From the National Science Foundation Birds — the only surviving descendants of dinosaurs — are used to study a large range of fundamental topics in biology, from understanding the evolution of mating systems to learning about the genetic and environmental … Continue reading →

By Julia  Conley Common Dreams “Our message as scientists is simple: Our planet’s future climate is inextricably tied to the future of its forest.” With a new statement rejecting the notion that drastically curbing emissions alone is enough to curb … Continue reading →

By Jon Queally Common Dreams “This is the stuff that worries me most. We don’t know what we’re doing, not trying to stop it, [and] with big consequences we don’t really understand.” The first global scientific review of its kind … Continue reading →

By Jake Johnson Common Dreams Rapidly falling insect populations, said Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson, “will make it even more difficult than today to get enough food for the human population of the planet, to get good health and freshwater for everybody.” A … Continue reading →

By Jake Johnson Common Dreams And colleague says “global warming” no longer strong enough term. “Global heating is technically more correct because we are talking about changes in the energy balance of the planet.” Declaring that after three decades of … Continue reading →

By Jon Queally Common Dreams “This is the stuff that worries me most. We don’t know what we’re doing, not trying to stop it, [and] with big consequences we don’t really understand.” The first global scientific review of its kind … Continue reading →

By Jake Johnson Common Dreams Rapidly falling insect populations, said Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson, “will make it even more difficult than today to get enough food for the human population of the planet, to get good health and freshwater for everybody.” A … Continue reading →

Astronomers have produced a remarkable new image of Jupiter, tracing the glowing regions of warmth that lurk beneath the gas giant's cloud tops. The picture was captured in infared by the Gemini North Telescope in Hawaii, and is one of the sharpest observations of the planet ever made from the ground.

Attorneys for Rick Bright, the government scientist who said he had been reassigned and subsequently filed a whistleblower complaint , say a government watchdog agrees that he should be reinstated to his post. Bright was serving as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, which is working on a vaccine to combat the coronavirus. He said he was ousted from the position last month because he wanted to spend money on safe and vetted treatments for COVID-19 — not on ones without "scientific merit," such as hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malarial drug that President Trump and others had been touting. Trump on Wednesday called Bright "a disgruntled employee who's trying to help the Democrats win an election." Bright's attorneys say that the Office of Special Counsel, which hears whistleblower cases, determined there were "reasonable grounds" to believe that his removal was retaliatory and therefore prohibited. Bright's attorneys say OSC plans to contact the

A Stony Brook University scientist who discovered a penguin supercolony in Antarctica has won a national science prize of $250,000.

A team of marine scientists are on a mission to preserve biodiversity in oceans around the world. To do it, they need accurate maps that will help them identify areas in need of protection. There are several ongoing projects to create these maps. But they’re led by different groups, using different methods that can produce conflicting results.

The disaster movie starts and when bad things start to happen, a scientist always warns the people to change course. But the people never listen. That’s the gist of a mordant Facebook post circulating among scientists as they, along with the rest of us, have watched this frightening scenario play out in real life. The pandemic moved so fast and was so vicious that it’s no mystery why people insisted it couldn’t happen here. After all, we’re not Italy, or China. Scientists knew better, and in January, warned that it was going to happen here. Trump called them alarmist. In February, health experts were sure the virus had been lurking in communities for a while and was spreading fast. Precious weeks passed and the federal government failed to take charge. Against scientists’ advice, Trump urged those with the virus to take an untested drug. What have you got to lose, he said. In the meantime, governors scrambled to prepare hospitals, issue stay-at-home orders, and figure out testing. This

Jessie Beck, a biologist with Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge, is our captain on today ’ s inflatable boat commute to A ñ o Nuevo Island.

Let’s go back to some news you may remember from several years ago. In 2011, two ethnic Chinese men were seen digging up seeds in a cornfield here in Iowa. When approached, they sped away in a hired car. At first, it was a routine report of trespassing. It quickly grew into a long FBI investigation that uncovered a plot by the Chinese agricultural company DBN, to reverse-engineer seed lines belonging to Monsanto and DuPont Pioneer.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Attorneys for Rick Bright, the government scientist who said he had been reassigned and subsequently filed a whistleblower complaint , say a government watchdog agrees that he should be reinstated to his post. Bright was serving as director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority, which is working on a vaccine to combat the coronavirus. He said he was ousted from the position last month because he wanted to spend money on safe and vetted treatments for COVID-19 — not on ones without "scientific merit," such as hydroxychloroquine, the anti-malarial drug that President Trump and others had been touting. Trump on Wednesday called Bright "a disgruntled employee who's trying to help the Democrats win an election." Bright's attorneys say that the Office of Special Counsel, which hears whistleblower cases, determined there were "reasonable grounds" to believe that his removal was retaliatory and therefore prohibited. Bright's attorneys say OSC plans to contact the

These five oldies but goodies from the On Second Thought archive cover topics from rocket science to recipe books. Check out these stories to start your week out with some good news. What are some of your favorite On Second Thought segments? Leave us a message on our Facebook group or our Twitter page . 1) “ From Ma Rainey To Otis Redding, The Musical Roots That Gave Georgia Its Sound ” Last September, we were joined by musical scholars, Joycelyn Wilson, Lance Ledbetter, and Jamie Weatherford to discuss the history of music in Georgia. From Outkast to James Brown, and from Brenda Lee to Jason Aldean, Georgia has produced some of the most respected minds in blues, country, soul, rock, and dozens of other genres. 2) “ Primatologist Frans De Waal Explores What Humans Can Learn From Animal Emotions ” April 2019 saw Atlanta-based author and primatologist Frans de Waal discuss his book Mama’s Last Hug: Animal Emotions . His work explores how primates and other animals experience emotions

President Donald Trump speculated about ultraviolet rays. But artificial UV techniques are ineffective and likely deadly for treating an infected person, scientists say — and some can be extremely dangerous used at home for disinfecting.

With winter ice largely gone for two years, a food chain is at risk. What lies ahead for a body of water that produces some of the world’s biggest seafood harvests and helps sustain communities ranging from Alaska to Seattle, homeport for much of the Bering Sea fleet?

On April 30, a report by a team led by a Los Alamos National Laboratory biologist claimed to have found a mutation in the coronavirus that arose in Europe in February and then rapidly spread, becoming dominant. Other scientists are unconvinced.

Staff at Bellevue's Institute for Disease Modeling estimate that social distancing measures aimed at cutting the transmission rate in half could reduce the number of infections in the Seattle area in early April by a factor of five — from roughly 25,000 to 4,800. Deaths would be reduced from 400 down to 100.

The black hole is roughly 1,000 light-years from Earth — and more than 2,000 light-years closer than the next one known. What's more, scientists say, it may be just "the tip of an exciting iceberg."

Scientists have identified a mutated strain of the coronavirus that has been spreading for the last few months.

Scientists are now trying to determine whether antibodies in the blood will protect people from contracting the coronavirus again. This question is crucial for the development of a vaccine.

A team of scientists at Oregon State University are trying to measure the true prevalence of the coronavirus in Corvallis, Ore., by taking a random sample of the population.

A team of scientists at Oregon State University are trying to measure the true prevalence of the coronavirus in Corvallis, Ore., by taking a random sample of the population.

NASA's space salad and Escobar's hippos are restoring an ecosystem

More than 11,000 scientists around the world have signed a scientific paper declaring a climate emergency, in turn backing protesters across the world demanding and calling on governments worldwide to act.

Scientists are stunned by the discovery of the well-preserved body of an 18,000-year-old puppy in far-eastern Russian Siberia, but experts are unsure whether it was a dog or a wolf.

Chinese scientist He Jiankui, who claims he made the world's first "gene-edited" babies by altering human embryos in 2018, is convicted on charges of practising medicine illegally, according to Chinese state media.

In the late 19th and early 20th century, these pioneering scientists scaled mountains, hiked across glaciers and flew into storm clouds to unravel the mysteries of the Earth's global climate system.

Researchers are puzzled by the discovery of a nest of loggerhead turtle eggs in Queensland. The find seems to indicate that the creatures have been unseasonably frisky, which should be impossible.

The native Queensland seaweed that can stop bovines burping out methane could cut the country's greenhouse emissions by 10 per cent, if it could be farmed on a scale to feed every cow in Australia, researchers say.

Research continues to point to blue-green algae toxins as a trigger for neurological diseases, with motor neurone disease under increased investigation.

Former WA chief scientist Lyn Beazley says she is honoured to be named patron of an agriculture program in Manjimup.

Suzanne Miller earnt a high wage but in a "gross abuse of high office" she also illegally spent a further $75,000 in taxpayer funds on personal purchases, a Brisbane court hears.

A new species of bacteria is found to be behind mystery lung infections in pigs, resulting in economic and animal health benefit.

A scientific research vessel off the Queensland coast is surveying the "very unexplored" depths of Australia's largest marine park without a single scientist on board.

Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg from the University of Queensland, a world-renowned marine scientist and contributor to IPCC assessments, talks about the likely loss of the Great Barrier Reef. How does a determined, optimistic researcher keep going amid the upsets? 

A group of scientists is pushing for Exmouth Gulf, next to Ningaloo Reef in remote Western Australia, to be protected from industry saying its biodiversity is of global significance.

A team of scientists in Western Australia will investigate how to turn an iconic lake pink in a project believed to be an Australian first.

An 82-year-old Australian scientist said it seemed appropriate to name a newly discovered species after climate activist Greta Thunberg, given its habitat.

Researchers monitoring the impact of climate change say golden bowerbirds and other highland rainforest species are being pushed to higher altitudes by temperature rises and fear they'll eventually have nowhere left to go.

Rare audio recordings reveal Aboriginal people may have worked out how Wolfe Creek Crater was formed, years before scientists arrived and it become a destination for fans of the eponymous horror movie.

As whales cruise past Australia's coastlines on their annual migration, here are some tips on identifying which species is which.

These creatures can make some strange sounds and the Australian Museum wants you to record them to help monitor populations.

Hopeful prospectors flock to Victoria's goldfields in search of a lucky strike, but the region is also a hotbed of scientific discovery thanks to the number of meteorites found there.