3,500-Year-Old Ancient Fragrances Reveal What Egyptian Mummification Smelled Like

Learn how traces on Egyptian mummification jars were used to make perfume, bringing ancient fragrances and societies back to life.

How Burn Injuries May Have Shaped Human Evolution, and Set Us Apart From Other Primates

Learn how repeated burn injuries may have acted as a form of natural selection, influencing human genes linked to healing and immune response.

Earthquakes Don’t Just Break the Crust, 459 Were Found Deep in the Mantle

Learn how seismic waves helped identify rare mantle earthquakes deep below Earth’s crust, offering new insight into the planet’s interior.

Why Can't You Tickle Yourself? Your Brain Actually Prevents It From Happening

Why can't you tickle yourself? Learn more about the process in the brain that prevents it from happening. 

Static Electricity Shapes Everyday Life — but Its Origin Remains Shockingly Mysterious

How does static electricity work? Learn more about these electrical chargers and how they may have been a key to life. 

Bonobo Kanzi Plays Pretend Like a Child, Showing Ape’s Capacity to Imagine

Discover how an ape playing tea party teaches us humans are not the only beings with complex mental lives.

Termites Lost Key Genes — and Gained the Monogamy That Built Their Complex Societies

Learn more about termite evolution and how shedding key genes from their cockroach ancestors helped them build more complex colonies. 

3 Superhuman Traits That Some Are Born With — and Others You Can Learn

Many ordinary people have skills that the rest of us might call superpowers. ​Learn ​how you may be able to ​teach yourself these abilities, too. 

A Supermassive Black Hole Shredded a Star — and Is Still Burping Out Its Bright Remains

Learn how a shredded star triggered a black hole jet that evolved into a years-long energy surge that continues to intensify.

Fossils Show Pronghorn Speed Predates the American Cheetah by 5 Million Years

Learn how Miocene fossils from the Mojave Desert reveal that pronghorn running adaptations developed long before high-speed cheetahs appeared in North America.

Catch a 'Ring of Fire' Eclipse and Rare Planetary Parade This February 2026

Learn about two major events happening in the sky this February 2026: a solar eclipse that will create a "ring of fire" and a six-planet parade.

2,000-Year-Old Mummies Show Ancient Egyptians Had Back and Hip Pain, Too

Learn how advancements in CT scanner technology is helping to unwrap the lives of ancient Egyptian mummies without even touching them.

New Zealand Cave Discovery Reveals Ancient Species — Including a Relative of the Kākāpō

Learn more about the animals that were living inside the 'lost world' of this New Zealand cave. 

How the Green River Carved Its Mysterious Route Through the Mountains

Learn more about the Green River and how a lithospheric drip may have led to the river flowing 'uphill.' 

Elusive Beaked Whales May Dive Over 3,000 Feet to Forage Near the Seafloor

Learn how six months of underwater recordings uncovered new details about how beaked whales hunt near the ocean bottom.

How Surgeons Kept a Man With No Lungs Alive for Two Days

Discover how a surgical team engineered an improvised artificial lung system that kept a man alive for 48 hours without lungs.

Archaeopteryx — The Earliest Known Bird — Had a Strange Mouth, but Fed Like Modern Birds

Learn how looking in Archaeopteryx’s fossilized mouth uncovered weird features unique to birds, supporting their ability to fly.

Cats’ Hair and Whiskers Suggest a Vegan Diet in Lab Tests — Despite Being Carnivores

Learn how nitrogen isotope tests made meat-eating cats appear plant-based, and what their protein metabolism reveals about interpreting animal diets.

Gigantic Hot Rock Blobs Have Impacted Earth's Magnetic Field For Over 200 Million Years

Learn about the continent-sized rocks hidden deep within Earth's mantle that have influenced the magnetic field for millions of years. 

What Happens When Magma and Earthquakes Align in Yellowstone National Park?

Learn more about the rare instances when seismic and magma activity overlap in Yellowstone National Park.