Science

A large coprolite of a carnivorous dinosaur found in Harding County, South Dakota, US. Image Credit: Poozeum/Wikipedia Around 540 million years ago, the biological landscape of Earth went through a huge transformation called the Cambrian explosion. During this era, the ancestors of most modern animal groups began to appear, depicting a massive surge in biodiversity….

A 14-year-old Georgia student has turned a common kitchen concern into an award-winning science project. Sirish Subash, a ninth grader from Snellville, built PestiSCAND, a handheld device designed to detect pesticide residues on fruits and vegetables. As reported by USA Today, his invention earned him the title of America’s Top Young Scientist in October 2024,…

Many species of bagworms choose to use twigs and small sticks to make their casings Imagine building a house around yourself and then carrying it wherever you go. That is what a bagworm caterpillar does. The small insect uses silk from its own body along with leaves, twigs and other material from its surroundings to…

Redonda had become a thriving haven for wildlife within a few years, and now it has received a major new layer of protection. For years, Redonda resembled more a barren moonscape than a tropical Caribbean island. Its vegetation was destroyed, its native wildlife was wiped out, and the marine ecosystem around it was harmed by…

Artist’s concept of a close-up naked-eye view of a GRB. Credit: NASA For more than half a century, gamma-ray bursts have remained one of the most puzzling events observed in space. These bursts are sudden flashes of gamma rays, a very high-energy form of light. They can appear from almost any direction in the sky…

Scientists engineer lettuce and tobacco to produce myoglobin for meat alternatives Let us accept it: livestock farming is a heavy burden on the environment. Raising animal feed takes vast amounts of land and huge supplies of freshwater, and it adds to global warming by releasing methane and nitrous oxide. Many consumers also worry about animal…

What started with concerns about access to clean drinking water eventually led three Indian teenagers to an idea that could offer a remarkably simple way of tackling microplastic contamination. Vivaan Chhawchharia, Ariana Agarwal and Avyana Mehta, all 16, developed Plas-Stick, a biodegradable powder made from discarded tamarind seeds that can bind tiny plastic particles in…

Aaron Carlisle grasps a white shark alongside a boat off the coast of Delaware (Reuters photo) Scientists in the US are testing an unusual way to collect ocean data that could eventually help improve hurricane forecasts, by using sharks as mobile ocean sensors.Researchers from the University of Delaware are attaching small electronic tags to sharks…

After decades of environmental decline, Florida’s Indian River Lagoon is beginning to show signs of recovery. With funding from NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Habitat Conservation, the Indian River Lagoon Council is leading a system-wide effort to restore the habitats that once sustained the lagoon’s fish and wildlife. A team of three scientists and one fisherman…

While one might assume that lowering huge white blocks of concrete into the sea was an attempt at dumping construction waste offshore, in Britain’s North Sea it is a conservation effort. The country is dumping 20 carefully designed structures into the deep waters to restore the population of the European native oyster, Ostrea edulis, along…