Science News

Latest science news, discoveries and scientific developments.

Was the ‘American cheetah’ a cheetah at all?
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Was the ‘American cheetah’ a cheetah at all?

Ancient DNA confirms Miracinonyx trumani was more closely related to modern pumas than cheetahs and had a more varied diet than previously thought.

📅 2026-09-04 15:00:00    •    Science News
What’s the tech behind the record-breaking RSA-260 crack?
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What’s the tech behind the record-breaking RSA-260 crack?

A researcher’s social media post that revealed how to break part of a popular encryption protocol has gone viral. But did he really do it with just “good old paper and pencil”?

📅 2026-09-04 13:00:00    •    Scientific American
Stanford scientists discover a seafood that can reverse signs of aging
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Stanford scientists discover a seafood that can reverse signs of aging

A substance found in edible sea squirts appeared to reverse several signs of aging in older mice. Plasmalogen supplements improved memory and learning, strengthened connections between brain cells, reduced inflammation, and even helped the mice grow thicker, darker hair. Researchers believe the compounds may encourage brain regeneration and protect aging synapses.

📅 2026-09-04 12:29:06    •    ScienceDaily
Extreme drought now covers 44% of Puerto Rico
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Extreme drought now covers 44% of Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico’s normally rainy season has instead brought a severe and fast-growing drought. By August 25, three-quarters of the territory was in at least moderate drought, with extreme drought covering 44 percent and some areas receiving less than 20 percent of their usual rainfall. Water shortages have forced rationing, while farmers are losing crops and ranchers are running low on hay. The situation has become serious enough to trigger both local and federal disaster declarations.

📅 2026-09-04 12:12:53    •    ScienceDaily
MIT turns bacteria into living transistors
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MIT turns bacteria into living transistors

MIT researchers have created bacterial “transistors” that can be wired together into living circuits capable of performing calculations and directing chemical signals. One day, these biological computers could coat plant roots or leaves, detecting environmental threats and automatically triggering defenses.

📅 2026-09-04 11:52:39    •    ScienceDaily
A longer exhale may push your brain toward bolder decisions
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A longer exhale may push your brain toward bolder decisions

Slow breathing with a prolonged exhale made people more willing to take risks by changing heart activity and increasing the brain’s sensitivity to rewards. The findings suggest that something as simple as controlling your breath can directly influence how you evaluate choices.

📅 2026-09-04 11:33:12    •    ScienceDaily
Giant Greenland iceberg slams into Joe Island and survives
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Giant Greenland iceberg slams into Joe Island and survives

A giant iceberg measuring more than 76 square kilometers broke from Greenland’s Petermann Glacier in August 2026, marking the Arctic’s largest glacier calving event since 2020. The berg later slammed into Joe Island but survived without breaking apart, and satellites are now tracking it as it drifts through Nares Strait.

📅 2026-09-04 10:56:51    •    ScienceDaily
This star has the strangest sky in the galaxy
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This star has the strangest sky in the galaxy

The newfound star S301 orbits the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole so closely that its view of the heavens gets twisted

📅 2026-09-04 10:45:00    •    Scientific American
Dying radio galaxies fade faster than scientists expected
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Dying radio galaxies fade faster than scientists expected

Astronomers have identified a surprisingly young population of fading radio galaxies whose supermassive black holes have already switched off their powerful jets. The confirmed remnants range from about 8 to 42 million years old, suggesting many may disappear from view much faster than previously recognized. More distant remnants also seem to fade especially quickly, helping explain why they have been so difficult to detect.

📅 2026-09-04 10:07:20    •    ScienceDaily
Dark matter detector finds a strange signal scientists can’t yet explain
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Dark matter detector finds a strange signal scientists can’t yet explain

The LUX-ZEPLIN experiment has detected a rare particle interaction that looks unusually difficult to explain as ordinary background noise and appeared where dark matter might be expected. Scientists are not claiming a discovery yet, but additional data could show whether this single mysterious event is the first hint of a long-sought dark matter particle.

📅 2026-09-04 06:46:01    •    ScienceDaily
Scientists reveal the hidden instructions that build the human brain
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Scientists reveal the hidden instructions that build the human brain

UCLA researchers have discovered two powerful influences that help guide how the human brain forms before birth. Radial glia, stem cells responsible for producing much of the cerebral cortex, change their behavior depending on how they process glucose and on physical contact with signals arriving from the thalamus. Those signals can alter which types of neurons are produced, including upper-layer neurons that are especially prominent in humans.

📅 2026-09-04 06:04:06    •    ScienceDaily
New injectable treatment helps the brain rebuild after stroke
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New injectable treatment helps the brain rebuild after stroke

Duke researchers developed an injectable scaffold that helped stroke-damaged brains grow new blood vessels, support nerve regrowth, and recover movement in mice. The treatment appears to work partly by recruiting the body’s own immune cells, including neutrophils that may switch from damaging to helpful under the right conditions.

📅 2026-09-04 03:59:21    •    ScienceDaily
Scientists discover a bizarre “devil flower” hidden in Thailand
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Scientists discover a bizarre “devil flower” hidden in Thailand

Scientists have discovered a strange black “devil flower” in Thailand that lives mostly underground, steals nutrients from fungi, and looks strikingly unlike a typical plant. The newly named Thismia daemona is known from fewer than 50 individuals and may already be critically endangered.

📅 2026-09-04 03:25:50    •    ScienceDaily
Plants may be evolving the wrong traits for a warming world
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Plants may be evolving the wrong traits for a warming world

Morning glories may be getting caught in an evolutionary tug-of-war between surviving climate change and attracting increasingly scarce pollinators. Over just nine years, researchers found that the plants’ rate of adaptation plunged by 96%, even though they still had plenty of genetic diversity to evolve.

📅 2026-09-04 03:02:07    •    ScienceDaily