Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

NEWS ABOUT: science

Stories 1 - 20 |  Next >>

Switch to grid view »

Coming to Google Street View: Galapagos Islands

Google captures panoramic views of remote and inaccessible areas

(AP) - If you've ever wished you could visit the Galapagos Islands, you'll soon get the chance to see the remote volcanic islands from the comfort of your own home. Google sent hikers to the area complete with Street View gear to capture panoramic views of even the most inaccessible... More »

How Cockroaches Lost Their Sweet Tooth—Fast

Glucose-averse roaches emerged in as few as 5 years: study

(Newser) - We're not so lucky as to have a genetic mutation that keeps us away from sugar—but that's the case with some cockroaches, which scientists reveal have quickly evolved in a way that keeps them away from glucose, a popular ingredient in roach-poison bait. That cockroaches have grown... More »

Los Alamos Has Ultra-Secure 'Quantum Internet'

Researchers have been using it for more than 2 years

(Newser) - The concept of a "quantum Internet" is like the holy grail of online security—any such system would guarantee that all communication is safe. Now it appears that researchers at Los Alamos have made real progress: They've been using an uber-secure system of their own design for about... More »

Meet RoboBee, World's Smallest Flying Robot

Harvard's robotic fly is about the size of a dime

(Newser) - The Guardian calls it the "smallest flying robot in the world," DVice has it as the "world's smallest aerial drone," and USA Today settles for "electronic housefly." By whichever name, the dime-sized device by Harvard scientists is amazing. (They call it "RoboBee,... More »

Studies Suggest Our View of Cancer Is Outdated

It's not about a particular organ, it's about gene mutations

(Newser) - Two major studies of common cancers have zeroed in on the particular gene mutations associated with both, a breakthrough that could lead to better treatment for those with acute myeloid leukemia and endometrial cancer, reports the Boston Globe . But the studies also lend credence to a broader idea: that our... More »

Dark Matter News Might Be Space Station's Finest Hour

Experiment there yields what may be the first glimpse of the stuff

(Newser) - Astronomers are plenty excited today over the news that an experiment aboard the International Space Station may have caught the first glimpse of dark matter. You know, the "mysterious substance that may hold the cosmos together," in the words of USA Today . Or the "mysterious dark matter... More »

Sex-Ed Teacher in Trouble for Teaching Sex-Ed

Among the complaints in Idaho district: using the word 'vagina'

(Newser) - An Idaho science teacher is being investigated by the state over the content of his 10th-grade biology class. Complaints about Tim McDaniel by scandalized Dietrich school parents include: using the word "vagina," talking about orgasms, showing a video clip of genital herpes, and teaching different forms of birth... More »

Obesity Is on Your Breath

Microrganisms in gut give off faint scent, says study

(Newser) - Obesity may have a scent—and it isn't Chicken McNuggets. A new study has found that people with higher levels of methane and hydrogen on their breath tend to be fatter, thanks to gas-emitting microorganisms that live in our gut and may contribute to weight gain, reports Time . More »

In a First, Scientists Track Blue Whales by Song

Researchers able to zero in on mammoth creatures for study

(Newser) - Blue whales may be the planet's biggest creature, but that doesn't mean they're easy to track and study. This should help, however: Australian researchers on the Southern Ocean were able to get around what one called the "needle in a haystack" problem by dropping acoustic buoys... More »

Liberals Are Also Waging a 'War on Science'

Both sides eschew science when it suits them: Michael Shermer

(Newser) - Conventional wisdom holds that Republicans, not Democrats, are waging a war on science. But "there's a liberal war on science" too, writes Michael Shermer in Scientific American . Yes, it's true that 58% of conservatives believe humans were created, by God, in the past 10,000 years. But... More »

'Absolute Zero' May Not Be Coldest Temperature

Study suggests Kelvin scale isn't absolute after all

(Newser) - Science students learn that the coldest theoretical temperature isn't found on either the Fahrenheit or Celsius scales, but on the Kelvin scale—at "absolute zero," the point at which even atoms stop moving around. That might change, thanks to German physicists, though you might need a working... More »

Asia Still Kicking Our Kids' Butts in Math, Science

Singapore dominates, according to new testing results

(Newser) - The results of new testing are, unfortunately, more of the same: US kids remain behind a host of other countries in math and science, specifically those in East Asia. American fourth-graders rank 11th in math and 7th in science, while eighth-graders are 9th in math and 10th in science. Leading... More »

Why the Earth's Age Does, Actually, Matter in Politics

Paul Krugman: Republican Party becoming increasingly 'anti-rational'

(Newser) - When Marco Rubio deflected a question about the Earth's age recently, the Florida senator argued that such issues have nothing to do with politics—but he's wrong, writes Paul Krugman in the New York Times . Let's not forget that Rubio himself once "provided powerful aid to... More »

'Bionic Man' to Climb Skyscraper

He'll walk up all 103 flights to show off the new prosthetic leg

(Newser) - This Sunday, when Zac Vawter thinks "climb the stairs," he'll take the first step in what could be a very big development for prosthetic science. Vawter lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident in 2009, and has since been fitted with a prototype of the first... More »

Italy May Be Home to 'Dumbest Court in the World'

Earthquake verdict recalls Galileo for many

(Newser) - An Italian court has convicted six scientists for failing to predict a deadly earthquake, which, congratulations, puts it in the running for "dumbest court in the world," reads the headline to a post by Elie Mystal at the Above the Law blog. Prosecutors blamed the six for providing... More »

Science, Brought to You By...

Red Bull Stratos could mark new age of advertising

(Newser) - When Felix Baumgartner jumped from the edge of space wearing prominent Red Bull logos on his spacesuit, advertising CEO Larry Woodard got excited. Could we, he asks in a column for ABC News , be on the verge of a new age of ad-sponsored science? "Red Bull stayed right on... More »

Nobel Winner Was 'Too Stupid for Science'

Schoolmaster urged stem-cell pioneer John Gurdon to study something else

(Newser) - Academic underachievers everywhere can take heart from the story of John Gurdon, the British professor who won this year's Nobel prize for medicine —64 years after being told it would be a "sheer waste of time" for him to study science. When he was 15, Gurdon was... More »

GOP Rep Blasts Evolution as Lie ‘Straight From Pit of Hell’

Paul Broun tells church group science meant to keep people from their savior

(Newser) - Rep. Paul Broun, a Georgia Republican and medical doctor whose musings on the president have landed him on the House Wingnut Index , is mincing no words on his views on evolution, reports Talking Points Memo . “God's word is true. All that stuff I was taught about evolution and... More »

Scientists Hunt for Smallest Objects in Existence

Superstring theory could help us measure one

(Newser) - The tiniest thing in the universe is not a grain of sand, as people once thought, nor a proton or neutron, or even a quark or electron—as small as they all are. In fact, experts today balk at naming any point-like object "the smallest" because of a theoretical... More »

'3-Parent Babies' Could Soon Be Legal in UK

Health secretary investigating risks, benefits

(Newser) - As the US continues to grapple with gay marriage, the British may be a step closer to legalizing three-parent babies. It's part of a scientific strategy to help eliminate debilitating genetic problems. The three-parent technique would involve using some healthy DNA from a third party who's not the... More »

Stories 1 - 20 |  Next >>
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Timelines   |   POPSUGAR Tech   |   Business Insider   |   HuffPost Entertainment   |   NewsOne