discoveries

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

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Southernmost Polar Bears Await the Death Knell
Southernmost
Polar Bears Await
the Death Knell
NEW STUDY
Jun 18, 2024 10:20 AM CDT

Southernmost Polar Bears Await the Death Knell

Populations in Canada's Hudson Bay to disappear by 2060s, according to new research

(Newser) - The world's southernmost polar bears could disappear within years due to warming temperatures, a bad omen for the rest of their brethren, researchers warn in a new report. Polar bears have long found a home on Canada's Hudson Bay, the largest northern inland sea, whose shallow waters freeze...

Recently Discovered Papyrus Details a 5-Year-Old Jesus

It's a brief, 'clumsy' letter, but researchers say it's oldest known copy of gospel about Jesus as a child

(Newser) - Experts in ancient documents have discovered the oldest known copy of a gospel detailing Jesus' childhood, text originally written some 200 years after his death. The manuscript itself, a passage from the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, which lies outside the accepted canon of Scripture, is dated to the fourth or...

Wreck That Ended the 'Heroic Age of Exploration' Is Found
Long-Lost Shackleton
Vessel Is Found
Jun 12, 2024 12:00 PM CDT

Long-Lost Shackleton Vessel Is Found

Quest, the last ship helmed by the adventurer, is discovered off Canada's east coast

(Newser) - Though not as famous as Ernest Shackleton's Endurance, one of the most sought-after shipwrecks in the world before its 2022 discovery , the sunken ship on which the Antarctic explorer made his final voyage has now been discovered, too. Quest, on which Shackleton suffered a fatal heart attack while trying...

On Island of Crete, an 'Extremely Interesting' Find

Archaeologists unearth 4K-year-old building from Minoan civilization; airport project may be disrupted

(Newser) - A big, round, 4,000-year-old stone building discovered on a Crete hilltop is puzzling archaeologists and threatening to disrupt a major airport project on the Greek tourist island. Greece's Culture Ministry said Tuesday the structure is a "unique and extremely interesting find" from Crete's Minoan civilization, famous...

Elephants Seem to Call Each Other by Name
'Name' Discovery Surprises
Elephant Researchers
new study
Jun 10, 2024 2:19 PM CDT

'Name' Discovery Surprises Elephant Researchers

Study suggests the animals call each other by name via low rumblings

(Newser) - A new study suggests a remarkable trait of elephants: They appear to call each other by distinct names, which would be a first in the animal kingdom outside humans, reports the New York Times . Researchers studying elephants at two national reserves in Kenya suggest that the animals voice the names...

With Great Ape Discovery, a Possible Evolutionary Bombshell

Study suggests Europe was a hotbed for great ape evolution, and possible cradle of humanity

(Newser) - For the first time, researchers have found evidence that two distinct species of great apes coexisted outside of Africa many millions of years ago. It's an important, though contested, discovery that suggests European ecosystems in the Miocene Epoch, from about 23 million to 5 million years ago, "enabled,...

Nation's 'Tornado Alley' Is Shifting to the East
'Tornado Alley' Isn't
Where It Used to Be
new study
Jun 10, 2024 7:54 AM CDT

'Tornado Alley' Isn't Where It Used to Be

Study suggests it's shifting from the Great Plains to the Deep South

(Newser) - If the Wizard of Oz were written today, Dorothy might be trying to get home to Tennessee instead of Kansas. The reason? A new study suggests the nation's "Tornado Alley" has been gradually shifting to the east and south , reports CBS News . Decades ago, most tornadoes took place...

Sweetener Tied to Bigger Risk of Heart Attack, Stroke

Cleveland Clinic researchers warn about xylitol

(Newser) - An artificial sweetener used in baked goods, sugar-free candy and gum, and even toothpaste is tied to increased cardiovascular disease, per a series of new studies out of the Cleveland Clinic. In the research published Thursday in the European Heart Journal , scientists note that the sugar substitute xylitol, often used...

Boys' Find of a Lifetime: T. Rex
Boys' Find of a Lifetime: T. Rex
Jun 5, 2024 11:35 AM CDT

Boys' Find of a Lifetime: T. Rex

Now the fossil is starring in a Denver museum exhibit and a documentary

(Newser) - Two young brothers and their cousin were wandering a fossil-rich stretch of the North Dakota Badlands when they made a discovery that left them "completely speechless": a T. rex bone poking out of the ground. As the AP reports, the trio announced their discovery publicly Monday as workers at...

Gene Therapy Offers 'Astounding' Results in Deaf Kids

Small group of children in China see marked improvement in hearing after a gene mutation fix

(Newser) - A handful of children in China are experiencing sound for the first time, thanks to scientists who employed gene therapy to help alleviate their hereditary hearing issues. The Guardian reports on the "astounding" research, published Wednesday in Nature Medicine , in which doctors at Shanghai's Fudan University treated five...

Most Hollywood Flicks Fail a 'Climate Reality Check'

New research shows that majority of films don't accurately reflect current climate crisis

(Newser) - Aquaman may not mind if the oceans rise, but moviegoers might. That's one of the takeaways from a new study conducted by researchers who set out to determine if today's Hollywood blockbusters are reflective of the current climate crisis. The vast majority of movies failed the "climate...

Lead Author of Study on Girls and Periods: 'It Alarms Us'
Lead Author of Study on
Girls and Periods: 'It Alarms Us'
in case you missed it
Jun 2, 2024 7:01 AM CDT

Lead Author of Study on Girls and Periods: 'It Alarms Us'

Over the last 50 years, US girls are getting their periods earlier and not as regularly

(Newser) - If you've anecdotally heard American girls are getting their periods earlier than they did in decades past, you heard correctly. A study published Wednesday in JAMA Network Open surveyed 71,000 women who were born between 1950 and 2005. The researchers from Harvard and the National Institute of Environmental...

Binge-Eating Disorder Dogs Sufferers Longer Than Thought

Study finds almost half of sufferers were still experiencing it 5 years later

(Newser) - While anorexia and bulimia are arguably more talked about, binge-eating disorder is actually the most common eating disorder in the US. And as researchers explain, it's apparently been a misunderstood one. A five-year study from researchers with McLean Hospital (part of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system) has found...

Exploration Has Begun on 'Holy Grail of Shipwrecks'
Deep in the Caribbean,
an 'Unprecedented'
Mission Is Underway
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jun 1, 2024 11:40 AM CDT

Deep in the Caribbean, an 'Unprecedented' Mission Is Underway

Colombian government begins exploring Spain's San Jose galleon, the 'holy grail of shipwrecks'

(Newser) - In June of 1708, the Spanish galleon San Jose was attacked by the British Royal Navy and sank in the Caribbean off the coast of Cartagena, resting on the ocean floor with a reputed $20 billion in treasure on board. Only a handful of the 600 or so men on...

Unusual Alzheimer's Predictor: A Falling Credit Score

Study suggests people start making bad financial decisions long before diagnosis

(Newser) - Warning signs of impending Alzheimer's usually focus on the physical—memory slips and the like. A new study out of Georgetown, however, suggests that a declining credit score might also be a sign of trouble:
  • People were 17% more likely to fall behind on their mortgage payments a year
...

When Humans First Treated Cancer Just Got a Big Update

Cut marks around brain lesions in 4K-year-old Egyptian skull suggest surgical intervention

(Newser) - A new study describes a potential awe-inspiring achievement of the ancient Egyptian civilization far apart from the pyramids. According to the research, ancient Egyptians may have been the first to explore and treat cancer. The finding is based on two skulls discovered in Giza and held at the University of...

Scientists Find Evidence of 'Age of Monotremes'
Scientists Find Evidence
of 'Age of Monotremes'
NEW STUDY
May 28, 2024 10:50 AM CDT

Scientists Find Evidence of 'Age of Monotremes'

A diversity of platypus-like creatures roamed Australia some 100M years ago

(Newser) - There are exactly five existing egg-laying mammals, or monotremes: the platypus and four echidna species, all native to Australia and New Guinea. According to new research, they're the last survivors of a diverse set of species that roamed the southern continents during the time of the dinosaurs. The Lightning...

Crows Appear to Be Able to Count Out Loud
Crows Appear to Be Able
to Count Out Loud
new study
May 27, 2024 7:42 AM CDT

Crows Appear to Be Able to Count Out Loud

New study observes what would be a first among animals, besides us humans

(Newser) - Scientists have long known that crows are smart. But a new study suggests they possess the ability to count out loud—a first for an animal species other than humans, reports Live Science . In fact, the crows appear to be pretty good at it, on par with human toddlers, per...

This Ozempic Study Went So Well That It Was Stopped Early

Research finds semaglutide can cut risk of serious illness, death in those with diabetes, kidney disease

(Newser) - Semaglutide , the medication found in such brands as Ozempic and Wegovy, has become the drug of choice lately for weight loss. A new study, however, suggests it can also bring other significant benefits to users, including slashing the risk of serious kidney complications, heart problems, and even death in...

His Wine Cellar Was a Mammoth Graveyard

Austrian archaeologists call it the 'find of the century'

(Newser) - An Austrian man renovating his wine cellar found something a lot older than any riesling. Winemaker Andreas Pernerstorfer discovered enormous bones that came from at least three woolly mammoths, the BBC reports. He reported the find to authorities, and the cellar was excavated by the Austrian Archaeological Institute, which called...

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