An ‘everlasting’ bubble endured more than a year without popping
If you hate having your bubble burst, you’ll love these “everlasting” bubbles. While soap bubbles are known for their fragile constitutions, the new bubbles...
SCIENTIFIC NEWS
What the Tonga volcano’s past tells us about what to expect next
On January 15, an underwater volcano in the island nation of Tonga erupted with the explosive force of a nuclear bomb, and it may...
An X-ray glow suggests black holes or neutron stars fuel weird cosmic ‘cows’
A brilliant blast from a galaxy 2 billion light-years away is the brightest cosmic “Cow” found yet. It’s the fifth known object in this...
Intense drought or flash floods can shock the global economy
Extremes in rainfall — whether intense drought or flash floods — can catastrophically slow the global economy, researchers report in the Jan. 13 Nature....
Babies may use saliva sharing to figure out relationships
Young children are always watching. That includes when people swap spit through actions like sharing food — helping the tots work out who is...
A ‘trapdoor’ made of muscle and fat helps fin whales eat without choking
Some of the world’s largest whales feed by lunging through the water with mouths wide open. Scientists have long wondered how the animals withstand...
Gold and silver tubes in a Russian museum are the oldest known drinking straws
Eight silver and gold tubes held in a Russian museum have long been thought to have been either ceremonial staffs or canopy supports. In...
These tiny beetles fly fast thanks to wing bristles and a weird, wide stroke
Featherwing beetles are some of the world’s smallest flying insects. Yet they can rocket along with the speed and agility of much larger insects....
A disinfectant made from sawdust mows down deadly microbes
A new, sustainable disinfectant made from sawdust and water can knock out more than 99 percent of some disease-causing microbes, including anthrax and several...
Volcanic avalanches of rock and gas may be more destructive than previously thought
Avalanches of ash, gas and rock that cascade downhill during volcanic eruptions may be even more dangerous than scientists had realized. Pulses of high...
Uganda’s UN-supported wildlife forensics lab turns ivory seizures into convictions 
World News in Brief: Cycle of violence continues in Haiti, seafarer deaths off Somalia, food insecurity in the Middle East 
Collective action needed to tackle global information crisis, UN-led dialogue hears 
Ukraine war ‘a human rights catastrophe’ that must end, says Türk