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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

parasitic nematode

How parasitic worms use static to find prey

Nematodes that leap from the ground to infect flies need the help of a static electrical charge to land on their host.

first animals on Earth

Ancient sea sponges may have been Earth’s earliest animals

Researchers traced chemical fossils in ancient rocks to the ancestors of modern-day demosponges.

When ice freezes and thaws repeatedly

Ice dissolves iron more effectively than liquid water

New insights into the chemical activity of frozen landscapes.

swarm robot

How Fish and Birds Inspire Next-Gen Robot Swarms

Breakthrough offers way to develop AI to match flocking birds and schooling fish.

fossilized landscape

North America’s Oldest Flying Reptile Found in Arizona

A bone bed from the dawn of the Dinosaurs.

A cinematic view of an ancient Earth ocean under a dramatic, colorful sky

Earth’s oxygen story just got 100 million years older

New insights into the evolution of our planet.

Meghan Blumstein studied red oak genotypes across New England, concentrating on trees that were within reach in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She then collaborated with people doing research at the Harvard Forest, a research forest in rural central Massachusetts. Credits: Courtesy of the researchers

Urban heat islands are a poor proxy for global warming

Urban trees mislead climate models: why genetics matter more than temperature

Curiosity Rover

Curiosity Rover detects largest organic compounds ever found on Mars

Martian chemistry just got more exciting!

Researchers unveil key mechanism that blocks egg-sperm fertilization

In the United States, around 9% of men and 11% of women of reproductive age struggle with fertility issues. This often happens because sperm...

A panoramic photo

Mars: The lost beaches

Mars may have once been home to sandy beaches with gentle, lapping waves.

Beautiful young couple having fun together

Both men and women prefer younger partners: Study

Blind dates reveal true preferences.

Shackleton Crater

Science fiction to reality: Searching for a lunar oasis

New research may help astronauts locate viable water sources on the moon.

Businessman using using digital 3D projection of a human brain

Researchers mapped individual brain dynamics

Method to create precision brain models with applications to personalized medicine.

Young women with hula hoops

Hourglass body shape is ideal for hula hooping, says study

Scientists explain the physics of hula hooping.

Beer and grain

Evidence of rice beer dating back approximately 10,000 years at the Shangshan site

New insights into the origins of alcoholic beverage brewing in East Asia.

Researchers identified an unforeseen trade-off for fisheries as nutrient inputs are reduced to improve water quality – in particular, a lower harvest of the popular yellow perch species as dead zones were diminished.

Cleaner water may pose risk to some Lake Erie fish species

Unforeseen water quality–fisheries tradeoffs are reduced to improve water quality.

Covid-19. Coronavirus Epidemic Design

Surprising biological mechanisms discovered underlying severe COVID-19

Severe COVID-19 has been considered an inflammatory “cytokine storm”.

Engineers fabricated a simple water filter modeled after the mobula ray’s plankton-filtering features. Pictured are pieces of the filter.

MIT engineers look to manta rays to design better water filters

The filter feeder's unique mechanism could potentially revolutionize the design of industrial water filters.

exploded view of an ice giant planet such as Uranus or Neptune

What lies beneath the bland surfaces of Uranus and Neptune?

Uranus and Neptune are unique but superficially bland ice giants in our solar system. Planetary scientists have devised two proposals for what lies beneath...

fish

Microbial production of the most toxic form of mercury

How microbes create the most toxic form of mercury.

Snowball Earth

New evidence suggests Earth was covered in ice more than 660 million years ago

Researchers at the University of Colorado, Boulder have uncovered strong evidence that supports Snowball Earth theory.

Young again

Aging reversed: A species of comb jelly can reverse its life cycle

Returning from adulthood to a larval stage.

Robotic sensory cilia that monitor internal biomarkers to detect and assess airway diseases.

Artificial cilia monitor internal biomarkers to detect airway diseases

A system of artificial cilia capable of monitoring mucus conditions in human airways to better detect infection.

Micrometeorological observation tower in Alaska. The tower installed in a black spruce forest on permafrost in Fairbanks, Alaska, monitors CO2 exchange and environmental conditions in 30-minute intervals.

Climate change increases sources of carbon and CO2 sinks

Landmark 20-year study of climate change impact on permafrost forests.

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