Science News
Neanderthal Dentistry, and the Scientist Glad Not to Have Experienced It
The prehistoric hominins “apparently were very adept at what we would consider invasive medicine,” said the anthropologist John Olsen.
A 16th-Century Sketch of Anne Boleyn More Likely Depicted Her Mother, an A.I. Analysis Finds
Using facial-recognition technology, scholars have concluded that a 500-year-old drawing labeled “Anna Bollein Queen” more likely showed her mother, Elizabeth Howard.
Military Bases Are Rife With ‘Forever Chemicals.’ New Mexico Wants Them Cleaned Up.
The state is leading the country’s reckoning with PFAS. The outcome of its suit against the federal government will affect how courts treat more than 15,000 other claims nationwide.
She Was Finding Sources of Dangerous Water and Soil Pollution
Melanie Malone led a research project to identify and study contamination sites in Washington State. Then the E.P.A. canceled her grant.
Scientists Tweaked the Global Warming Outlook. So Trump Weighed In.
Renewable energy has helped make the worst-case scenario a bit less bad. The president said, falsely, it shows that climate scientists were wrong all along.
E.P.A. to Repeal Some Limits on ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water
The rules were established by the Biden administration after research linked the compounds to a range of serious health problems.
Ebola Was Identified in Congo Weeks Before W.H.O. Declared an Emergency
Early surveillance and testing failed to identify Bundibugyo, a rare species of Ebola responsible for the current outbreak.
How a Funding Pause Derailed an Artificial Heart for Babies
James Antaki’s efforts to develop a baby’s heart were close to success when his federal funding was cut off. The grants were eventually restored; rebuilding what was lost wasn’t so easy.
Children’s Mental Health Visits Have Shot Up, Research Shows
Doctor’s visits for children’s anxiety rose by more than 250 percent over 10 years, according to a study of nearly two million children.
When Tornado Weather Hits, These Scientists Break Out the Colored Pencils
With a battery of modern technology at their fingertips, meteorologists often turn first to an old-fashioned tracking technique.
The Quest for Clean Hydrogen Moves Underground
The dream of clean hydrogen has tantalized energy experts for years, but producing it has been tough. Many start-ups think the answer could lie beneath our feet.
How a ‘Model’ for Climate Migration Became a Cautionary Tale
The residents of Isle de Jean Charles in Louisiana found safety after moving to higher ground. But the experience left some of them warning others facing relocation: ‘Don’t do it.’
Michigan Battles Trump Over His Order to Keep an Old Coal Plant Running
The Trump administration broke the law, Michigan and others told a court, by declaring an “energy emergency” and forcing an aging coal-burning plant to keep operating.
Archaeologists Find Egyptian Mummy Buried With the ‘Iliad’
For the deceased of Roman-era Egypt, Greek literature may have offered a cheat code to a more comfortable afterlife.
16 More People in the U.S. Are Being Monitored for Hantavirus, C.D.C. Says
They were passengers on a plane to Johannesburg with an infected Dutch woman who later died.
Hantavirus Doesn’t Spread Easily, but Officials May Be Downplaying Risks
The virus is clearly far less contagious than the coronavirus, scientists agree, but they have found cases where it spread among people without direct contact.
Can Some Very Tiny Particles Cool the Planet? One Tech Company Says Yes.
Stardust Solutions says its tiny spheres can reflect the sun’s rays without harming people or the environment. Critics say private companies have no business altering Earth’s atmosphere.
Will Her Daughter Be Safe at Pali High as It Rebuilds From LA Wildfires?
It’s a nightmare faced by families all around Los Angeles: After wildfire smoke blanketed homes, schools and offices with toxic chemicals, when is it OK to go back?
Black Bear Fatally Mauls Uranium Contractor in Northern Canada
The attack, at a remote uranium mining site in northern Saskatchewan, was only the fourth fatal black bear encounter in the province’s recorded history, officials said.
Nancy Cox, Who Worked to Conquer the Wily Flu, Dies at 77
As the leader of the C.D.C.’s influenza division, she battled to keep up with an ever-changing viral opponent, building a global network of researchers and forecasters.