Science

This year we pushed the boundaries of science to new extremes. We saw new levels of supercomputer performance, peeled the plastic off the biggest telescope and solar plant on earth, did the first-ever spectroscopy on antimatter, and even made liquid light. To start with, we put spinners on the world’s …

SpaceX has been grounded ever since a launchpad explosion on September 1st resulted in the loss of a Falcon 9 rocket. The failure destroyed a Facebook internet satellite and called into question the design of SpaceX’s fuel tanks. This was the second tank failure leading to the loss of a …

Non-avian dinosaur eggs took a long time to hatch — between 3 and 6 months, according to new research on the teeth of fossilized dinosaur embryos. Herds of female titanosaurs gathered at traditional nesting grounds 80 million years ago in what is now Patagonia, Argentina. Image credit: Luis Rey / …

A team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco, has discovered a way to inactivate the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing system using newly identified bacteriophage proteins. The study was published on Dec. 29 in the online edition of the journal Cell. Four newly identified CRISPR-Cas9 inhibitor proteins encoded by Listeria …

A team of researchers in the UK is developing an interactive holographic video created from an MRI or CT scan that can display live footage of internal organs in front of a user where features can be rotated, enlarged, and isolated. Popping in to your local hospital may be much …

Australian manuka honey is at least as powerful against bacteria as the more commonly known New Zealand variety, according to a new study published in the journal PLoS ONE. A researcher with manuka honey in the lab. Image credit: Vanessa Valenzuela Davie. “Honey has been used therapeutically by many cultures …

An international team of researchers from Spain and the UK has found that the protein TLR2 (Toll-like receptor 2) — a critical detector of the microbiota found in the intestine — regulates levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter intimately connected to the brain’s regulation of appetite, sleep, and mood. Escherichia coli, …

According to a new study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, the ancient inhabitants of Chaco Canyon likely had to import corn to feed the multitudes residing there. Pueblo Bonito, the largest great house in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. Image credit: National Register of Historic Places / CC …

Archaeologists digging at a site in the City of David, in the Jerusalem Walls National Park, have found a fragment of a rare ancient bowl. The fragment of the 2,100-year-old stone bowl, which is engraved with the name Hyrcanus. Image credit: Clara Amit / Israel Antiquities Authority. The bowl fragment …

A new study published in the journal PLoS ONE suggests that there are 18,043 bird species in the world — nearly twice as many as previously thought. Toucan. Image credit: Tambako the Jaguar / CC BY-ND 2.0. Birds (class Aves) are traditionally thought of as a well-studied group, with more …