7,500-year-old deer headdress discovered in Germany shows hunter-gatherers shared sacred objects and ideas with the region’s first farmers
Deer headdresses unearthed at an archaeological site in Germany reveal that Stone Age hunter-gatherers shared sacred objects, tools and ideas with farming communities some 7,500 years ago, a new study reveals. The ancient farming village near Eilsleben, about 60 miles (100 kilometers) east of Hannover in northern Germany, was “a kind of outpost” for some […]
How well can AI and humans work together? Scientists are looking to Dungeons & Dragons to find out.
Artificial intelligence (AI) models are playing the popular tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) to help researchers develop long-term strategies and test their ability to collaborate with other AI systems and human players. In the study, presented at the NeurIPS 2025 conference in San Diego from Dec. 2 to Dec. 7, researchers said D&D […]
Saltwater crocodiles crossed the Indian Ocean to the Seychelles before humans arrived and made them extinct.
Saltwater crocodiles once ranged across a vast range from across the Indian Ocean to the Seychelles, a new DNA study confirms. The extinct crocodile population in the Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, was not a group of Nile crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus), nor was it a separate species. Rather, it is probably the […]
Total lunar eclipse on March 3rd: When and where can you see the “blood moon” from the United States?
Sky watchers across western North America will have a chance to witness a total lunar eclipse, often referred to as a “blood moon,” in the early morning hours of March 3. A total lunar eclipse occurs when a full moon (in this case March’s full “worm moon”) passes through Earth’s shadow in space. At that […]
Genetically unique group from southern Greece can trace paternal ancestry to the Bronze Age
A group of people living on the southern tip of Greece’s Peloponnese Peninsula have been genetically isolated for more than 1,000 years and can trace their roots back to the Bronze Age, a DNA analysis has revealed. New genetic research shows that this group, known as Deep Maniot Greeks, is paternally descended from ancient Greeks […]
Galileo images suggest life-friendly molecules are leaking from Jupiter’s giant moon Europa
Jupiter’s icy moon Europa appears to have life-friendly molecules on its surface. Al Emran, a researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, discovered ammonia on Europa’s surface while examining old data from the Galileo mission, which studied Jupiter and its moons from 1995 to 2003. Data collected from Galileo’s near-infrared mapping spectrometer in 1997 showed “faint […]
‘Behemoth Star’, previously thought to be dying, is ‘rising from the ashes’ like a phoenix
One of the largest stars in the universe, previously predicted to be on the brink of a violent supernova explosion, may not explode anytime soon after all, a new study suggests. The surprising discovery also suggests that this star’s “behemoth” is slowly being cannibalized by a smaller, hidden partner. WOH G64, also known as the […]
New map shows strange magnetic anomaly lurks beneath Australia’s Northern Territory
A new map of Australia has revealed a strange indentation in the magnetic field beneath Australia’s Northern Territory. The Australian Magnetic Anomaly Zone, named for the country’s resemblance in shape, holds valuable information about Australia’s geological history, including how different rock formations formed and acquired their unique magnetic properties. “Thanks to magnetic data, we can […]
‘Nitrogen-fixing’ trees could help restore tropical forests, research suggests
Providing additional nitrogen could double the growth of tropical trees in recovering forests, significantly increasing the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) they can absorb over a 10-year period, according to a new study. The researchers found that adding nitrogen fertilizer to the soil in the youngest forests (forests less than a year old) increased tree […]
Diagnostic dilemma: autopsy reveals unexpected ‘boomerang’ structure in man’s heart
Death: 39-year-old man living in the United States Autopsy results: The coroner examined the man after a desperate struggle, during which the stab wound pierced a vein in his lung. They noted that the man’s heart was slightly enlarged and he had moderate atherosclerotic coronary artery disease (CAD) in two blood vessels. CAD is caused […]