Why is it so hard to drill off Earth?
Humans have been digging underground for millennia—on the Earth. It's where we extract some of our most valuable resources that have moved society forward. For example, there wouldn't have been a Bronze Age without tin and copper—both of which ar.....»»
Geologists rewrite textbooks with new insights from Cambrian rocks of Grand Canyon
Since soon after our planet formed, Earth's 4.6 billion-year-long history was dominated by single-celled life. Something dramatic happened about 500 million years ago called the Cambrian "explosion," during which an incredible diversity of life forms.....»»
Planetary Boundaries framework gains traction in sustainability science
The Planetary Boundaries (PB) framework is a pivotal tool for tackling the climate crisis and safeguarding humanity's future on Earth. For the first time, the full story of the Planetary Boundaries is now being told from its beginning......»»
Cracked earth in Greece"s saffron heartland as drought takes toll
At a field outside Kozani, northern Greece, the strikingly blue-and-purple petals of saffron give off an intoxicating scent that underscores the value of one of the country's most lucrative crops......»»
Astronaut’s photo shows Earth as you’ve never seen it before
NASA's oldest serving astronaut has shared an image taken from the space station that shows Earth in a most unusual way......»»
Advances in plate tectonics research provide a new view of deep Earth"s carbon emissions
From time to time, when Earth's tectonic plates shift, the planet emits a long, slow belch of carbon dioxide. In a new modeling study published in Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, R. Dietmar Müller and colleagues show how this gas released from.....»»
Every challenge and reward in Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Mario & Luigi: Brothership isn't a terribly hard game on its own, but it does have some special challenges that are a little trickier to complete for rewards......»»
Mercedes-Benz previews next CLA, breaks EV distance record in testing
A CLA covered 2,309 miles in 24 hours in testing. Mercedes-Benz is hard at work putting the finishing touches on the next generation of its sleek CLA sedan. Due to be officially i.....»»
For fame or a death wish? Kids’ TikTok challenge injuries stump psychiatrists
As clinicians see more TikTok challenge injuries, explaining them is often hard. Kids and teens can make some pretty hairbrained choices sometimes. But when a kid's choice is to e.....»»
Nearly three years since launch, Webb is a hit among astronomers
Demand for observing time on Webb outpaces supply by a factor of nine. From its halo-like orbit nearly a million miles from Earth, the James Webb Space Telescope is seeing farther.....»»
SpaceX reveals date for next flight of Starship megarocket
The Elon Musk-led spaceflight company will attempt to catch the Super Heavy booster for a second time as it returns to Earth......»»
Experiment reveals how Earth"s magnetic field influences flow in planet"s core
A trio of physicists, two with Coventry University, in the U.K., and the third with Laboratoire National des Champs Magnétiques Intenses, in France, has demonstrated how Earth's magnetic field may be influencing internal flow, using what they descri.....»»
Ancient unicellular organism indicates embryonic development might have existed prior to animals" evolution
Chromosphaera perkinsii is a single-celled species discovered in 2017 in marine sediments around Hawaii. The first signs of its presence on Earth have been dated at over a billion years, well before the appearance of the first animals......»»
Making farming better for bees: Can we breed crops that produce more nectar and pollen?
Where once there were vast areas of forest and other natural habitats, farmland now covers much of Earth—including 70% of the UK. This transition has helped feed a growing number of people......»»
Microbial slime: The ultimate system to understand our planet
Billions of years ago, Earth was home to extreme environments, including intense UV radiation, frequent volcanic eruptions, and very high concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Yet, under these conditions, biofilms formed and within thes.....»»
Hard in theory, easy in practice: Why graph isomorphism algorithms seem to be so effective
Graphs are everywhere. In discrete mathematics, they are structures that show the connections between points, much like a public transportation network. Mathematicians have long sought to develop algorithms that can compare any two graphs......»»
Earth 2 at 30: A look back at NBC’s big swing at sci-fi in the early ’90s
A long-forgotten sci-fi series premiered on NBC 30 years ago this month, but it paved the way for some of the shows that came after it......»»
The best smartwatches in 2024: our 12 favorites
Smartwatches offer notifications, fitness tracking, and more. Choosing one is the hard part, so to help, here is our list of the best smartwatches in 2024......»»
"The nastiest soils on Earth" are getting recognized as a bigger problem
Acid sulfate soils are characterized by their orange hue and their tendency to kill surrounding vegetation and fish. Anders Johnson's extensive research along Sweden's coastline reveals the widespread presence of these soils, underscoring their signi.....»»
Testing thousands of RNA enzymes helps find first "twister ribozyme" in mammals
The "RNA world" hypothesis proposes that the earliest life on Earth may have been based on RNA—a single-stranded molecule similar in many ways to DNA—like some modern viruses. This is because, like DNA, RNA can carry genetic information, but, lik.....»»
Earth underwent a massive, rapid melting period after the last global ice age, new study suggests
At the end of the last global ice age, the deep-frozen Earth reached a built-in limit of climate change and thawed into a slushy planet. Results from a Virginia Tech-led study provide the first direct geochemical evidence of the slushy planet—other.....»»