Jun 7th, 2025 - Long believed to be confined to the lab, the bizarre and cooperative behavior of "worm towers" has now been documented in nature. An international team of researchers has recorded the first direct evidence of nematodes forming vertical, living structures in decaying fruit in German orchards. It's a phenomenon once thought to be mythical. These living towers, built from worm bodies, act as a collective vehicle to reach new environments and improve survival under stress. Worm towers step into nature For years, scientists suspected that nematodes might build these structures in the wild, but ... [Read More]

Jun 6th, 2025 - Thanks to the creative application of new technologies, the 2020s are quietly shaping up to be a golden age of archaeology. In 2023, then-21-year-old Luke Farritor (now with the Department of Government Efficiency ) combined machine‑learning pattern recognition with high‑resolution CT scans to decipher the first word from the Herculaneum scrolls —a Roman library charred by Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. Fully decrypting the library could ultimately double the surviving corpus of Ancient Greek and Roman literature—an unprecedented bonanza for classical scholarship. Analysis ... [Read More]

Jun 6th, 2025 - India has reported a sudden rise in COVID cases, starting from late May. Authorities said the number of active cases of the disease has surpassed 5,000. India is the latest of a number of countries to report an uptick in COVID cases this year as, more than five years after the virus was declared a global pandemic , waves of new strains continue to emerge . Here is what we know about the new variant of COVID and where it has spread: How many COVID cases are there in India? As of Thursday this week, there are 5,364 active cases in India, according to India's Ministry of Health and Family ... [Read More]

Jun 6th, 2025 - Early visions of Mars: Meet the astronomer who used science fiction to imagine the red planet Living in today's age of ambitious robotic exploration of Mars , with an eventual human mission to the red planet likely to happen one day, it is hard to imagine a time when Mars was a mysterious and unreachable world. And yet, before the invention of the rocket, astronomers who wanted to explore Mars beyond what they could see through their telescopes had to use their imaginations. As a space historian and author of the book " For the Love of Mars: A Human History of the Red Planet ," I've ... [Read More]

Jun 6th, 2025 - Tropical reefs might look like inanimate rock, but these colorful seascapes are built by tiny jellyfish-like animals called corals. While adult corals build solid structures that are firmly attached to the sea floor, baby corals are not confined to their reefs. They can drift with ocean currents over great distances to new locations that might give them a better chance of survival. The underwater cities that corals construct are home to about a quarter of all known marine species . They are incredibly important for humans, too, contributing at least a trillion dollars per year in ecosystem ... [Read More]

Jun 5th, 2025 - "This is something I never thought I'd hold," John Moore Jr. said Tuesday, as he showed off the document with U.S. Moore and crew member Tanner Mansell were convicted in 2022 of theft of property within special maritime jurisdiction. The two men avoided prison time but were ordered to pay $3,343.72 in restitution. The felony convictions prevented them from voting in Florida, owning firearms or traveling freely outside the U.S. Moore said he and his attorneys were surprised by the pardon, because they hadn't petitioned for one. "We didn't reach out to the White House," Moore said. "We never ... [Read More]

Jun 5th, 2025 - June 5 (UPI) -- A Wisconsin zoo announced it has called off the search for an otter on the loose since March, explaining the animal "has made the decision to be a wild otter." The New Zoo & Adventure Park in Green Bay previously revealed two otters, Louie and Ophelia, escaped from their enclosure during a snowstorm March 20. Ophelia was recaptured and returned to the zoo April 2, but Louie has proved to be more elusive. "At no point during his time away has Louie been spotted (and reported to us) repeatedly in the same yard or waterway, which is what would have been required to set traps to ... [Read More]

Jun 5th, 2025 - Colorado Parks and Wildlife advised dog owners to keep pets on-leash when walking in moose habitat, and to choose trails with good visibility Following a trio of moose attacks in Colorado, state officials are asking dog owners in mountain towns to keep their pets on-leash. The three incidents occurred successive days this past week, in three different Colorado mountain towns. In all three, the people who were attacked were walking dogs when they encountered female moose. On Friday, May 30, two women walking four dogs off-leash in the town of Fairplay came across a cow moose, which charged ... [Read More]