Birds Beware: The Praying Mantis Wants Your Brain
Science, Yesterday
Scientists have developed a healthy respect for mantises, acrobatic hunters with 3-D vision and voracious appetites.
Sputnik for Sale, if You’ll Settle for a Beeping Replica
Science, Yesterday
Just ahead of the 60th anniversary of the first Earth launch of a satellite, an auction house will take bids on a replica of the shiny Soviet spacecraft.
Mexico City Was Built on an Ancient Lake Bed. That Makes Earthquakes Much Worse.
Interactive, Yesterday
The devastating earthquake on Tuesday was all the more destructive because of Mexico City’s unusual position atop an ancient lake bed.
A Glowing Cotton Study That Might Have Deserved Less Glowing Reviews
Science, September 21
Cotton experts were not impressed with a recent study published by scientists who claimed they created naturally glowing and magnetic cotton.
NASA’s Osiris-Rex Spacecraft Is Headed for a Flyby With Earth
Science, September 21
The spacecraft will make a flyby of Earth on Friday, using the planet’s gravity to steer it toward Bennu, an asteroid it will visit next year.
Why Mexico Is So Prone to Strong Earthquakes
Foreign, September 20
Two powerful quakes, 12 days apart, have killed hundreds of people in Mexico this month. We look at how, where and why the big ones happen.
In Turkey’s New Curriculum, Ataturk, Darwin and Jihad Get Face-Lifts
Foreign, September 18
Critics say the overhaul of more than 170 curriculum topics by the Turkish government represents a frontal assault on the country’s fragile tradition of secularism.
Genes Color a Butterfly’s Wings. Now Scientists Want to Do It Themselves.
Science, September 18
In two new studies, researchers turned to DNA editing to learn how master genes shape the patterns and colors of butterfly wings.
Three Planets Will Slide Behind the Moon in an Occultation
Science, September 17
The moon will momentarily block Venus, then Mars and then Mercury, offering a vivid reminder of the cosmic clockwork of our solar system.
Cassini Is Gone. Here Are the Next Space Missions to Watch Out For.
Science, September 15
Now that Cassini has gone out in a blaze of glory, here's our guide to cosmic missions over the next decade that you should get excited about now.
Cassini Vanishes Into Saturn, Its Mission Celebrated and Mourned
Science, September 14
Orbiting the ringed planet since 2004, the spacecraft solved some mysteries and made discoveries that upended our notions about the solar system.
100 Images From Cassini’s Mission to Saturn
Interactive, September 14
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft burned up in Saturn’s atmosphere on Friday, after 20 years in space.
Test Your Knowledge of Cassini and Its Grand Mission to Saturn
Interactive, September 14
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has been exploring Saturn for the past 13 years. How much do you know about this robotic explorer and the sixth planet from our sun?
What Could We Lose if a NASA Climate Mission Goes Dark?
Magazine, September 12
Researchers are racing to replace the pioneering Grace satellites, which are threatened by both dying batteries and Trump-era budget cuts.
Nicolaas Bloembergen, Who Shared Nobel for Advances With Laser Light, Dies at 97
Obits, September 11
Dr. Bloembergen, who began his studies in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands, showed how laser light transformed the properties of the material it passed through.
Lotfi Zadeh, Father of Mathematical ‘Fuzzy Logic,’ Dies at 96
Obits, September 11
Professor Zadeh sought to apply mathematics to the ambiguous ways people talk, think and interact with the world.
What Does It Cost to Create a Cancer Drug? Less Than You’d Think
Science, September 11
A new study suggests that biotech companies are spending far less than believed on research and development for approved drugs, despite rising prices.
Cassini Flies Toward a Fiery Death on Saturn
Science, September 8
Launched in 1997, the Cassini-Huygens mission has reshaped scientific understanding of the solar system’s most exotic planet and its mysterious moons.
When the Universe Calls
Sunday Business, September 8
He became an astronomer by accident, without ever taking a formal course. It has changed his life.
Why Onions Make You Cry
Science, September 5
Scientists offer a comprehensive look at the chemical warfare that makes us cry when we cut into an onion.
Pondering Voyagers’ Interstellar Journeys, and Our Own
Op Ed, September 5
Forty years ago, we sent two Voyager spacecraft into the cosmos. Will we continue our own journey of discovery?
Jim Bridenstine to Be Nominated by Trump to Lead NASA
Science, September 2
The former Navy pilot is in his third term in Congress and would be the first elected official to serve as NASA administrator if confirmed by the Senate.
The Secret Ingredient That Stops Honeybees From Becoming Queens
Science, August 31
Researchers have identified the molecule from plants that finds its way into the “bee bread” fed to honeybee larvae and determines their destiny.
Casting Light on Mystery of a Star That Vanished After 14 Days
Science, August 30
First spotted by Korean astronomers in 1437, scientists have found it again in the form of a violent star system that experienced a nova explosion.
Forty Years of Voyager
Video, August 30
Long after they have stopped communicating with Earth, the twin Voyager spacecraft will forever drift among the stars.
Hunting Moose in Canada to Save Caribou From Wolves
Science, August 30
Scientists found in the remote rain forests in British Columbia that letting people hunt more moose led to fewer wolves and more endangered mountain caribou.
The Prehistoric Puzzle of How Plesiosaurs Swam Through the Oceans
Science, August 29
As dinosaurs ruled the Earth, these Loch Ness monster-like creatures prowled the oceans with an unusual swimming technique, scientists believe.
Hints of Trigonometry on a 3,700-Year-Old Babylonian Tablet
Science, August 29
Scholars have debated for decades the purpose of 60 numbers written on a small clay tablet. Two Australian mathematicians believe they have figured it out.
George A. Keyworth II, Reagan Science Adviser, Dies at 77
Science, August 28
In the face of stiff opposition, Dr. Keyworth was a strong advocate of the antimissile plan known as Star Wars.
With a Simple DNA Test, Family Histories Are Rewritten
Science, August 28
Widespread DNA testing has shed light on the ancestry of millions of Americans. But these services have limitations, and the results can be uncertain.
With a Drop of Saliva, Family Histories Are Rewritten
Science, August 28
Widespread DNA testing has shed light on the ancestry of millions of Americans. But these services have limitations, and the results can be uncertain.
How Horses Got Their Hooves
Science, August 28
A new study suggests horses lost all but a single toe per foot as they evolved larger bodies and longer legs millions of years ago.
Utah Paleontologists Turn to Crowdfunding for Raptor Project
Science, August 28
Work on a huge sandstone slab with fossils of the enigmatic Utahraptor is stalled for lack of money. But the team hopes public support can get it back on track.
Bending the Rules of Geometry
Video, August 27
Hyperbolic geometry may be partially responsible for breakthroughs in physics such as general relativity and quantum field theory. But we're not used to seeing curved environments like the ones in this video. Enter a world that defies our basic assumptions about the rules of geometry.
Georgia School Collects Eclipse Glasses for Poor Overseas
U.S., August 26
An astronomy group plans to distribute the glasses to underprivileged children in South America and Asia for the eclipse that will pass through those continents in 2019.
Jimmy Walker’s Hobby Takes a Back Seat to His Health
Sports, August 26
Walker, perhaps the PGA Tour’s only photographer of celestial events, missed the total solar eclipse on Monday to see a doctor about his Lyme disease.
Charles R. Bentley, 87, Pioneer of Polar Science, Is Dead
Science, August 25
His answer to the question “Would anybody like to go to the Antarctic?” led him to go where no one else had gone and measure what no one else had measured.
Melting Icebergs Alter the Oceans
Science, August 25
Some seas are becoming less salty, and some more so, as melting glaciers and icebergs release fresh water.
When Are You Really Random? After Age 24
Science, August 25
A talent for behaving randomly, a trait linked to creativity, peaks at age 25 and begins to decline around age 60, researchers report.
The Chirps and Ripples in the Universe That Prove Einstein Was Right
Books, August 25
Three books on a major recent development in astronomy confirming relativity theory.
Tasting the Sweetness of Summer, Berry by Berry
Science, August 24
Berries clothe seeds and fertilize them when they drop to the ground, and one summer they taught a young woman to savor time.
Gut Bacteria Can Fluctuate With the Seasons
Science, August 24
The discovery, in a study of hunter-gatherers in Africa, eventually may help scientists learn how modern diets have affected health.