Science
Scientific discoveries and research
Does a deeper voice make men more attractive? These researchers have the answer
During puberty, as boys transition into men, the dramatic drop in their vocal pitch has sparked a long-running debate among scientists. Why did such deep voices...
Global health research delivers medical advances and economic benefits far beyond its target countries
Recently, a middle-aged woman came to see me in my ophthalmology clinic because her eyes felt gritty and uncomfortable. She had seen another doctor a month earl...
Stable salts unlock alternative to potentially explosive reagents in carbene chemistry
Many useful reactions in chemistry come with a trade-off: the reactive reagents that make them effective can also present practical and safety challenges. Carbe...
Chimps plunder less pineapple from friends—and expect them to do the same
In recent years, scientists have shown that chimpanzees favor certain peers by picking whom they prefer to groom and selectively sharing food. The behavior offe...
Catalog of mitochondria across life's family tree unearths unusual functions
A research consortium has generated the broadest look yet at the proteins that make up mitochondria, capturing the organelle's diversity across multiple branche...
Eye-eating amoeba resists treatment—understanding its biochemistry could help
In water, soil and air all around us lives a free-living, single-celled organism called Acanthamoeba. Most of the time, Acanthamoeba keeps to itself. On rare oc...
How going digital offers families more than annual adoption letters
Digital technology could transform the way adopted children stay connected with their birth families, according to new research from the University of East Angl...
What is helping some Florida wildfires burn hotter, spread faster?
What is helping some Florida wildfires burn hotter and spread farther? A University of Florida study suggests cogongrass, an invasive grass that has spread acro...
Following ancient rain toward life-related chemistry clues on Mars
The Mars we know today is a cold, dry world of dust and rocks. However, around 3.8–3.6 billion years ago, it may have looked very different. Geological and mine...
A cleaner X-ray view of our galactic center's hot mess
The center of the Milky Way galaxy is a chaotic place. In addition to the 4-million-solar-mass black hole known as Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), the region is full o...
Exploring the shapes of exotic nuclei
In the conventional diagram of an atom, the center depicts a nucleus—a spherical cluster of protons and neutrons. But that sphere is a simplification: nuclei ca...
Citizen science project recruits volunteers to search for undiscovered black holes
Cosmic detectives are being called on for an interstellar mission to hunt down thousands of invisible black holes lurking in our own backyard. Space scientists...