T/science

A New Approach to Spotting Tumors: Look for Their Microbes

New research is revealing that cancer is rife with bacteria and fungi — a rich ecosystem that scientists call the tumor microbiome.

Fossilized Fish Reveal Earliest Known Prequel of ‘Jaws’

In two deposits in China, paleontologists dug up remains that suggest jawed fish are tens of millions of years older than previously known.

N.Y.C. Children Held Ground in Reading, but Lagged in Math, Tests Show

The first standardized test results that capture how most city schoolchildren did during the pandemic offered a mixed picture.

What NASA’s Crash Into an Asteroid Looks Like

Astronomers on Earth — and a shoebox-size Italian spacecraft called LICIACube — captured the DART mission’s successful strike on Dimorphos.

¿La variante ómicron llegó para quedarse?

La decimotercera variante con nombre del coronavirus parece tener una capacidad sorprendente para evolucionar con nuevas particularidades.

How About Them Apples? Research Orchards Chart a Fruit’s Future.

Scientists working in research groves, like one in Nova Scotia, are developing your favorite new apple variety.

There are more asteroid missions out there.

Here’s how NASA will know if DART worked.

NASA Smashes Into an Asteroid, Completing a Mission to Save a Future Day

The DART spacecraft completed its 10-month journey to demonstrate a technique that could defend the planet from deadly space rocks in the future.

What happens if DART misses?

There are other ways to stop rogue asteroids.

What we’ll see when DART makes impact.

There are many eyes on Earth and in space watching Didymos and Dimorphos. But at first when the spacecraft crashes into the asteroid, we’ll see nothing, and that would be a good thing.

The space rocks that NASA is keeping watch for.

DART’s target is a small asteroid’s moon.

Why is NASA crashing into an asteroid?

3 Chimpanzees Kidnapped for Ransom From Congo Sanctuary

In a country where wildlife trafficking already runs rampant, conservationists fear that ransoming of animals may become a common tactic used by criminals.

Shy Raccoons Are Better Learners Than Bold Ones, Study Finds

Wildlife management strategies focused on aggressive raccoons may be inadvertently boosting the proportion of more clever ones in cities.

Maarten Schmidt, First Astronomer to Identify a Quasar, Dies at 92

His 1963 breakthrough revealed one of the furthest objects from Earth and opened new questions about the evolution of the universe.

El fascinante misterio de las matemáticas

Cuando tenía 65 años decidí ver si podía aprender las matemáticas que se les enseña a los adolescentes. Entonces me había ido mal. Tampoco me fue bien en el segundo intento, pero ahora veo lo importantes que son.

How Many Ants Are There on Earth? You’re Going to Need More Zeros.

There are 20 quadrillion ants worldwide, according to a new census, or 2.5 million for every living human. There are probably even more than that.

Why Omicron Might Stick Around

Omicron, the 13th named variant of the coronavirus, seems to have a remarkable capacity to evolve new tricks.

Neptune and Its Rings Come Into Focus With Webb Telescope

New images from the space-based observatory offer a novel view of the planet in infrared.

Saving Whales From Ship Collisions With Warnings and Letter Grades

Four whales have died near San Francisco this year after ships crashed into them, and scientists hope to drive that number to zero with new technology.

Fossils Solve Mystery of an Ancient ‘Alien Goldfish’

Closer examination of Typhloesus fossils suggests that the organism, which swam 330 million years ago, was similar to modern sea slugs.

How to Hunt Like an Octopus

High-speed video recordings reveal that the cephalopod’s eight arms aren’t moving randomly when they go in for the kill.

The Godwit’s Long, Long Nonstop Journey

Researchers marvel at the bird’s record-holding migratory flight of 7,000 or so miles from Alaska to New Zealand at this time of year. No eating or refueling along the way.

Physics Body Concedes Mistakes in Study of Missile Defense

Two scientists said the American Physical Society had erred in evaluating their plan to use drones to shoot down North Korean long-range missiles.

Valery Polyakov, Who Took the Longest Journey in Space, Dies at 80

Seeking to demonstrate the safety of long space missions, he worked out on his trip and returned 437 days later looking “like he could wrestle a bear,” one astronaut said.

This Acrobatic Hunting Trick Is Straight Out of the Spider-Verse

A small Australian spider uses a Cirque du Soleil-worthy tactic to prey on fierce ants.

Math Is the Great Secret

If human beings invented numbers and counting, then how is it that there are numbers such as primes that have attributes no one gave them?

It Is Long Past Time to Help New York’s Hasidic Children

Politicians have known for years about the crisis facing New York’s Hasidic schools but failed to act in any meaningful way.

China’s Discovery of Lunar Mineral Could Add to Fuller View of the Moon

Scientists found a single crystal of a new phosphate mineral while analyzing lunar basalt particles, which were collected from the moon two years ago by the Chang’e-5 mission.

Lit Trivia: How Well Do You Know Books About the U.S. Space Program?

Waiting for the Artemis 1 lunar mission to launch? Test your knowledge of nonfiction books about America’s history of space exploration.

How to Change Minds? A Study Makes the Case for Talking It Out.

Researchers found that meaty conversations among several people can align beliefs and brain patterns — so long as the group is free of blowhards.

Life on Mars? This Could Be the Place NASA’s Rover Helps Us Find It.

Rocks collected by Perseverance are filled with organic molecules, and they formed in a lake that would have been habitable a few billion years ago.

The Search for Intelligent Life Is About to Get a Lot More Interesting

There are an estimated 100 billion galaxies in the universe, home to an unimaginable abundance of planets. And now there are new ways to spot signs of life on them.

To Save Whales, Don’t Eat Lobster, Watchdog Group Says

The group says that the shellfish, long considered a more responsible choice, cannot be considered a guilt-free meal anymore.

The Power of Poop

A comprehensive study of human waste explores the possibilities for global health, inside every flush.

Unearthing a Maya Civilization That ‘Punched Above Its Weight’

Before the pandemic, the long-sought ruins of Sak Tz’i’, a small but influential Mesoamerican kingdom, were discovered on a cattle ranch in Mexico. This summer archaeologists returned to excavate it.

To Search for a Near-Extinct Snail, Tread Lightly

Monitoring the last wild Chittenango ovate amber snails, scientists tiptoe through a waterfall spray zone the size of a living room.

How a Garbage-Bin War Schools Humans and Birds

Sulfur-crested cockatoos are trash-can bandits in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia. Humans use tools to protect their bins, and the birds then go the extra mile to break in.

How Long Is the Drive to the Edge of the Universe?

See you in a quadrillion years or so. Don’t forget to pack zillions of tons of snacks!

Cracking the Case of the Giant Fern Genome

Scientists have sequenced complete fern genomes for the first time, to learn why the plants have twice as much DNA as humans.

Harvest Moon Lights Up Skies and Marks Start of Festivals Worldwide

The harvest moon, which will appear full for about three nights from Thursday night to Sunday morning, is the full moon closest to the autumnal equinox.

‘Marte es un planeta, pero no sabemos cómo funciona’: la NASA quiere un laboratorio para evitar una plaga marciana

Es poco probable que traer rocas a la Tierra desde el planeta rojo nos enferme, pero la agencia espacial no quiere correr riesgos.

Sheila Tobias, Who Defined ‘Math Anxiety,’ Dies at 86

Feeling jittery about math — and altogether avoiding it — “is a serious handicap” that often affected women, she wrote in Ms. magazine in 1976, followed by a book on the subject.

Kurt Gottfried, Physicist and Foe of Nuclear Weapons, Dies at 93

As a founder of the Union of Concerned Scientists, he defended Soviet dissidents and advocated higher standards in government research.

Siddhartha Mukherjee Weaves History and Biology to Tell the Story of Us

His forthcoming book, “The Song of the Cell,” part of what he says will be a quartet, is “fundamentally about understanding the units that organize our life.”

With Drought, ‘Spanish Stonehenge’ Emerges Once Again

The Dolmen of Guadalperal, a Bronze Age stone monument newly exposed by plummeting water levels in Europe, is now imperiled by tourists.

How Silicon Chips Rule the World

Maintaining the flow of oil is still crucial for the world economy. But now the supply of semiconductors is also critical for commerce, and war and peace.

What Makes Your Brain Different From a Neanderthal’s?

Scientists have discovered a mutation that increases the production of brain cells and seems to have set our ancestors apart from other hominins.

NASA Could Retry Moon Rocket Launch in Late September

After two mission scrubs for technical issues, NASA officials have tentative hopes to launch the Artemis I mission on Sept. 27.

How Tree Rings Helped Identify a Rhode Island Whaler Lost at Sea

A whaling ship known as the Dolphin left the shores of Warren, R.I., in 1858, never to return. Researchers say they found its wooden planks and timber pieces in Argentina.

Scientists Have Made a Human Microbiome From Scratch

To better understand how microbes affect our health, researchers combined 119 species of bacteria naturally found in the human body.

This Jellyfish Can Live Forever. Its Genes May Tell Us How.

A new study followed as a Turritopsis dohrnii rejuvenated itself, uncovering developmental patterns for further inquiry.

Frank Drake, Who Led Search for Life on Other Planets, Dies at 92

He was convinced that human beings would eventually connect with extraterrestrials, and he inspired others to share that belief.

The Hunt for Big Hail

Hailstones of record size are falling left and right, and hailstorm damage is growing. But there is surprisingly little research to explain why.

The Curious Hole in My Head

Born without my left temporal lobe, a brain region thought to be critical for language, I’ve been a research subject for much of my life.

The Quiet Cost of Family Caregiving

Many employees reduce their hours or stop working to help ailing family members. But it may be years before they fully return to the work force, studies indicate.

Why NASA Is Not Rushing to Launch the Artemis Moon Rocket

After a pair of called-off launches, the latest caused by a large hydrogen leak, the agency is not expected to try again until later in the month or October.

NASA Scrubbed Another Moon Launch. It May Not Be the Last Time.

Engineers were unable to resolve a hydrogen leak, which led the launch director to call off Saturday’s flight.

A Volcano Erupted Without Warning. Now, Scientists Know Why.

A new study explains how Nyiragongo, a volcano in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was relatively quiet before its eruption last year took everyone by surprise.

How and When to Watch NASA’s Giant Rocket Launch to the Moon

Here’s what you need to know about Artemis I and the second attempt to launch the Space Launch System and Orion capsule.

To the Moon

Why NASA wants to go back now.

The Pandemic Erased Two Decades of Progress in Math and Reading

The results of a national test showed just how devastating the last two years have been for 9-year-old schoolchildren, especially the most vulnerable.

Commuter Tunnel Under the Hudson Won’t Be Finished Until 2035

The crucial Gateway transit link from New Jersey to New York will now open three years later than expected and is likely to cost $2 billion more to construct.

To Prevent a Martian Plague, NASA Needs to Build a Very Special Lab

The likelihood is low that bringing rocks to Earth from the red planet will make us sick, but the space agency isn’t taking any chances.

NASA Plans to Retry Its Moon Rocket Launch on Saturday

After scrubbing its launch of the Artemis I mission on Monday, NASA said it hoped to resolve an engine problem by a second launch window this weekend.

Humpback Whales Pass Their Songs Across Oceans

Whales share songs from Australia to Ecuador, scientists have found, suggesting a remarkably fast cultural evolution.

A Long-Lost Branch of the Nile Helped in Building Egypt’s Pyramids

A new study confirms a long-held theory that builders used the river to transport the heavy blocks that make up the ancient wonders.

How Bad Is the Teacher Shortage? Depends Where You Live.

Urgently needed: teachers in struggling districts, certified in math or special education. Perks: maybe a pay raise, or how about a four-day week?

Wastewater Disease Tracking: A Photographic Journey From the Sewer to the Lab

Here’s how a scrappy team of scientists, public health experts and plumbers is embracing wastewater surveillance as the future of disease tracking.

El viaje evolutivo de la COVID-19 ha sido funesto e impresionante

El coronavirus, como muchos otros virus, evoluciona deprisa. ¿Los seres humanos y su ingenio podrían adaptarse más rápido a él?

We Are Still in a Race Against the Coronavirus

Human ingenuity must keep up with the coronavirus.

Combined nasal and throat testing swabs would detect more Omicron infections, two papers suggest.

The papers, which have not yet been published in scientific journals, suggest that testing just a single type of sample is likely to miss a large share of infections.

Students Are Learning Well Again. But Full Recovery? That’s a Long Way Off.

A new report estimates that it may take students at least three to five years to recover from the pandemic. Federal relief money will most likely have run out by then.

Did Nature Heal During the Pandemic ‘Anthropause’?

Covid precautions created a global slowdown in human activity — and an opportunity to learn more about the complex ways we affect other species.

Bat Virus Studies Raise Questions About Laboratory Tinkering

Working in a laboratory in Paris, scientists gave a close relative of the Covid virus the chance to evolve to be more like its cousin.

The pandemic kept many children less active around the world, researchers find.

Pandemic shutdowns and restrictions led to a 20 percent drop in average daily physical activity among children and adolescents, a new analysis shows.

The U.S. government will buy 3.2 million doses of Novavax’s Covid vaccine.

The vaccine has not yet been authorized but is expected to be soon.

Think All Viruses Get Milder With Time? Not This Rabbit-Killer.

The myxoma virus, fatal to millions of Australian rabbits, is a textbook example of the unexpected twists in the evolution of viruses and their hosts.

Unexplained hepatitis is not more common in U.S. children than before the pandemic, a C.D.C. study suggests.

Officials have also been trying to determine whether the cases represent a new phenomenon or are simply a new recognition of one that has long existed; there have always been a subset of pediatric hepatitis cases with no clear cause.

Mysteries Linger About Covid’s Origins, W.H.O. Report Says

“The lack of political cooperation from China continues to stifle any meaningful progress,” one expert said.

Reckoning With a Pandemic, as a Doctor and a Human

In his essay collection “Virology,” Joseph Osmundson examines the myriad ways we coexist with viruses.

Two new versions of Omicron are gaining ground in the U.S., according to C.D.C. estimates.

The spread of the subvariants adds more uncertainty to the trajectory of the pandemic in the United States.

He Helped Cure the ‘London Patient’ of H.I.V. Then He Turned to Covid.

Ravindra Gupta, who led the efforts that resulted in the second case of a patient being cured of H.I.V., was drawn into pandemic research.

In Florida, Social-Emotional Learning + Math = Rejection

Readers discuss the Florida Department of Education’s objections to some of the topics in math textbooks. Also: The Ukraine war; mask mandates.