Skeletons of “kungas” discovered in a princely burial. Mesopotamians were using hybrids of domesticated donkeys and wild asses to pull their war wagons 4,500 years ago — at least 500 years before horses were bred for the purpose, a new study reveals. The analysis of ancient DNA from animal bonesContinue Reading
This goes against one of the key assumptions of the theory of evolution. Genetic changes that crop up in an organism’s DNA may not be completely random, new research suggests. That would upend one of the key assumptions of the theory of evolution. Researchers studying the genetic mutations in aContinue Reading
Scientists spotted the first early warning sign of a standard type of supernova A star’s death usually comes without warning. But an early sign of one star’s imminent demise hints at what happens before some stellar explosions. In a last hurrah before exploding, a star brightened, suggesting that it blastedContinue Reading
Vaccine makers worry yet another variant will start dominating in the months it takes to roll out shots against this one All the vaccines we use to ward off SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, share one crucial feature: they were designed to protect against its ancestral form, which surfacedContinue Reading
The candidate orbits a planet circling a sunlike star about 5,700 light-years from Earth Some of the same researchers who found the first purported exomoon now say that they’ve found another. Dubbed Kepler 1708 b i, the satellite has a radius about 2.6 times that of Earth, and circles aContinue Reading
They found 60 million icefish nests. Scientists onboard an icebreaker in Antarctica were blown away when they spied a trove of 60 million icefish nests dotting the floor of the Weddell Sea. The bonanza of nurseries — each guarded by a ghostly looking parent — represents the largest known breedingContinue Reading
Scientists reveal that the Aharonov-Bohm effect also applies to gravity If you’re superstitious, a black cat in your path is bad luck, even if you keep your distance. Likewise, in quantum physics, particles can feel the influence of magnetic fields that they never come into direct contact with. Now scientistsContinue Reading
Overemphasis on limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius misses a key point, some experts say What’s in a number? The goals of the 2021 United Nations’ climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, called for nations to keep a warming limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius “within reach.” But when it comesContinue Reading
The Renaissance was a period of “rebirth” in arts, science and culture, and is typically thought to have originated in Italy. The Renaissance, which means “rebirth” in French, typically refers to a period in European history from A.D. 1400 to A.D. 1600. Many historians, however, assert that it started earlierContinue Reading
Laboratory experiments suggest that these worlds have especially gooey interiors Humble oxygen is more than just a building block of life. The element could also help scientists sneak a peek into the innards of planets orbiting faraway stars, a new study suggests. Laboratory experiments show that rocks exposed to higherContinue Reading