discoveries

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

Stories 581 - 600 | << Prev   Next >>

Study: McCandless May Have Been a Victim of Bad Timing

Researchers: River he tried, failed to cross may have been passable a day before, after

(Newser) - A study on the hydrology of Alaska's Teklanika River in the summer of 1992 might seem like a subject that would have limited appeal—were it not for the young man who tried and failed to cross it. That would be Christopher McCandless, whose death that year in the...

A Diss Can Feel Like an Actual Slap in the Face


Insults Can
Feel Just Like
'Mini Slaps'
NEW STUDY
Jul 19, 2022 10:50 AM CDT

Insults Can Feel Just Like 'Mini Slaps'

Research finds that our brains may be more sensitive to negative words than we realize

(Newser) - If you've ever felt the sting of an insult—as in it almost felt like a literal sting, as if you'd been physically hurt—you're not alone. Gadgets 360 reports on a new study out of the Netherlands' Utrecht University that shows verbal put-downs can feel "...

Study of Orphaned Elephants Surprises Researchers
Study of Orphaned Elephants
Surprises Researchers
new study
Jul 18, 2022 10:30 AM CDT

Study of Orphaned Elephants Surprises Researchers

If they stay with a pack, they don't seem to be stressed out more than non-orphaned peers

(Newser) - Researchers who set out to measure the stress levels of orphaned elephants expected to see sky-high levels because of the particularly strong bond evident between mother elephants and their offspring. "Until age 8 or 9, elephants are rarely more than 10 meters from their mother," Jenna Parker of...

Cheers if You're Over 40. Not So Fast if You're Younger

New analysis finds there's no benefit and only increased health risks for young adults who drink

(Newser) - First scientists told us that young adults shouldn't drink alone ; now they're saying they shouldn't drink at all. At least, that's the conclusion of new research out of Seattle's University of Washington, which is part of the ongoing "Global Burden of Diseases" study carried...

Research Refutes Common Theory on Woodpeckers
Research Refutes Common
Theory on Woodpeckers
new study
Jul 15, 2022 9:44 AM CDT

Research Refutes Common Theory on Woodpeckers

Birds don't have a natural 'shock absorber' to protect their brains

(Newser) - Why don't woodpeckers knock themselves loopy when bashing their head against a tree? For years, the prevailing wisdom has been that they have some kind of natural shock absorber in their skulls to protect their brains, explains NPR . But a new study in Current Biology refutes the idea. By...

At Famous Battle Site, an 'Incredibly Rare' Find

Complete skeleton of likely soldier found alongside horse bones near site of Waterloo

(Newser) - Finding human remains at the site of a famous battle isn't usually very surprising. But it is in the case of the Battle of Waterloo, which ended Napoleon's rule as emperor of France. Though up to 20,000 men died in the battle in modern-day Belgium on June...

Young People Who Drink Solo, Take Heed of This Study

Study finds young solitary drinkers at increased risk for alcoholism in mid-30s

(Newser) - The manner in which you drink alcohol as a young person might be more important than how much you drink in determining future alcoholism risk, according to new research that warns against drinking alone in early life, especially if you're a young female. Researchers analyzed data from 4,500...

Feeling 'Hangry'? Scientists Say You're Not Imagining It

New research ties hunger to negative emotional states like irritability, anger, lower pleasure

(Newser) - That growing rage you feel the later you put off lunch hour—what has become colloquially known as being "hangry"—likely isn't just in your head. Austrian and Malaysian researchers have found that a lack of sustenance actually does seem to make people cranky, and it all...

Largest Water Lily Species Hid in Plain Sight for 2 Centuries
Largest Water Lily
Was Hiding in Plain Sight
NEW STUDY
Jul 6, 2022 7:59 AM CDT

Largest Water Lily Was Hiding in Plain Sight

Study describes the massive Victoria boliviana, kept at a botanical garden in London since 1845

(Newser) - A royal botanical garden is just the place you'd expect to find the world's largest species of water lily. But until recently, officials at London's Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, were unaware that the species previously unknown to science, though well known to the indigenous peoples of the...

This Could Change Theory on the Origin of Humankind

Australopithecus africanus fossils in South Africa are a million years older than we thought

(Newser) - The earliest species of human is thought to have evolved from East Africa based on fossil findings, including that of the famous Lucy, an Australopithecus afarensis who lived in what is now Ethiopia some 3.2 million years ago. But that theory might now be shifting thanks to new findings...

One Weird Factor in Friendships: Body Odor
One Weird Factor in
Friendships: Body Odor
new study
Jun 27, 2022 9:35 AM CDT

One Weird Factor in Friendships: Body Odor

Study suggests we gravitate to people who smell like us

(Newser) - Qualities you might seek in a friend: loyalty, honesty, and ... a similar body odor to your own? A new study suggests the latter is a factor, even if we're not aware of it, reports the New York Times . When we meet new people, we sometimes feel an “immediate...

Divers Find Long-Lost Head of Hercules
Divers Make
Herculean Find
at Antikythera
Wreck
in case you missed it
Jun 26, 2022 7:35 AM CDT

Divers Make Herculean Find at Antikythera Wreck

Once giant boulders were removed, head of Hercules statue found in 1900 emerged

(Newser) - Marine archaeologists have better access to the world's richest ancient shipwreck after boulders were lifted from the Roman-era Antikythera wreck that yielded the famous Antikythera Mechanism calculator, revealing new treasures within. In addition to human teeth, the lead weight for an anchor, iron nails, and the base of a...

Miner's Surprise Find: 'She's Perfect and She's Beautiful'

Mummified baby woolly mammoth found in Canada is first such discovery in North America

(Newser) - He might have hoped to strike a rich vein of gold in Canada's Yukon. Instead, a miner there discovered something that has paleontologists' jaws dropping: the mummified remains of a baby woolly mammoth. It's the first time a fully preserved specimen has been discovered in North America and...

Texas Explorer Finds the Deepest Shipwreck Ever

USS Samuel B. Roberts went down in WWII fighting Japanese warships in Philippine Sea

(Newser) - In its determined last stand in October 1944, the Sammy B took on the Japanese during a World War II battle that eventually sent it down to the ocean floor. The US Navy destroyer (official name: the USS Samuel B. Roberts) remained lost to humankind for nearly 80 more years—...

What a 10-Second Balance Test Says About Your Lifespan

Failing test may indicate increased risk of death

(Newser) - Medical researchers have identified a striking correlation between balance and longevity, per NBC News, citing a study published Tuesday in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Researchers tracked 1,700 adults ages 51 to 75 for 12 years. During regular checkups, participants were given three chances to balance on one...

Researchers Work to Improve Screen Time for ... Monkeys

Encounters with audio, visual stimuli to help build better 'interactive enrichment systems'

(Newser) - Saki monkeys may prefer to listen to music more than the rain and appear more keen to watch underwater scenes than those featuring earthly worms, according to new research, which combined monkeys, screens, and speakers. Researchers at Scotland's University of Glasgow and Finland's Aalto University set up a...

Wreck That May Have Inspired The Goonies Is Found

Discovery of hull timbers in Oregon sea caves echoes Spielberg's cult classic

(Newser) - Remains of a legendary 17th-century shipwreck that reportedly inspired the cult classic The Goonies have been found—though not by a band of hilarious misfits. Pieces of the hull of the Spanish galleon Santo Cristo de Burgos were raised from sea caves in a state-protected area of Manzanita, Oregon, this...

Scientists May Have Solved a Mystery of the Plague
Black Death May
Have Started Here
NEW STUDY
Jun 16, 2022 12:24 PM CDT

Black Death May Have Started Here

Researchers believe 700-year-old teeth point to what is now Kyrgyzstan

(Newser) - Researchers say they've discovered "when and where the single most notorious and infamous killer of humans began." They're referring to the Black Death, or bubonic plague, which is thought to have wiped out tens of millions of people in Europe, Asia, and North Africa during...

Frog Mystery Surfaces at Iron Age Settlement
Frog Mystery
Surfaces at
Iron Age
Settlement
new study
Jun 15, 2022 3:58 PM CDT

Frog Mystery Surfaces at Iron Age Settlement

Archaeologists can't explain their bones at ancient site

(Newser) - Excavations carried out ahead of highway work in England have revealed a mass grave full of … long-dead frogs. Experts are at a loss to explain the mass of 8,000 bones from roughly 350 frogs and toads, found buried in a long ditch beside an excavated roundhouse at Bar...

Sleep Is Better When a Partner Shares the Bed
Sleep Is Better When
a Partner Shares the Bed
new study
Jun 13, 2022 11:39 AM CDT

Sleep Is Better When a Partner Shares the Bed

New study suggests overall better scores from couples than single sleepers

(Newser) - For those trying to get a better night's sleep, a new study suggests one more tip: Share the bed with a romantic partner. Generally speaking, couples get better sleep than singletons, according to the University of Arizona study . Researchers looked at about 1,000 people who self-reported their sleeping...

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