Chocolate Hills: Color-changing mounds in the Philippines that inspired the legend of the mud-throwing giant
simple facts Name: Chocolate Hills Location: Bohol Island, Philippines Coordinates: 9.8297, 124.1396 Why we don’t believe it: The hills change color with the seasons, giving rise to legends that giants formed them out of mud. The Chocolate Hills are a geological formation of 1,776 limestone grass-covered mounds located in the Philippines. The landscape is lush […]
‘Earthquake on a Chip’ uses ‘phonon’ lasers to improve efficiency of mobile devices
Engineers have developed a device that generates small earthquake-like vibrations on the surface of the chip. They say it could one day be used for signal processing inside everyday electronic devices, paving the way for smaller, faster and more efficient wireless devices. In a new study published in the journal Nature on January 14, the […]
New images suggest an ocean the size of the North Pole that once covered half of Mars
New evidence of ancient rivers suggests Mars may have been a “blue planet” thanks to oceans that span the entire northern hemisphere. Cameras on multiple Mars rovers have apparently captured the dusty remains of a river delta, as described in a study published January 7 in the journal NPJ Space Exploration. A team led by […]
Stem cell-derived ‘pain sponges’ could absorb pain signals before they reach the brain
The experimental treatment uses specialized neurons derived from stem cells to “absorb” triggers of pain and inflammation in arthritic knees of mice. The experiments in laboratory mice suggest that this treatment could help people with chronic pain caused by diseases such as osteoarthritis, for example. Researchers say a “pain sponge” could help patients stop relying […]
Arctic blasts probably won’t cause trees to explode in the cold. But if the trees grow too fast, here’s what happens.
The extreme cold from the incoming winter blast could cause some trees to “explode,” a viral social media post claims, but don’t expect them to start blowing away like cars in an action movie. “Trees are likely to explode across the Midwest and northern Plains on Friday and Saturday as temperatures are expected to drop […]
5,500-year-old human bones discovered in Colombia hold the earliest evidence that syphilis came from the Americas
The world’s oldest evidence of Treponema pallidum, the bacterium that causes syphilis and several chronic skin infections, has been discovered in 5,500-year-old human bones buried in a rock shelter in Colombia. However, genetic evidence suggests that the person was infected with a previously unknown strain of syphilis, further complicating the already complex picture of syphilis […]
Wegovy now comes in pill form — here’s what you need to know
A pill version of the popular weight management drug Wegovy has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is now available through various pharmacies and telemedicine services in the United States. The drug has been available by prescription as a once-weekly injection in the U.S. since 2021. Like the injection, Wegoby’s new […]
Creepy robot hand detaches from wrist and runs off to collect items
Engineers have developed a removable robotic hand that can crawl into hard-to-reach places and retrieve objects. The spider-like device can attach multiple fingers and is reversible, allowing it to grasp objects in both directions and manipulate it as if it had two functional palms. In a research paper published in the journal Nature Communications on […]
Californians are using far less water than their suppliers estimate, but what does this mean for the state?
California used less water than officials estimated between 2000 and 2020, according to a new report. While the findings call into question the accuracy of long-term water demand forecasts and could have a knock-on effect on costs borne by consumers, the news that overall water demand is lower than predicted is positive for the state […]
Scientists may be close to a “fundamental breakthrough in cosmology and particle physics” – if dark matter and “ghost particles” can interact
Two of the most mysterious particles in the universe may be colliding invisibly throughout the universe. This discovery could solve one of the biggest remaining problems with the Standard Model of cosmology. These two elusive building blocks, dark matter and neutrinos (or “ghost particles”), are ubiquitous in the universe but remain poorly understood. In a […]