discoveries

Read the latest news stories about recent scientific discoveries on Newser.com

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It Sounds Like Birdsong, and It's Bad News for Astronauts

'Chorus waves' that supercharge particles found in an unexpected part of space

(Newser) - Scientists have detected a sound like birdsong in an unexpected part of space, which could be bad news for future space missions. In a study published in the journal Nature , researchers say they detected chorus waves—intense electromagnetic waves that sound like birds chirping—more than 100,000 miles from...

Drink a Lot of Joe? You May Be Fending Off Cancer
Coffee May Keep
a Particular Cancer at Bay
NEW STUDY
Jan 23, 2025 9:45 AM CST

Coffee May Keep a Particular Cancer at Bay

And it may not be the caffeine that lowers risk of head and neck cancer, scientists say

(Newser) - We already know that coffee may be able to help mitigate couch-potato lifestyles , boost longevity , and reduce your risk for a slew of conditions, including diabetes and heart disease. Add two more to that latter list, according to research published in the journal Cancer : Scientists have found that drinking four-plus...

When One Chimpanzee Pees, Another Might Follow
Researchers Spent 600 Hours
Watching Chimpanzees Pee
new study
Jan 22, 2025 12:50 PM CST

Researchers Spent 600 Hours Watching Chimpanzees Pee

Study finds urination is a slightly contagious behavior

(Newser) - Watch someone yawn and there's a chance you'll yawn, too. Watch someone pee and ... well, if you're a chimpanzee, there's a chance you'll end up urinating as well. So finds a new paper published Monday in Current Biology that NPR reports spun out of a...

Canada Can No Longer Claim the Magnetic North Pole

World Magnetic Model gets its first update since 2020

(Newser) - GPS systems around the world are adjusting to a new model tracking Earth's magnetic north pole, the point that attracts the needle of a compass, which is now closer to Siberia than to Canada, reports the Washington Post . The point, which differs from the geographic North Pole at the...

Ozempic, Wegovy Have 'Eye-Opening' Effects on Health

Scientists find GLP-1 drugs lower risk for dozens of other conditions—but there are caveats

(Newser) - Once we crossed the Rubicon to use diabetes drugs like Wegovy, Ozempic, and Mounjaro for weight loss, it seemed inevitable that scientists would investigate what else these apparent wonder drugs might tackle. Now, the first study to look at how the medications affect overall health is done, and it's...

Ants May Solve Our Traffic Jams
Ants May Solve Our
Traffic Jams
new study
Jan 20, 2025 10:36 AM CST

Ants May Solve Our Traffic Jams

They stay in their lanes, may provide a model for autonomous traffic systems

(Newser) - You know that guy who tries to pass everyone on the shoulder of a road during a traffic jam? Even ants would think he's a jerk. A new study suggests that the tiny creatures have a knack for avoiding jam-ups when they're marching along together—and one of...

Women Likely Inherited the Wealth in Pre-Roman Britain
Ancient Celtic Society
Revolved Around Women
NEW STUDY
Jan 16, 2025 11:39 AM CST

Ancient Celtic Society Revolved Around Women

Men had to depend on their wives (and wives' families) in pre-Roman Britain

(Newser) - For millennia leading up to 800BC, communities in Britain were centered around male bloodlines, meaning that upon marriage, women left their homes to join the communities of their husbands. But that appears to have changed with the dawning of the Iron Age. New research, based in part on a Celtic...

Cancer Hitting Women, Young People More Often
Cancer Hitting Women,
Young People More Often
NEW STUDY
Jan 16, 2025 11:17 AM CST

Cancer Hitting Women, Young People More Often

New stats document a 'really shocking' shift, says one doctor

(Newser) - Historically, men have had a higher overall rate of cancer than women. But times are changing. While 1.6 men were diagnosed with cancer for each woman in 1992, that number fell to 1.1 in 2021. And middle-aged women now have a higher risk of cancer than men of...

To See Mummies' Tats, They Turned Skin 'Into a Light Bulb'

Scientists used lasers to view ink akin to 'good electric tattooing of today' on preserved Peruvians

(Newser) - For more than 5,000 years, humans have adorned themselves with tattoos. In a new study, researchers used lasers to uncover highly intricate designs of ancient tattoos on mummies from Peru. The preserved skin of the mummies and the black tattoo ink used show a stark contrast—revealing fine details...

Archaeologists Hit a Funerary Mother Lode

Near Egypt's Luxor, ancient rock-cut tombs, burial shafts dating back 3.6K years are found

(Newser) - Egypt unveiled several discoveries near the famed city of Luxor on Wednesday, including ancient rock-cut tombs and burial shafts dating back 3,600 years. They were unearthed at the causeway of Queen Hatshepsut's funerary temple at Deir al-Bahari on the Nile's West Bank, the Zahi Hawass Foundation for...

1 in 4 Freshwater Species at Risk of Extinction
24% of Freshwater Species
at Risk of Extinction
new study
Jan 8, 2025 1:54 PM CST

24% of Freshwater Species at Risk of Extinction

Study sees a wide range of culprits, including pollution and invasive species

(Newser) - Nearly a quarter of animals living in rivers, lakes, and other freshwater sources are threatened with extinction, according to new research published Wednesday. "Huge rivers like the Amazon can appear mighty, but at the same time freshwater environments are very fragile," said study co-author Patricia Charvet, a biologist...

It's Better to Be Fit Than Thin
If You're Obese but
Fit, Some Good News
NEW STUDY
Jan 8, 2025 1:26 PM CST

If You're Obese but Fit, Some Good News

Being aerobically fit cancels early death risk from excess weight, researchers say

(Newser) - More than 40% of US adults are obese . If you're one of them and struggling to lose weight, this is your sign to step off the scale and get moving. Prior studies have found obesity boosts one's risk of diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and premature death. However,...

'Dinosaur Highway' Sheds Light on Ancient Creatures

Discovery of hundreds of tracks dating back 166M years is made in Oxfordshire, England

(Newser) - A worker digging up clay in a southern England limestone quarry noticed unusual bumps that led to the discovery of a "dinosaur highway" and nearly 200 tracks that date back 166 million years, researchers said Thursday. The extraordinary find, made after a team of more than 100 excavated Oxfordshire'...

Having to Drive Everywhere Is Linked to Unhappiness

Study on car dependency finds a 'tipping point' at which it becomes too much

(Newser) - A new study out of Arizona State University finds that Americans have a tricky line to navigate when it comes to cars: Being able to get in one and drive somewhere tends to increase life satisfaction. But having to get in one too often can have the opposite effect. The...

One Danger of Walmart: 'Monopsony'
One Danger of Walmart:
'Monopsony'
new studies
Dec 29, 2024 9:30 AM CST

One Danger of Walmart: 'Monopsony'

Research suggests company pays workers lower wages because they have few local alternatives

(Newser) - Two new studies suggest that having a Walmart in a particular neighborhood makes that neighborhood poorer, reports the Atlantic . The company and its advocates have long argued that Walmart's cheap prices provide an overall benefit to poor or middle-class families by saving them money on their grocery bills. But...

A Graveyard Find Alters a Narrative of Christianity
A Graveyard Find Alters
a Narrative of Christianity
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Dec 28, 2024 12:00 PM CST

A Graveyard Find Alters a Narrative of Christianity

Silver amulet suggests it spread in Europe north of the Alps earlier than thought

(Newser) - A man who died in what is now Germany about 1,800 years ago went to his grave wearing a religious amulet around his neck that may change what we know about the spread of Christianity, reports Live Science . Details:
  • Archaeologists found the 1.4-inch-long amulet on a skeleton in
...

'Adorable, Fluffy' Predator Is Decimating a Habitat's Invaders

Surging population of native sea otters has almost wiped out invasive green crabs in one California ecosystem

(Newser) - The West Coast has been plagued by an invasive crab species for decades—but scientists now say a native resident is helping to remedy the issue, at least in one California ecosystem. That helper is an "adorable, fluffy, and hungry friend," per USA Today —the resident southern...

Taxi, Ambulance Drivers Fare Better With Alzheimer's

Study suggests all that real-time navigating keeps their brains sharp

(Newser) - A new study suggests that turning off GPS in the car and instead navigating by your own wits may help stave off Alzheimer's. The study in the British Medical Journal found that taxi drivers and ambulance drivers died of the ailment less than people in other professions, reports HealthDay...

That's No Elephant. That's a Mammoth.

50K-year-old juvenile mammoth carcass discovered in Russia's thawing permafrost

(Newser) - Russian scientists have unveiled what they say is the best-preserved mammoth carcass ever discovered—that of a juvenile dubbed "Yana." The female mammoth, believed to have been about a year old when she died an estimated 50,000 years ago, was discovered this summer in thawing permafrost in...

She Sang on One of the Most Famous Disco Songs Ever

Alfa Anderson of Chic has died at age 78

(Newser) - The name Alfa Anderson may not be of the household variety, but it's a safe bet most people have heard her sing. Anderson—who has died at age 78—can be heard on "Le Freak," a song by the group Chic that is one of the most...

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