SCIENCE

Prehistoric Ticks Once Drank Dinosaur Blood, Fossil Evidence Shows

This is the first direct evidence that the pesky arachnids once dined on feathered dinosaurs.

Extinct Penguin Species Was the Size of an Adult Human

Kumimanu biceae would have dwarfed the penguins of today.

New Patient Test Could Suggest Whether Therapy or Meds Will Work Better for Anxiety

Expediting the diagnostic process could save patients months of anguish.

15 Dramatic Nature Illustrations by 19th-Century Scientist Ernst Haeckel

His artworks showed the wonders of evolution to a wide audience.

Newly Discovered 350-Year-Old Graffiti Shows Sir Isaac Newton's Obsession With Motion Started Early

Conservators used light imaging techniques to spot a tiny windmill sketch that's invisible to the naked eye.

The Fascinating Device Astronauts Use to Weigh Themselves in Space

When conventional scales don't work, they use this instead.

3500-Year-Old Mummy Discovered in Forgotten Egyptian Tomb

It might belong to an ancient Egyptian scribe, or to an important official named Djehuty Mes.

Can You Figure Out This Newly Discovered Optical Illusion?

Can you tell whether the lines are curves or zigzags?

The Most Complete Fossil of an Early Human Relative Goes on Display

Ninety percent of Little Foot's skeleton has been recovered.

What’s Really Happening When You "Smell" Snow

The sensation is real, but it doesn't have to do with odor.

New Jersey Is Now Home to the Western Hemisphere's Largest Planetarium

A $5 million donation made the state-of-the-art science hub possible.

Scientists Find a 245-Million-Year-Old Horseshoe Crab Fossil That Resembles Darth Vader

They named it Vaderlimulus tricki.

Smiling Could Improve Your Athletic Performance—But Your Grins Can't Be Fake

Some athletes believe that smiling mid-competition improves their performance. Scientists put this theory to the test.

Neutron Star Collision Sheds Light on the Strange Matter That Weighs a Billion Tons Per Teaspoon

The bizarre material just got a little less mysterious.

Photograph by Sofía Samper Carro. "Fishing in life and death: Pleistocene fish-hooks from a burial context on Alor Island, Indonesia," Antiquity, Sue O’Connor, Mahirta, Sofía C. Samper Carro, Stuart Hawkin, Shimona Kealy, Julien Louys and Rachel Wood.

These 12,000-Year-Old Fish Hooks Are the Oldest to Ever Be Discovered in a Grave

For prehistoric residents of Indonesia's rugged Alor Island, fishing was fundamental for both the living and the dead.

People Listen (and Remember) Better With Their Right Ears, Study Finds

Our ears share the burden of listening equally.

See How to Grow Snowflakes Inside a Soda Bottle

It's never too warm to see snow on Christmas.

Pigeons Are Secretly Brilliant Birds That Understand Space and Time, Study Finds

The much-maligned bird is a lot more intelligent than people think.

'Super-Earth' Exoplanet Could Potentially Support Life (And It Also Has a Neighbor)

K2-18b orbits a red-dwarf star in the constellation Leo, and it's situated in the perfect zone to have liquid surface water.

Why Is Your First Instinct After Hurting Your Finger to Put It in Your Mouth?

This self-soothing behavior is actually a pretty effective technique for temporarily calming pain signals to the brain. Here's how it works.

NOAA Fisheries Service scientists disentangle a young North Atlantic right whale off the coast Florida.

Meet the Biologists Who Rescue Whales Trapped in Fishing Gear

Getting tangled in lines and nets can be deadly for whales—and it's a global problem.

7 Surprising Facts About Pluto

Its atmosphere is electric blue.

Voyager 1's Back Thrusters Just Fired Up for the First Time in 37 Years

Imagine trying to start a car that's been sitting in a garage for decades—and the car is 13 billion miles away.

Why Reading Aloud Helps You Remember More Information

A new study suggests that reading information and hearing yourself speak it aloud is a more effective memory technique than reading silently or listening to someone else read.

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