The First Kiss in Recorded History Dates Back Nearly 5,000 Years
Kissing probably predates Homo sapiens as a species, but the first texts documenting the beso go back to the early Bronze Age
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JWST Will Hunt for Dead Solar Systems--And Much More--In Its Second Year of Science
White dwarfs, Earth-sized exoplanets, early galaxies and even Saturn’s moon Enceladus are on the agenda for JWST’s second year in space, but exomoons and others miss out -
Strange Tremors Rattle Danish Island--But It Wasn't an Earthquake
Dozens of people reported tremors on the island of Bornholm, but seismologists say there was no earthquake -
What Created This Mini Book-Shaped Rock on Mars?
A book-shaped rock spotted by the Curiosity rover on Mars is the result of an interplay of wind, water—and the human brain -
Stone Engravings of Mysterious Ancient Megastructures May Be World's Oldest 'Blueprints'
Stone engravings of ancient megastructures called desert kites may be the earliest “blueprints” ever discovered -
The Closest Living Relative of the First Animal Has Finally Been Found
A debate has been settled over the earliest animal ancestor—a free-swimming creature with a well-developed nervous system -
These Leaders Are Standing up for Transgender Care
Legislators, families and advocates are fighting to protect access to gender-affirming care for transgender youth and adults nationwide -
Science Shows Why Traditional Kimchi Making Works So Well
A new study reveals why handmade fermentation vessels called onggi stand the test of time -
Betelgeuse's Brightening Raises Hopes for a Supernova Spectacle
Betelgeuse, the red star at the shoulder of the constellation Orion, has been acting strange, raising hopes for the spectacle of a lifetime -
Here's How to Use Dreams for Creative Inspiration
Channeling Thomas Edison and Salvador Dalí, researchers show that shaping dream imagery could spark creative ideas to target a specific problem -
We're About to See a Rare and Record-Setting May Heat Wave
A potentially record-setting heat wave is headed for the Pacific Northwest and western Canada, a sign of the shift to hotter—and earlier—summers -
Physicists Create Biggest-Ever Schrödinger's Cat
Physicists have put the largest-ever object into a quantum superposition -
Astronomy Tool Can Now Detect COVID in Breath
Laser-based optical frequency combs, originally developed to time atomic clocks, can also perform fast, noninvasive tests for COVID—and potentially other diseases as well -
What Is Causing So Much Pink Eye?
The newest SARS-CoV-2 strain may cause red, watery eyes. But the symptom can have other causes, too -
These Sharks Hold Their 'Breath' to Stay Warm
Scalloped hammerhead sharks take dramatic dives to hunt for food in cold, deep waters—and new evidence suggests they hold their breath to keep warm while they do so -
Mirror-Image Supernova Yields Surprising Estimate of Cosmic Growth
A new way to gauge the universe’s expansion rate has delivered a confusing result that may conflict with previous related measurements -
Pancreatic Cancer Vaccine Shows Promise in Small Initial Trial
An mRNA vaccine prevented tumor recurrence after surgery in eight of 16 patients, but the therapy still needs to be validated in larger trials -
How AI Knows Things No One Told It
Researchers are still struggling to understand how AI models trained to parrot Internet text can perform advanced tasks such as running code, playing games and trying to break up a marriage -
Did JWST Just Find Water on a Rocky Exoplanet?
Hints of water vapor on a world called GJ 486 b could just as well come from the planet’s host star -
Watch Out: Tornado Alley Is Migrating Eastward
Tornado outbreaks are moving from Texas and Oklahoma toward Tennessee and Kentucky, where people may not be prepared
