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King Tut &#39;Spontaneously Combusted&#39; in His Coffin
King Tut 'Spontaneously
Combusted' in His Coffin
new research
Nov 4, 2013 7:14 AM CST

King Tut 'Spontaneously Combusted' in His Coffin

Thanks to a bungled mummification, scientists find

(Newser) - The story of King Tut's death—and what followed—just got even more interesting, all thanks to a single piece of flesh. That remnant of Tutankhamun is the only one of its kind known to exist outside Egypt, and British experts decided to analyze it after stumbling upon a...

5 Most Incredible Discoveries of the Week

Including new insights into tail wags and dark matter

(Newser) - Expressive tail wags, a hot new planet, and some new species highlight this week's discoveries:
  • How Dogs' Tails Speak Volumes : Wagging tails are little more complicated than you might think. A new study finds that dogs are able to pick up on friend or foe depending on whether a
...

Yellowstone's Magma Patch Bigger Than Thought

Underground 'reservoir' a good 50 miles long and 20 miles wide

(Newser) - That Yellowstone has a big blob of molten rock lurking beneath it isn't news to scientists. A new analysis, however, shows that this blob is more than twice as big as they originally thought, reports Nature . Figure about 50 miles long, 20 miles wide, and shaped like a "...

How Dogs' Tail Wags Speak Volumes (to Dogs)

Pooches can pick up on cues depending on whether it goes left or right

(Newser) - Wagging tails are little more complicated than you might think. A new study finds that dogs are able to pick up on friend or foe depending on whether a tail is wagging to the left or right, reports the BBC . Research from a few years back suggested that a dog...

Earth-like Planet Discovered, but It's Hotter Than...

...Hell, at less than a million miles from its sun

(Newser) - Astronomers have discovered a planet where a certain red guy with horns could make himself right at home. It's a planet much like our own Earth—about the same size, with the same mixture of rock and iron, and it orbits a star like our sun—except that Kepler...

Dark Matter Experiment Finds Best Nothing Yet

First run of South Dakota experiment comes up empty

(Newser) - The team running the biggest, most sensitive dark matter detector yet announced its first round of results yesterday—specifically, the lack thereof. Scientists at the Homestake Gold Mine in South Dakota cooled a vat full of 368 kilograms of liquid xenon to minus 150 degrees Fahrenheit, watched it for three...

'Lost Rainforest' Yields Bizarre Species

And remote Australian rainforest could hold even more

(Newser) - A rainforest sits atop Australia's Cape Melville mountain range, surrounded by granite boulders—some as big as cars or houses—piled in walls as tall as 300 feet, making it quite challenging to explore. Researchers from Queensland's James Cook University had to travel there via helicopter; once in,...

Newly Discovered Dolphin Species Needs Name

Humpbacks live off northern Australia coast

(Newser) - A species of dolphin that lives off the coast of northern Australia is so new to science that it doesn't have a name yet. Scientists knew about the dolphin populations, but they were thought to be part of another humpback dolphin species until genetic testing revealed that they were...

Study: Simon &amp; Garfunkel Tune Eases Chronic Pain
Study: Simon & Garfunkel Tune Eases Chronic Pain
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Oct 27, 2013 7:01 PM CDT

Study: Simon & Garfunkel Tune Eases Chronic Pain

'Bridge Over Troubled Water' is the new Tylenol

(Newser) - Walk into select Lloyds Pharmacy locations in the UK complaining of a headache, and you may be more likely to walk out with a Simon & Garfunkel CD than a bottle of painkillers. The pharmacy chain commissioned a study that found 41% of all people suffering persistent pain (and 66%...

3.2K-Year-Old Mystery Undone by Pollen
 3.2K-Year-Old Mystery 
 Undone by Pollen  
in case you missed it
Oct 26, 2013 7:00 PM CDT

3.2K-Year-Old Mystery Undone by Pollen

Drought led to crisis in Bronze Age society: researchers

(Newser) - In the Late Bronze Age, a thriving society near present-day Tel Aviv and far beyond suddenly fell apart, and researchers have long been stumped as to the precise cause—until now. The explanation for the crisis lies in fossilized pollen, which remains stable for millennia and points the finger of...

5 Most Incredible Discoveries of the Week

We found the oldest galaxy yet, along with gold in them thar trees

(Newser) - This week's discoveries ranged from a milestone in deep space to a head-scratcher about trees with gold in their leaves:
  • Newly Found Galaxy Is Oldest Yet : Residents of the Milky Way, meet z8_GND_5296. That's the not-so-great name of a newly discovered galaxy that just happens to be the
...

Bees Nearly Disappeared With Dinosaurs
 Bees Nearly 
 Disappeared 
 With Dinosaurs 
study says
Oct 26, 2013 6:05 AM CDT

Bees Nearly Disappeared With Dinosaurs

Researchers find evidence of mass die-off 65M years ago

(Newser) - Bees may be in trouble today with colony collapse disorder, but new research suggests they've been down this road before. Scientists have determined for the first time that modern carpenter bees all but disappeared 65 million years ago, the same time that dinosaurs got wiped out, reports the BBC...

Big Find in Peru's Capital: Mummies

And one may have been wrapped alive, archaeologists say

(Newser) - A site in Lima, Peru, that archaeologists have been excavating since 1981 has given up quite the find: an undisturbed tomb that's at least 1,000 years old—with two mummies inside. Dated to the Wari civilization of 600 to 1,000 AD, the bodies of one adult and...

Rare Viking 'Thing' Found Under Parking Lot

Just the 2nd such site in the UK, dated to 11th century

(Newser) - Archaeologists have uncovered another parking lot find , only this time it's in Scotland, and what they discovered is best described as a "Thing." Yep, that's the technical term for a Viking parliamentary gathering site, one of which has been unearthed in the town of Dingwall. That...

Men Are Worse at Multitasking
 Men Are Worse at Multitasking 
Study Says
Oct 24, 2013 3:25 PM CDT

Men Are Worse at Multitasking

Women perform better in new study

(Newser) - Women have a distinct edge when it comes to juggling problems, a new study has concluded. Researchers had 120 men and 120 women each complete a computer test, first giving them the tasks one at a time, and then mixing them up, forcing participants to tackle them in a fragmented...

Even Barnacles Eating Our Plastic Trash

 Even Barnacles Eating 
 Our Plastic Trash 
new study
Oct 24, 2013 1:57 PM CDT

Even Barnacles Eating Our Plastic Trash

33% of barnacles in study had ingested a microplastic

(Newser) - Today's most unfortunate number: 267. That's the number of marine species that have been found to have eaten plastic, and a new study zeroes in on one such species— barnacles. Researchers traveled to the North Pacific Gyre (better known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch ) with a...

Arctic Hasn't Been This Warm in 44K Years

Maybe even far longer, according to new study

(Newser) - The Arctic's current warming trend is the worst it's experienced in at least 44,000 years—and possibly even longer—a new study has concluded. Scientists examining vegetation in the Canadian Arctic found recently-exposed moss that, based on radiocarbon dating, was between 44,000 and 51,000 years...

Newly Found Galaxy Is Oldest One Yet

It emerged about 700 million years after the Big Bang

(Newser) - Residents of the Milky Way, meet z8_GND_5296. That's the not-so-great name of a newly discovered galaxy that just happens to be the most distant—and thus oldest—ever spotted, reports CBS News . Scientists say it formed a mere 700 million years after the Big Bang, and it could shed...

Scientists Find Gold in Eucalyptus Trees

Discovery could be used by miners searching for the metal

(Newser) - Money may not grow on trees, but gold might grow in them. Such is the fascinating conclusion of a group of Australian researchers who studied eucalyptus trees in two groves in the country's west and south. The specific locations were chosen because the scientists knew there was gold in...

New Theory: Memories Change When Remembered

Study reconciles competing theories

(Newser) - Think back to your fondest memory. If a group of Johns Hopkins University researchers are right, you just changed that memory forever. They've developed a new theory about the nature of memory that could resolve a longstanding debate about the issue, Scientific American explains. They believe that memories are...

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