scientists

What is the probability that Polly will get a cracker? According to a new study, that is a determination that at least one type of parrot is actually able to make. Research published in Nature Communications Tuesday shows that kea (Nestor notabilis) parrots, an endangered species from New Zealand, can use probabilities to make judgments, […]

Imagine painting your home with a special paint that also powers your lights using renewable energy drawn from the air. That might sound too good to be true, but researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst think it could be one of many future uses for a new technology they have developed — a device […]

By Elliott Negin An essential component of the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back regulations that it considers “burdensome” is getting rid of experts whose inconvenient truth-telling refutes the rationale for its pro-industry agenda. During its first two years in office, the administration pushed more than 1,600 federal scientists out the door, most notably “social […]

The Carolina parakeet, the only parrot species native to the U.S., went extinct in 1918 when the last bird died at the Cincinnati Zoo. Now, a little more than 100 years later, researchers have determined that humans were entirely to blame. How? Researchers sequenced the bird’s genome and found none of the signs of inbreeding […]

Scientists have developed an innovative way to protect endangered rhinos from poaching: flood the market for rhino horn with a cheap, fake alternative. The team from the University of Oxford and Fudan University in China found a way to make a fake rhino horn cheaply from horse hair, BBC News reported. “It appears from our […]

By Marlene Cimons Scientist Tim Gordon studies how rising temperatures are damaging corals in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, where intense cyclones and warm waters have caused extensive damage in recent years. What he sees brings him to tears. “They used to be some of the most colorful, vibrant, bustling, noisy ecosystems in the world, but […]

By Marlene Cimons Scientist Aaswath Raman long has been keen on discovering new sources of clean energy by creating novel materials that can make use of heat and light. And lately, he has focused on developing better cooling systems, perhaps inspired by childhood summer visits to his grandparents in Mumbai, where the temperature can hover […]

By Marlene Cimons When Swedish chemist and inventor of dynamite Alfred Nobel died in 1896, he left his considerable fortune to fund annual prizes given to individuals who had conferred “the greatest benefits” to humanity during the previous year. But his vision only included five fields deemed worthy of recognition at the time: chemistry, physics, […]