Testing the body’s stress response A chance conversation with neuroscientist colleague (and co-author) Kale Scatterty inspired this latest study. Scatterty co-authored a 2023 paper demonstrating an aversion in zebrafish to infrasound, specifically an anxiety response that caused the fish to avoid certain tank areas. This suggested a physiological response to infrasound, and Schmaltz wanted to see…
Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. The average male Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) is about 10-feet-long and weighs around 1,200 pounds. But Chonkers is no average sea lion. At an estimated 2,000 pounds , the absurdly humongous, Redditor-nicknamed marine mammal has captivated onlookers and…
One idea given for the mysterious disappearance of Neanderthals around 40,000 years ago is a difference in brain power compared with early modern humans (Homo sapiens), who invaded their territory in Eurasia and outcompeted them. But a new study of brain variation reveals that Neanderthals and humans were much more alike than previously assumed. Neanderthal…
The second Artemis mission took four astronauts around the moon and back – the first crewed deep-space flight since 1972. Not everyone gets a chance to put on a space suit, but you can still be an important part of NASA’s human space exploration story by doing NASA science! Volunteers with NASA’s citizen science projects…
Shell may be synonymous with oil and gas, but it’s still hoping to lead the way with electric cars. The company has previewed a Triple 10 Challenge Concept Car that it hopes will set new standards for EV charging, efficiency, and climate-friendliness. The compact SUV is intended to meet the three goals of its namesake…
Large apex predators dominated the waters of the Late Cretaceous Period — think giant reptiles, such as plesiosaurs and mosasaurs, and kraken-like octopuses as long as a five-story building. The latter included Nanaimoteuthis jeletzkyi and Nanaimoteuthis haggarti, some of which may have reached breath-taking lengths of almost 62 feet (19 meters) and feasted upon reptiles,…
NEW YORK (AP) — The Trump administration has fired members of an independent board that oversees the National Science Foundation. Members of the National Science Board received an email on Friday sent from the Presidential Personnel Office “on behalf of President Donald J. Trump” stating that their position was “terminated, effective immediately.” “I wasn’t entirely…
A new analysis of honeybee vision suggests their ability to distinguish quantities is not a trick of visual patterns, but evidence of genuine numerical cognition shaped by how their brains see the world. Understanding the mechanisms underlying animal cognition requires experimental designs and analyses that respect the biological and perceptual constraints of the species being…
April 27, 2026 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm Americans trust vaccine researchers as much as other scientists, poll finds Roughly seven in 10 people still trust vaccine researchers, a new poll finds. The number is in line with trust for other scientists By Dan Vergano edited by Claire Cameron Then medical student…
Electric vehicles, whether they’re cars on the road or electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, are built around similar electric motors. But there are vital differences including component costs, mass, and redundancy. Jon Wagner spent five years as the senior director of battery engineering for Tesla before joining California-based eVTOL developer Joby Aviation in…
