Europe’s oldest handgun may date back to the siege of a German castle in the 14th century
Fragments of an early handgun found in Brandenburg, Germany, may belong to Europe’s oldest known handheld gunpowder weapon, according to new research. The artifact, about 2 inches (6 centimeters) long, may date back to 1390. If so, it would be nine years older than the famous Tannenberg rifle, which was created in 1399 and is […]
Scientists squeeze microbes into steel ‘sandwiches’ and make major discovery about life in the universe
A new laboratory study has shown that “extremophile” bacteria can withstand an asteroid impact strong enough to send it flying into space. This suggests that potential alien life could spread between worlds through collisions with space rocks. In the new study, published March 3 in the journal PNAS Nexus, researchers sandwiched Deinococcus radiodurans, a type […]
Czech Republic man accidentally discovers mold on a Bronze Age spear tip in his backyard
A seemingly dull rectangular stone used as part of the foundation of an old barn in a Czech garden is actually half of a rare Bronze Age mold used to make spearheads, new research has found. The approximately 9-inch (23-centimeter)-long mold, carved in a volcanic rock known as rhyolite tuff, dates from the Late Bronze […]
Diagnostic dilemma: A woman born without a vagina or cervix conceived a son naturally.
Patient: 16-year-old girl living in the UK Symptoms: The teenage girl was referred to a pediatric and adolescent gynecology clinic in 1999, doctors wrote in a case report. She was experiencing pelvic pain following the regular pattern of her menstrual cycle, but her first period had not yet arrived. She was referred for “amenorrhea,” meaning […]
Pre-Inca cultures acquired Amazonian parrots hundreds of miles away to use feathers to decorate the dead, new analysis reveals
About 1,000 years ago, pre-Inca cultures obtained wild parrots from the Amazon rainforest hundreds of miles away and captured them in what is now the coastal region of Peru. All this was done to give people access to the birds’ bright plumage, a “noble symbol of status,” a new study has found. Researchers discovered some […]
A single protein could dramatically change the trajectory of Alzheimer’s disease
We now know why a single genetic mutation can protect against Alzheimer’s disease in people destined to develop it at a very young age. The genetic mutation affects a protein called Reelin, which tells brain cells to shred toxic amyloid plaques and tau tangles that may be responsible for the disease. This mutation makes Reelin […]
Fallen meteorite punches a hole in the roof of a German house after a spectacular ‘fireball’ explosion over Europe
A fireball meteor exploded spectacularly over Europe, then rained fiery debris onto buildings in a German town, blowing holes in the roofs of houses and bedrooms below, according to reports. On Sunday (March 8), at around 6:55pm local time, a meteor crossed the atmosphere over Germany’s Rhineland-Palatinate state before suddenly exploding, creating a bright flash […]
Gem-filled rivers and striped mountain ridges form a giant ‘Y’ in China’s revitalized desert — Earth seen from space
simple facts Where is it? Taklamakan Desert, China [38.459991514, 80.87050739] What is in the photo? A river and mountains forming a huge Y-shape Which satellite took the photo?Landsat 9 When was it taken? September 11, 2025 This striking satellite photo shows a giant letter Y lurking in the heart of China’s recently transformed desert. This […]
Exotic prime numbers may be hiding inside black holes
Like physics, mathematics has its own “fundamental particles,” or prime numbers, which cannot be decomposed into smaller natural numbers. They can only be divided by themselves and by 1. In a new development, it turns out that these mathematical “particles” offer a new way to tackle physics’ deepest mysteries. Over the past year, researchers have […]
A 2,000-year-old Phoenician coin was used as bus fare in Britain, but ‘how it was acquired remains an eternal mystery’
It turns out that an interesting coin left in a bus driver’s cash register in Britain in the 1950s has ancient origins. The coin was minted 2,000 years ago in what is now southern Spain. More than 70 years later, the grandson of a former transit cashier has donated the mysteriously acquired coin to a […]