discoveries

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

Stories 1381 - 1400 | << Prev   Next >>

Earliest Known Use of Zero Found by Farmer in Pakistan

The Bakhshali manuscript dates to the 3rd or 4th century

(Newser) - When it comes to mathematics, zero is not nothing. And thanks to new research and some carbon dating, we now know "zero" as we know it was invented a whole lot earlier than we thought. "Today we take it for granted that the concept of zero is used...

There's Not Much Evidence That Drinking While Pregnant Is Bad

But you shouldn't do it anyway, researchers say

(Newser) - Researchers say up to 80% of pregnant women in the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand have had an alcoholic beverage during their pregnancies—some due to the fact that they didn't realize they were pregnant when they threw one back, the Guardian notes. But getting that "positive"...

&#39;ET&#39; Dust Extracted From White Cliffs of Dover
'ET' Dust Extracted From
White Cliffs of Dover
NEW STUDY
Sep 11, 2017 10:19 AM CDT

'ET' Dust Extracted From White Cliffs of Dover

Cosmic particles could offer clues to past major events like asteroid collisions

(Newser) - The White Cliffs of Dover serve as both a stunning photographic subject and as an iconic British symbol of defense during war. Now they're also a geological museum of sorts: Scientists from Imperial College London have discovered 76 particles of fossilized cosmic dust in the chalky limestone, which could...

When These Dogs Sneeze, They&#39;re Casting a Vote
When These Dogs Sneeze,
They're Casting a Vote
study says
Sep 9, 2017 10:00 AM CDT

When These Dogs Sneeze, They're Casting a Vote

Scientists spot the pattern in African wild dogs

(Newser) - It started with a simple enough question, "Why are these dogs sneezing so much?" But the subsequent research has led to a fascinating theory: The dogs, specifically African wild dogs in Botswana, use their sneezes to vote on pack activity, reports Atlas Obscura . "The sneeze acts as some...

Boy Goes Into Cardiac Arrest After Biting Into Hot Dog

Doctors say he has Brugada syndrome

(Newser) - When a 9-year-old boy took a big bite out of a hot dog in Turkey, he didn't choke on it—but he still almost died. That's because, as tests following his resuscitation from cardiac arrest revealed, he has a rare genetic condition known as Brugada syndrome, which impairs...

Now With Your Tap Water, a Side of Plastic
Now With Your Tap Water,
a Side of Plastic
NEW STUDY
Sep 7, 2017 9:20 AM CDT

Now With Your Tap Water, a Side of Plastic

Researchers warn that we're ingesting microparticles

(Newser) - Perhaps we'd best hope we are what we eat, because if we are what we drink then we are getting pretty plastic. Researchers who tested samples of tap water from around the world say there are microplastics in much of it, with the highest contamination rate in the US,...

One-Two Punch From the Sun Knocks Out Radios

X9-level solar flare was preceded by weaker one on Wednesday

(Newser) - In what one space scientist says is "just part of living with a star," two solar events rocked the cosmos Wednesday, one of them strong enough to knock out radio communications for up to an hour. Scientific American reports on a pair of X-class solar flares (the most...

Ketogenic Diets Help Mice Live Longer, but Why?
'Drastic' Ketogenic Diet
Helps Mice Live Longer
NEW STUDY
Sep 6, 2017 12:53 PM CDT

'Drastic' Ketogenic Diet Helps Mice Live Longer

Scientists are looking for molecular triggers

(Newser) - All fat, easy on the carbs? At least for one particular breed of lab mice, the so-called ketogenic diet could improve various health metrics, including strength and lifespan. Per a news release , researchers report that two independent studies support the same theme: that a diet with very low to zero...

How Israel Plotted to Nab 'Angel of Death'

Mossad never captured Nazi doctor Josef Mengele

(Newser) - A trove of documents set to be released this week reveals the schemes Israel used to try to capture Holocaust "Angel of Death" Josef Mengele. Mossad agents crafted elaborate plots, including wiretapping, break-ins, and a honey trap, Yediot Aharonoth reports, via the Jerusalem Post and the Times of Israel...

Girl Pulls Sword From Excalibur's Fabled Resting Place

Her dad says it's 'probably an old film prop'

(Newser) - Legend has it that King Arthur ordered a faithful servant to throw his sword , Excalibur, into a lake after he was mortally wounded in battle. A British 7-year-old has just pulled a sword from that very spot. While on holiday in Cornwall on Aug. 29, Matilda Jones asked her dad...

'Dragon Booger' Emerges From Lost Lagoon

It's the first time bryozoans have been seen in Vancouver

(Newser) - Pectinatella magnifica, a water-dwelling blob, has long confounded scientists trying simply to categorize them. The brown-green snotty lumps are called bryozoans, and sometimes "moss animals," "dragon boogers," and "ectoprocta," which means, "anus outside," reports Popular Science . The blobs, which are actually whole...

Avoid This Mistake When Shopping Online
Avoid This Mistake
When Shopping Online
in case you missed it
Sep 2, 2017 9:50 AM CDT

Avoid This Mistake When Shopping Online

Customers are swayed by number of reviews, even for bad products

(Newser) - Quantity matters, at least when it comes to product reviews. New research finds that consumers are swayed by the number of reviews an item receives, even if it's of worse quality. Quartz reports that the study analyzing buying habits on Amazon shows that online products with the most reviews...

Lake Huron Spits Out Not One, but 2 Century-Old Shipwrecks

Researchers say they've located the Ohio and the Choctaw off Michigan's Presque Isle

(Newser) - Two shipwrecks more than a century old have been found in the deep waters of Lake Huron, maritime archaeologists announced Friday. Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary officials say they recently confirmed the identities of the wooden freighter Ohio and steel-hulled steamer Choctaw, per the AP . Researchers from the federal sanctuary...

Repeating Signal From Deep Space Heard Again

FRB 121102 likely a natural occurrence

(Newser) - Astronomers have detected a rare radio signal that originated about 3 billion years ago in a galaxy far, far away. And as one expert puts it, the source is "kind of perplexing." Fast radio bursts, millisecond-long pulses of radio emission from beyond our galaxy, were first discovered a...

Skeleton Found in Underwater Cave One of Oldest in Americas

Too bad thieves stole it

(Newser) - Back in 2012, divers in Mexico discovered a human skeleton submerged in a cave on the Yucatan Peninsula and posted photos to social media, drawing the attention of scientists. "I immediately knew that we had something special," paleontologist Wolfgang Stinnesbeck tells Inverse . But by the time researchers arrived...

Snack at Night and Risk ... Sunburn?
Yet Another
Reason Not
to Snack
at Night
NEW STUDY
Aug 31, 2017 9:37 AM CDT

Yet Another Reason Not to Snack at Night

When we eat impacts certain skin genes

(Newser) - Eating when we should be sleeping could disrupt our skin's ability to protect itself from the sun's harmful rays, researchers now say. Specifically, per a ScienceDaily news release, noshing down late at night can mess with the skin's biological clock, which in turn can affect the effectiveness...

Here&#39;s Why You Should Eat More Fat&mdash;Maybe
Eat More Fat,
Fewer Carbs
NEW STUDY
Aug 30, 2017 10:40 AM CDT

Eat More Fat, Fewer Carbs

Research shows low-fat diets don't keep us alive longer

(Newser) - Fat, it turns out, is good for you. Or at least it's not as bad as we previously thought, per a sweeping new study that suggests low-fat diets could increase the risk of early death, the Telegraph reports. The surprising findings published in the Lancet suggest that instead of...

Newfound Letters From Alan Turing: 'I Detest America'

Collection of nearly 150 of the codebreaker's notes found in university filing cabinet

(Newser) - Alan Turing hated the United States. That's one nugget revealed in a trove of old letters recently unearthed in a storeroom filing cabinet at the University of Manchester. The Guardian reports the collection of 148 notes, which apparently hadn't seen the light of day in at least three...

Engineer Says She's Solved Mystery of Civil War Sub

Her conclusion: torpedo shock waves killed the crew, doomed the Hunley

(Newser) - For more than 150 years, researchers have scratched their heads over a Civil War mystery—and now a Navy engineer says she's solved it. Rachel Lance has been diving deep into the 1864 sinking of the Confederate submarine HL Hunley, which mysteriously went down shortly after sinking the Union'...

Study Finds Too Many Babies Still Sleeping Unsafely
Moms Still Put Babies
to Sleep in Unsafe Positions
NEW STUDY
Aug 22, 2017 1:10 PM CDT

Moms Still Put Babies to Sleep in Unsafe Positions

Less than half of mothers always put babies to sleep on their backs

(Newser) - In 1994, the "Back to Sleep" campaign launched, urging American parents to put their babies to sleep on their backs to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, CBS News reports. According to News Medical , rates of infants sleeping on their back increased from 10% to 78% over...

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