic Is Found

SS Mesaba was hit by a German torpedo in the Irish Sea years later

(Newser) - The Titanic has long slumbered on the seabed—as has the ship that sent the Titanic an iceberg warning hours before the Titanic fatefully hit that very thing in 1912. Now, researchers have identified the resting spot of the SS Mesaba, which was hit by a German torpedo in the...

Man&#39;s Best Friend May Be Able to Sniff Out Your Stress
Stressed Out?
Your Pooch
May Be Able
to Smell It
NEW STUDY

Stressed Out? Your Pooch May Be Able to Smell It

New research shows canines can use their noses to detect changes in human breath, sweat samples

(Newser) - Dogs are known for their olfactory superpowers , leading to jobs as drug sniffers and as helpers in search and rescue efforts. Now, those sensitive noses are being credited with something closer to home: being able to detect when their owners are stressed. New research published Wednesday in PLOS One notes...

Half of World&#39;s Palm Trees Face Extinction
Half of World's
Palm Trees
Go On the
'Red List'
new study

Half of World's Palm Trees Go On the 'Red List'

Which means they're at risk of extinction

(Newser) - A new study presents an alarming stat about what researchers call a "keystone" family of trees—more than half of the world's species of palm trees face extinction. The study in Nature Ecology and Evolution finds that more than 1,000 of the 1,900 different species are...

In Your Job Hunt, &#39;Weak Ties&#39; May Be Key
On the Hunt for a Job?
'Weak Ties' May Help
NEW STUDY

On the Hunt for a Job? 'Weak Ties' May Help

New LinkedIn research shows you're most likely to get a new gig through casual acquaintances

(Newser) - Job seekers try to take advantage of every possible "in" they might have at a company, and, in line with the maxim of "it's who you know," it might seem like having a family member or best buddy embedded at a potential employer could be the...

There&#39;s an Optimal Way to Take a Pill
There's an
Optimal Way
to Take a Pill
in case you missed it

There's an Optimal Way to Take a Pill

Do it lying down, on your right side

(Newser) - If your answer to "how do you take a pill?" is "with water," it may be time to make your process a little more sophisticated. Johns Hopkins University researchers explored how your posture when taking a pill impacts the body's absorption of the medication. It turns...

Think Your Fetus Liked That Salad You Ate? Check the Scan

Ultrasound facial expressions differed depending on if moms-to-be were given kale or carrot capsules

(Newser) - New moms often insist that their infants respond positively to the same music they used to hear in the womb—could the same go for food that their mothers ate while they were still in utero? Scientists out of the UK's Durham University are now wondering the same, after...

1962 Recordings Catch Rising Star Streisand, Then 20

Nightclub shows by the future star will be released

(Newser) - A series of 1962 performances by Barbra Streisand at a Manhattan nightclub before she became a superstar have been remastered and will be released this fall, per the AP . Barbra Streisand—Live at the Bon Soir features songs from a three-night stint at the Bon Soir nightclub in Greenwich Village....

The Number of Ants on Earth Is Basically 'Unimaginable'

Try 20 quadrillion

(Newser) - If you've ever dealt with an ant invasion in your kitchen and bemoaned the number of ants that seem to exist, a new study can bring some specificity to your complaints. As Science reports, there had been no reliable estimate of the number of ants currently on the planet....

Don't Pat Yourself on the Back Just Yet for That Half-Hour Run

Researchers warn 30-minute daily exercise may not make up for sitting around the rest of the day

(Newser) - If you refuse to identify as a "couch potato" because of that half-hour workout you diligently slip in each day, despite the fact that you're sedentary for much of the rest of it, you might actually still be a couch potato—just an "active" one. And what...

Researchers Say This Is How to Get a Crying Baby to Sleep

Researchers recommend a process that takes 10 to 13 minutes

(Newser) - For any parent who has wished there was a magic solution to get their crying newborn back to sleep, good news: Japanese researchers say they've found it. In a study published Tuesday in Current Biology , researchers sum up the crux of the issue: "Approximately 20%–30% of infants...

This Is a &#39;Wake-Up Call&#39; on Danger of Air Pollution
This Is a 'Wake-Up Call'
on Danger of Air Pollution
NEW STUDY

This Is a 'Wake-Up Call' on Danger of Air Pollution

Researchers discover how fine particulate matter triggers gene mutations to form lung cancer

(Newser) - For some of us, cells in our lungs mutate with age. These mutations seem perfectly healthy—until they come up against air pollution. The result is rapid changes in the cells that turn them cancerous, which could explain why people who've never smoked still develop lung cancer, according to...

In This Tiny Excavated Tooth Lie 'Enormous' Implications

1.8M-year-old tooth found in Caucasus region may be sign of oldest human settlement outside of Africa

(Newser) - Two decades ago, two fossilized, almost complete 1.8-million-year-old skulls belonging to prehistoric humans Zezva and Mzia were discovered in Dmanisi, a couple of hours from the Georgian capital of Tbilisi. Now, a new find that "cements the region as the home of one of the earliest prehistoric human...

This Is Why Your Brain Logs a Memory as Happy or Sad
Brain Discovery May Be
a Breakthrough on Memories
new study

Brain Discovery May Be a Breakthrough on Memories

Molecule called neurotensin appears to decide whether a memory is logged as good or bad

(Newser) - Brain researchers appear to have figured out precisely how our brains store a particular memory as either good or bad—and the discovery could have implications for the treatment of everything from depression to PTSD. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California say it all comes down...

Centuries Ago, They Buried Her With a Sickle and Padlock

17th-century locals in Poland apparently thought the woman was a vampire

(Newser) - Archaeologists who discovered a 17th-century grave in Poland found three telltale clues about the buried woman: She had protruding front teeth, a padlock around her big toe, and a sickle placed strategically over her throat. Conclusion: People thought she was a vampire and buried her with the lock and sickle...

Wife's Sharp Nose Leads to New Test for Parkinson's

Joy Milne noticed her husband smelled different before his official diagnosis

(Newser) - A relatively simple way to detect Parkinson's might be possible thanks to a Scottish woman's unusually sharp sense of smell. As the BBC reports, researchers at the UK's University of Manchester say their newly developed skin-swab test proved to be 95% accurate in a new study published...

Stone Age Skeleton&#39;s Missing Foot Is Notable
Skeleton's
Missing Foot
'Rewrites History'
new study

Skeleton's Missing Foot 'Rewrites History'

Amputation suggests humans were making medical advances much earlier than thought

(Newser) - The 31,000-year-old skeleton of a young adult found in a cave in Indonesia that is missing its left foot and part of its left leg reveals the oldest known evidence of an amputation, according to a new study. Scientists say the amputation was performed when the person was a...

Researchers Reveal 'Devastating' COVID Consequence for Kids

It's estimated that 10.5M children lost parent, caregiver to disease during pandemic

(Newser) - Last year, numbers emerged showing an estimated 5.2 million children had lost a parent or caregiver to COVID through October. Now, a "heartbreaking" update on that toll, per a new global study that finds almost 8 million kids 18 and under were left grieving one or both parents...

Baboons May Not Like Our Prying Eyes
Baboons May
Not Like Our
Prying Eyes
new study

Baboons May Not Like Our Prying Eyes

Study finds they had more sex at safari when the public was locked out during pandemic

(Newser) - When the public was locked out from zoos during the pandemic, did the animals miss their human visitors or welcome the peace? UK researchers set out to answer that question, and while they didn't settle on a definitive answer, they did find some interesting changes in behavior, reports the...

Couple Finds Out Home Is 'One Hell of a Piggy Bank'

UK pair discovered 18th-century gold coins worth up to $290K under their kitchen floor

(Newser) - Home renovations can be nerve-wracking: You never know what you're going to unearth underneath the old plaster and wood as you make way for the new. For a UK couple, their discovery was more shocking than most: a container filled with 18th-century coins that could end up selling at...

NASA Gizmo Is Able to Make Oxygen on Mars
Toaster-Size Box Makes
Oxygen on Mars
new study

Toaster-Size Box Makes Oxygen on Mars

MOXIE offers hope of clearing a big hurdle for manned missions

(Newser) - The comparisons are small scale at the moment: A device the size of a toaster generated oxygen comparable to that of a modest tree. But given that this took place on Mars, the implications are of the large-scale variety. In a study published in Science Advances , NASA researchers report that...

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