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Giant clams have a thin light-scattering layer that covers symbiotic photosynthetic algae, allowing their companions to capture more sunlight. This and other unexpected tricks probably make the clam-algae combination the most efficient sunlight harvesters on Earth. Since holding onto more sunlight is among the major technological challenges of our age, the clams might have a […]

Among all the other strange things about the platypus, only the very observant notice that it also barely has a stomach. Short-beaked echidnas share some of the unusual traits of the platypus digestive system as well. Now, a genetic study of the two monotreme species has provided some insight into the timing of this development, […]

The sight of a snake coiling its way up a stick might not immediately conjure up the idea of good health, yet the staff-scaling serpent has stood as an emblem of medicine for thousands of years. Seen on ambulances, hospitals, and paramedic uniforms the world over, this insignia continues to represent the art of healing […]

Pop on a medical drama and it won’t be long before you hear the dishy protagonist yelling something along the lines of “give me 100 of epi, STAT”. That they want the medication administered quickly is usually easy enough to pick up, but why are they saying stat? Is it a word, and if so, […]

The first hurricane of this year’s Atlantic season is certainly making a name for itself, with Beryl now having strengthened to become the earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane on record. Advertisement As of 5am AST, the National Hurricane Center reported that Beryl had maximum sustained winds of 270 kilometers (165 miles) per hour, with even […]

Ants are pretty remarkable creatures. From navigating via Earth’s magnetic field to spraying acid at their enemies, these tiny colonies are capable of big things, both as a unit and on an individual level. Now, new research has found that ants can even perform surgery, amputating the limbs of their friends and saving their lives […]

If we one day want to explore the galaxy (let alone the rest of the universe) humanity has a speed issue. In late 2023, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe achieved the highest speed ever achieved by a human-made object, clocking in at 635,266 kilometers (394,736 miles) per hour. Advertisement While impressive, that’s only 0.059 percent of […]

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has announced that last year’s Cyclone Freddy was the longest-lasting tropical cyclone on record, having spent 36 days at tropical storm status. Advertisement Between February 4 and March 14, Freddy started off the coast of northwest Australia and made its way across the Indian Ocean Basin before making landfall in […]

The modern world has plenty of advantages, but nobody would say it comes without any drawbacks. Take computers, for example: it’s awesome having the sum total of human knowledge at your disposal, being connected to the world via wireless signals, and having a machine that you can write essays and calculate sums and play solitaire […]

Imago Mundi, also known as the “Babylonian Map of the World,” is often said to be the oldest map of the known world ever found. Granted, it isn’t as scientifically accurate as Google Maps, nor as gloriously illustrated as cartography from Medieval times, but it does provide a unique glimpse into the way ancient Babylonians saw […]

Elephants’ private way of communicating is one of their worst-kept secrets, known to science even if we humans can’t actually hear or understand what they’re saying. The remarkable way of communicating can be as loud as a chainsaw and travel for miles – and yet to our ears, they’re not making any noise at all. […]

If you have seen a rocket launch recently – whether it was from NASA, SpaceX, or the Chinese Space Agency – you will often notice some similarities in locations as well as the similarities in what the rockets actually look like. There are reasons for the similarities and they have to do with keeping people […]

Dogger Bank Wind Farm, set to be the world’s largest offshore wind farm, could soon have another growth spurt. The owners of the giant North Sea wind farm have submitted plans to kick off another phase of development in a push that could provide a further 2 gigawatts (GW) of capacity to the project. Advertisement […]

The US Supreme Court has killed a crucial 40-year-old legal precedent that empowered federal agencies to interpret laws and to decide on the best ways to implement them. Now, if there is a dispute over ambiguous language in laws that could be addressed by deferring to agency expertise, federal judges can simply decide what it […]

A highway rest stop in Yakima, Washington, had an unusual visitor recently, with a mammal called a kinkajou (Potos flavus) – usually found in the forests of the Neotropics – being found by Interstate 82 in the Pacific Northwest state. The animal was rescued by Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Police officers on June […]

On September 12, the Royal Observatory Greenwich will announce the winning shots of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition. But before the announcement, the team has shared with us a shortlist of some of the most evocative shots among the entries.  Advertisement Picking them was not easy – there were over 3,500 entries by […]

Charlotte, the celebrity stingray that was controversially declared to be pregnant despite only sharing her tank with sharks rather than males of her species, has died. Advertisement The Aquarium and Shark Lab in Hendersonville, North Carolina, announced the sad news on their social media late Sunday night while thanking fans for their “love and support.” […]

Far above the Arctic Circle, the stumps of old trees are so large they were first spotted from an aircraft, looking completely incongruous on an island where little grows, let alone great trees. A study of these trees’ nuts has offered insight into the world 45 million years ago, when the Arctic was a much […]

Chinese space company Beijing Tianbing accidentally launched a rocket during a test of its first-stage power system on Sunday. The company – also known as Space Pioneer – fired up the first-stage Tianlong-3 rocket in what was supposed to be a static test. However, due to a structural failure the rocket was launched to its […]

Large parts of the Arctic are ablaze this summer with some of the worst wildfires in recent history following a spate of unusually hot and dry weather.   Advertisement Much of the activity is flaring up in Russia’s Sakha Republic, a part of Siberia with an average yearly temperature of -7.5°C (18.5°F). Even in the […]