Minnesota is falling short on its climate goals, new state data shows

• Minnesota is struggling to achieve its climate goals despite decades of falling greenhouse gas emissions, newly released state data shows. • State law requires Minnesota’s electr

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 76 words

1,100 dead or sick geese in NJ spark bird flu warning, prompt lake's closure

• At least 1,100 dead or sick birds, mostly Canada geese, have been reported across New Jersey in an outbreak that started on Valentine’s Day, according to state officials.

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 61 words

Pushing the right buttons: Fern guides its embryo's sense of up and down

• Ferns communicate directional cues to embryos using mechanical pressure, not chemical signals. • Pressure applied at specific sites tells the embryo which side is up. • This guid

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 161 words

In Tampa, storm-weary residents detail the costs of extreme weather

• An Ybor business owner closed her yoga studio repeatedly from worries over moldy, waterlogged walls. • A Pinellas woman’s home flooded in one hurricane, and a tree crushed her ca

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 139 words

Linguist explains how AI makes fake news more credible

• Fake news generated by AI is often perceived as more credible than texts written by humans. • That worries linguist Silje Susanne Alvestad. • In 2017, ‘fake news’ was chosen as t

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 187 words

Australia's happiness crisis could cost us our global mojo

• Along with cricket, thongs and backyard barbecues, the arrival of the annual Australian Lamb ad has become synonymous with an Australian summer. • What began back in 2005 as a pi

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 175 words

Endangered Kenyan antelopes rescued after being stranded at Palm Beach airport

• When Paul Reillo learned the endangered mountain bongo antelopes that he had cared for since birth were stranded in a cargo plane on an airport tarmac ahead of their journey to a

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 135 words

A rethink is needed on zero-tolerance school behavior policies

• Persistent concerns about poor behavior in UK secondary schools have led to the widespread implementation of disciplinary behavior management strategies. • These include the use

Science · February 21, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 127 words

The term 'resilience' becoming a burden for women in agriculture, study shows

• New research from Adelaide University is questioning the widespread use of the term ‘resilience’ in Australian agriculture, arguing that its overuse can place unfair pressure on

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 166 words

Aging hens may lay fewer eggs as gut health declines, study finds

• In an era of rising grocery costs, eggs remain one of the most accessible and complete protein sources for families. • New research from the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa’s Coll

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 154 words

What is a 'seesaw protein' that switches functions by changing shape?

• Inspired by the simple mechanism of a seesaw-when one side goes up, the other side goes down-researchers asked an intriguing question: Could a single molecule switch between two

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 141 words

How do clouds form in Antarctica? The first flight-based aerosol measurements in 20 years

• Antarctica plays a crucial role in Earth’s climate system by reflecting solar radiation back into space. • The large white ice surfaces and clouds play a decisive role in this pr

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 218 words

Supercomputer simulations reveal rotation drives chemical mixing in red giant stars

• Advances in supercomputing have made solving a long‐standing astronomical conundrum possible: How can we explain the changes in the chemical composition at the surface of red gia

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 123 words

Endangered marine life is being caught in fishing nets, but it doesn't need to be

• Hundreds of thousands of marine animals are killed every year after becoming accidentally caught in commercial fishing nets. • Sharks, skates and rays are at particular risk, alo

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 108 words

Study finds household-level aid can undermine pastoralists' collective resilience

• Recurrent droughts, conflict, and changing land use have placed significant strain on pastoral populations in the dryland regions of Africa, resulting in numerous crises that req

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 159 words

SpaceX rocket left behind a plume of chemical pollution as it burnt up in the atmosphere

• Space junk returning to Earth is introducing metal pollution to the pristine upper atmosphere as it burns up on re-entry, a new study has found.

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 110 words

A survival strategy inside stressed cells: Ribosomes in pairs

• Ribosomes, the cell’s protein-making factories, consume large amounts of energy as they build the proteins that keep cells alive and functioning. • When cells experience stress-s

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 188 words

DNA analysis illuminates the lives of East Marshall Street Well individuals

• She had brown eyes and black hair. • She was almost 5 feet, 7 inches tall and chewed tobacco. • She was in her 20s, carried heavy loads with her left arm and had given birth. • W

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 234 words

Chemists synthesize first stable copper metallocene complex, closing a 70-year gap

• Almost half a century ago, a remarkable molecule called metallocene took center stage in chemistry, earning Geoffrey Wilkinson and Ernst Otto Fischer the Nobel Prize. • These org

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 144 words

Evidence points to early goat and sheep dairy consumption in Neolithic Iran

• Approximately 9,000 years ago, human communities in Southwest Asia underwent a dramatic transformation, known as the Neolithic revolution. • This period was marked by pronounced

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 151 words

The bouba-kiki effect: Baby chicks match sounds to shapes just like humans

• When we hear certain sounds, our brains often pair them with specific shapes. • For example, most people will associate a sharp-sounding word with a jagged, pointed shape, while

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 140 words

From local action to global impact: New framework presented for advancing sustainable development

• As countries strive to achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, a new international study published in Nature Communications brings together 19 r

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 193 words

3D method can accurately measure gravity in wide binary stars, as demonstrated by pilot study

• Since the third Gaia data release in 2022, wide binary stars with separation greater than several thousand astronomical units have been intensely investigated across the world, t

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 142 words

REGALADE: The most extensive catalog of galaxies for modern astronomy

• An international team of scientists led by the Institute of Cosmos Sciences at the University of Barcelona (ICCUB) and the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC) has pres

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 179 words

How choices made by crowds in a train station are guided by strangers

• In crowds, most people are strangers to you, and everyone else for that matter. • However, until now, the effect of stranger-to-stranger interactions on the choices people make i

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 190 words

Impact-formed glass provides evidence of cosmic collision in Brazil about 6 million years ago

• For the first time in Brazil, researchers have identified a field of tektites. • These are natural glasses formed by the high-energy impact of extraterrestrial bodies against Ear

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 135 words

Small but mighty microplate reader could transform NASA research

• A small but mighty piece of lab equipment, about the size of a cellphone, has arrived at the International Space Station after launching with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission. • NAS

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 138 words

New insights into how bacteria control DNA synthesis open the door to next generation antimicrobials

• Ribonucleotide reductases (RNR) are indispensable enzymes that convert ribonucleotides to deoxyribonucleotides (dNTPs), the precursors to make up DNA. • Because DNA synthesis is

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 187 words

Living tissues are shaped by self-propelled topological defects, biophysicists find

• With a new mathematical model, a team of biophysicists has revealed fresh insights into how biological tissues are shaped by the active motion of structural imperfections known a

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 139 words

How root growth is stimulated by nitrate: Researchers decipher signaling chain

• When 200 natural accessions of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana grown in a nitrate-enriched medium were compared, one observation stood out: some accessions formed significan

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 116 words

How competitive gaming on Discord fosters social connections

• Human beings are social animals; they need places to relax, connect with others, and feel a sense of belonging beyond the demands of home and work. • Traditionally, these ’third

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 164 words

'All-in-one,' single-atom could power both sides of water splitting

• Green hydrogen production technology, which utilizes renewable energy to produce eco-friendly hydrogen without carbon emissions, is gaining attention as a core technology for add

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 143 words

Letting children play can support development

• Preschool-age children are most engaged in pretend play 10-15 minutes after playing begins. • In addition, girls exhibit higher organizational skills, according to a study conduc

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 204 words
Fish-based pet food may expose cats and dogs to forever chemicals

Fish-based pet food may expose cats and dogs to forever chemicals

• Some pet foods contain potentially harmful PFAS chemicalsCris Cantón/Getty Images Some pet foods contain potentially harmful PFAS chemicals Cris Cantón/Getty Images Many pet food

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 315 words

Birds change altitude to survive epic journeys across deserts and seas

• Every year, billions of birds undertake extraordinary migrations, crossing vast deserts and open seas with no place to stop, feed, or rest. • A new international study published

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 166 words

Social media advertising suppresses voting in targeted communities, research shows

• Microtargeted social media ads can suppress voter turnout in vulnerable groups. • Study tracked 10,000 US voters, capturing all ads viewed before 2016 election. • Researchers qua

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 169 words

Neutron scattering helps clarify magnetic behavior in altermagnetic material

• Scientists at the U.S. • Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) have identified the true source of a magnetic effect seen in the material ruthenium dioxide (RuO₂), helping resolve an ac

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 137 words

New generation of climate models sheds first light on long-standing Pacific puzzle

• Researchers have long been puzzled by the observed cooling of the eastern tropical Pacific and the Southern Ocean accompanying global warming. • Existing climate models have fail

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 186 words

Blood marker from dementia research could help track aging across the animal world

• A protein called neurofilament light chain (NfL)-studied in humans in the context of neurodegenerative diseases and aging-is also detectable in the blood of numerous animals, and

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 180 words

Scientists home in on Acinetobacter baumannii's resistance evolution

• Acinetobacter baumannii is a bacteria which can become a virulent killer in health-care settings among severely ill patients. • The germ has rapidly developed drug resistance to

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 165 words

NASA targets March for first moon mission by Artemis astronauts after fueling test success

• NASA aims to send astronauts to the moon in March after acing the latest rocket fueling test.

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 115 words

Growing number of Americans report experiencing extreme cold, poll finds

• Millions in North America kicked off 2026 with bitterly cold temperatures, with many saying it’s been years since they’ve experienced such frigid winter weather.

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 116 words

Symbiotic bacteria in planthoppers break record for smallest non-organelle genome ever found

• Many insects rely on heritable bacterial endosymbionts for essential nutrients that they cannot get through their diet. • A new study, published in Nature Communications, indicat

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 167 words
'Million-year-old' fossil skulls from China are far older-and not Denisovans

'Million-year-old' fossil skulls from China are far older-and not Denisovans

• Two skulls from Yunxian, in northern China, aren’t ancestors of Denisovans after all; they’re actually the oldest knownHomo erectusfossils in eastern Asia. • A recent study has r

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 25, 2026) · 2 min · 268 words

Flexible force fields can protect our return to the moon

• Lunar dust remains one of the biggest challenges for a long-term human presence on the moon. • Its jagged, clingy nature makes it naturally stick to everything from solar panels

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 209 words

How massive lava fields formed in the Pacific Northwest

• Volcanic eruptions are significant geologic hazards. • Underwater volcanoes are challenging to study, yet they play an integral role in marine geology and may cause destructive t

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 135 words

A new way to judge how the economy performs in booms and busts

• When the economy grows or shrinks, we often focus on how long the phase lasts or how deep it goes. • A new paper asks a sharper question: How does actual growth compare with stea

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 162 words

Robot clean-up crews tackle litter on Europe's seabed

• EU researchers are developing AI-guided robot fleets to take over the dangerous, dirty work of finding and removing marine litter from the sea floor. • A ship with a crane floats

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 151 words

Can a chatbot be a co-author? AI helps crack a long-stalled gluon amplitude proof

• Like many scientists, theoretical physicist Andrew Strominger was unimpressed with early attempts at probing ChatGPT, receiving clever-sounding answers that didn’t stand up to sc

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 155 words

How early farming unintentionally bred highly competitive 'warrior' wheat

• An evolutionary ‘arms race’ for light and space led to the early domestication of wheat, according to new research that could offer fresh insights into crop design. • Yixiang Sha

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 166 words

Americium, curium and californium-crystallizing the rarest elements

• Actinides are a group of heavy, radioactive elements that include uranium, plutonium, americium, curium, berkelium and californium. • Understanding how these elements bond with o

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 144 words

Quantum trembling: Why there are no truly flat molecules

• Traditional chemistry textbooks present a tidy picture: Atoms in molecules occupy fixed positions, connected by rigid rods. • A molecule such as formic acid (methanoic acid, HCOO

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 142 words

Why hikers need a backup for the maps on their phones

• Four of five Norwegians use digital maps when they are in the outdoors. • In just a few years, our mobile phones have gone from being a practical navigation aid to a virtual comp

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 145 words

Pregnancy complications may have helped wipe out Neanderthals

• Neanderthals disappeared from the fossil record approximately 40,000 years ago. • Their extinction was a gradual process over thousands of years, and theories as to why include c

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 140 words
Scientists reveal how exercise protects the brain from Alzheimer's

Scientists reveal how exercise protects the brain from Alzheimer's

• Scientists reveal how exercise protects the brain from Alzheimerâ s Researchers at UC San Francisco have identified a biological process that may explain why exercise sharpens th

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 215 words

New book explores links between disasters and development

• Disasters arise from the convergence of natural and social forces. • Earthquakes, cyclones, floods, droughts, and other catastrophic events disproportionately affect the most vul

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 146 words

Atom-thin electronics withstand space radiation, potentially surviving for centuries in orbit

• Atom-thick layers of molybdenum disulfide are ideally suited for radiation-resistant spacecraft electronics, researchers in China have confirmed. • In a study published in Nature

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 157 words
Scientists reveal why human language isn't like computer code

Scientists reveal why human language isn't like computer code

• Human language is rich, yet could be compressed into binary, raising questions about efficiency. • Researchers Hahn and Futrell model why natural language remains complex instead

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 168 words

Cleaner fish show intelligence typical of mammals

• Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University in Japan have discovered a previously undiscovered behavior in cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus). • When presented with a mirror,

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 172 words
Quantum computer breakthrough tracks qubit fluctuations in real time

Quantum computer breakthrough tracks qubit fluctuations in real time

• Quantum computer breakthrough tracks qubit fluctuations in real time Researchers at the Niels Bohr Institute have significantly increased how quickly changes in delicate quantum

Science · February 20, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 220 words