discoveries

Read the latest news stories about recent scientific discoveries on Newser.com

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1st-Ever Endemic Malaria Found in US Mammals

Scientists stumble on find at the National Zoo

(Newser) - Talk about a surprise: Two years ago, scientists researching avian malaria happened to learn that two strains of the parasite are infecting white-tailed deer—possibly 25% of those living on the East Coast, Smithsonian reports. Until then, no endemic malaria had been seen in North or South American mammals. "...

Death Row Inmates' Last Words Are Often Surprising

They're frequently positive, says a new study

(Newser) - What would you say if you were about to be executed? There's a good chance your last words would be on the positive side. At least that was the case for 407 death row inmates executed between 1982 and 2015 in Texas, according to a new study published in...

Winning Might Turn You Into a Cheater

 Winning Might Turn 
 You Into a Cheater 
study says
Feb 7, 2016 8:06 AM CST

Winning Might Turn You Into a Cheater

It's all about feeling a sense of entitlement

(Newser) - Could being a winner put you on the slippery slope to becoming a cheater? A new study out of Israel suggests it can. Researchers found a correlation between winning a competition and subsequently feeling entitled to win another—and study participants were willing to cheat in order to do so,...

Your Cat's Fur Color May Predict Its Attitude

Calicos and tortoiseshells are feistier

(Newser) - If your feline friend has a bad "cattitude," the color of its fur might be a factor. Researchers at UC Davis have found a correlation between a cat's markings and its level of feistiness, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Calicos and tortoiseshells are more likely to...

Radioactive Material Found in Groundwater Near New York City

The contamination was found under the Indian Point Energy Center

(Newser) - A radioactive material has been detected in the groundwater below a nuclear power plant north of New York City. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Saturday that water contaminated by tritium leaked into the groundwater at the Indian Point Energy Center in Buchanan, 40 miles north of Manhattan. Officials say the contamination...

Scientists Find Source of Rare 'Vibration Allergy'

Gene mutation leads body to release inflammatory chemicals: study

(Newser) - There's no such thing as good vibrations for those suffering from "the vibration allergy." Yes, that's a real thing. The rare inherited condition, known formally as vibratory urticarial, causes an allergic reaction in patients during the most mundane exercises—think mowing the lawn, jogging, riding the...

Study: Rom-Coms Make Women Think Stalking Is Normal

And that can be dangerous for them in real life

(Newser) - A recent study shows romantic comedies could have an even more insidious effect on society than continuing to give Katherine Heigl work. The Guardian —citing a study published last year in Communication Research—reports rom-coms portraying obsessive behavior as romantic can make women more likely to tolerate stalkerish behavior...

Researchers Show 'Resting Bitch Face' Is Real

And men have it just as much as women

(Newser) - What do Queen Elizabeth, Kanye West, and Kristen Stewart have in common? They all have Resting Bitch Face—or, as New York puts it, a "face combining disgust, better-than-you snobbery, and boredom." Actress Anna Kendrick even once tweeted , "Is there a filter on Instagram that fixes Bitchy...

Royal Malady: 5 Most Incredible Discoveries of the Week

Including troubling news for consumers of pot and sparkling water

(Newser) - A John Doe IDed after more than 15 years and China's astounding moon photos make the list:
  • What Daily Pot Use Does to Your Memory : Smoking pot daily for years might take a toll on your memory. Swiss researchers found that those who smoked for five years couldn't
...

Lead Toxicity Showing Up in Flint Area's Dogs

Animal experts warn that pets near Flint should be drinking filtered or bottled water

(Newser) - First it was the kids of Flint found to have been tainted by lead, attributed by many to the area's toxic water. Now two dogs who live in the vicinity of the Michigan city have tested positive for lead toxicity—the first two pups to be confirmed with this...

Paintings of Michelangelo Reveal His Malady

Researchers say he had osteoarthritis

(Newser) - For centuries it has been thought that Michelangelo suffered from gout in later life, which was at the time used as a catch-all phrase to include all forms of arthritis. Researchers are reporting in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine that the famous artist instead had osteoarthritis. It'...

Behind Henry VIII's Bad Behavior: Brain Injury?

The anger and forgetfulness started after jousting and horse accidents

(Newser) - Henry VIII may be best known for having had six wives, killing two of them, and establishing the Church of England in the process. Now a behavioral neurologist at Yale is posing an explanation for the English monarch's famously erratic behavior: traumatic brain injury. (Interestingly, a 2009 documentary for...

Johnny Cash Gets His Own Namesake Tarantula

It's one of 14 newly discovered tarantula species discovered in the US

(Newser) - In news that would probably make Buzz McCallister happy, scientists discovered 14 new species of tarantula in the US, publishing their findings Thursday in ZooKeys . “For such a popular organism in our culture, whether it’s Hollywood movies or B movies, there’s not really much work that’s...

6 Degrees of Separation? It's Really 3.57

We're all just 'a friend of a friend of a friend of a friend'

(Newser) - Ever since the theory of six degrees of separation was unveiled in 1929, people have been under the impression that they're connected to any other person through just six acquaintances. In honor of Facebook's 12th birthday and its self-invented Friends Day, the social network has updated the figure:...

Study: Men Are Less Likely to Catch a Yawn

So-called 'contagious' yawning has been linked to empathy

(Newser) - Contagious yawning has long been linked to empathy—we are more likely to yawn when someone we know yawns than when a stranger does. But now researchers in Pisa, Italy, have taken it a step further. They spent five years "surreptitiously" tracking real-world yawns, as Science puts it (the...

US Panel: OK to Make 3-Parent Embryos —Male Ones

But there are still legal roadblocks to controversial process

(Newser) - A US National Academy of Medicine committee said Wednesday the FDA should approve clinical trials for three-parent fertilization in human embryos—with some caveats, Nature reports. In its report , the committee recommended such trials be limited to women at risk of passing along "serious mitochondrial disease" to their kids,...

The US' Only Wild Jaguar Caught on Video

El Jefe lives in the mountains just miles outside of Tucson

(Newser) - America got a good look at the United States' only known wild jaguar in a 41-second video released Wednesday. "The dramatic footage provides a glimpse of the secretive life of one of nature’s most majestic and charismatic creatures," the Center for Biological Diversity states in a press...

Morning Person or Night Owl? Your Genes May Decide

Biology may be influencing if you stay up all night or wake up with the sun

(Newser) - You may be naturally disposed toward being a morning person or a night owl—and scientists are now saying that may have a true biological basis that's hard to fight, the Guardian reports. Per a study published Tuesday in Nature Communications , researchers under the direction of 23andMe lead scientist...

Another Legendary NFL Player Had CTE

This time it's ex-Oakland Raider and NFL MVP Ken Stabler

(Newser) - "I'm tired" were the last words an ex-NFL quarterback who died in July spoke to his family, and recent findings may now explain why his final years were such a struggle. Ken Stabler, an NFL MVP who made his name with the rambunctious Oakland Raiders in the '...

Deodorant Changes More Than Your Smell

Study: products actually alter your body's bacteria

(Newser) - Applying deodorant or antiperspirant clearly alters your body’s smell, but it may also alter your body's bacteria. A PeerJ study finds the organisms that live in and on your skin are drastically changed by what you put under your arms. Evolutionary genomicist Julie Horvath recruited 17 participants—antiperspirant...

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