George Dvorsky

Why Birds Take Turns At The Front When Flying In V-Formation

Migrating birds fly in a V-formation to take advantage of the aerodynamic effects of flying behind another bird. Remarkably, birds take turns at the front despite no obvious benefit to the individual. A new study explains why they do it, and why cooperation can be a powerful evolutionary tool. Top image: A.G. Schmalstieg. Last year,…

A Bacteria That Hasn’t Had To Evolve In More Than Two Billion Years

Scientists from UCLA have discovered a deep-sea microorganism that’s the same today as it was two billion years ago. It’s an observation that actually bolsters Darwin’s theory of natural selection, while offering the most extreme example of evolution’s “null hypothesis.” Above: A 1.8 billion-year-old fossil-bearing rock. The fossils are virtually the same as fossils 500…

How Dogs “See” The World Using Their Powerful Sense Of Smell

The visual acuity of our canine companions is about 20-40% as good as ours. But the average dog’s nose is 10,000 times more sensitive to odors than the human nose. As this fascinating TED-Ed video shows, they don’t so much see the world as they smell it.

Canada May Have Just Set A Fracking Earthquake World Record 

Late last month, a 4.4 magnitude earthquake shook the town of Fox Creek, Alberta. The province’s energy regulator is pointing the finger at hydraulic fracturing which, if confirmed, would make it the largest earthquake ever to have been induced by the method. The earthquake, which was severe enough to cause minor damage, happened on January…

How We’ll Finally Put An End To Organ Donation Shortages

The waiting list for organ transplants is growing at an alarming rate while the number of potential organ donors has failed to keep pace. Encouragingly, scientists are working several high-tech solutions in the field of regenerative medicine. We spoke to the experts to learn how organ shortages will soon become a thing of the past.…

This Is What Our Sun Will Look Like 8 Billion Years From Now

Behold Jupiter’s Ghost — a spectacular remnant of a star that was once quite similar to our own. Located 3,000 light-years away, it’s a sneak preview of what our solar system could look like once our Sun enters into its death throes. Our Sun is not big enough to go supernova. Stars with masses from…

Researchers Discover The Only Known Michelangelo Bronzes In Existence

Researchers at Cambridge University say these two stunning statues are the early works of Michelangelo, making them the only surviving bronzes crafted by the famed Italian artist. The two statues, titled “Nude Bacchants Riding Panthers,” have spent over a century in relative obscurity, but a team of international experts led by the University of Cambridge…

How Obama Will Spend The $215 Million Pledged To Precision Medicine

In an effort to make the current “one-size-fits-all” approach to medicine a thing of the past, the Obama administration has unveiled details about its Precision Medicine Initiative, an exciting and ambitious approach to personalizing the way we treat an assortment of diseases. Obama announced the initiative during his recent State of the Union address, saying…

New Technique Reverses Aging By Decades In Cultured Human Cells

Scientists from Stanford Medical Center have devised a technique for extending the length of human telomeres. It’s a breakthrough that could eventually result in therapies to treat a host of age-related diseases, including heart disease and diabetes. It could also result in longer, healthier lives. Telomeres are those critical protective caps located on the tips…

The First-Ever Footage Of An African Golden Cat Attacking Prey

Using a camera trap, conservationists working in Kibale National Park in south Uganda have captured dramatic video of an African Golden Cat attacking a group of red colobus monkeys. In the video, taken by the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, the elusive cat can be seen stalking and rushing a group of monkeys before…

Bill Gates has joined the growing chorus of concern over the potential risks of artificial superintelligence. He shared his thoughts in a recent Reddit AMA, writing: “I agree with Elon Musk and some others on this and don’t understand why some people are not concerned.” He has now added his name to an open letter…

A Stunning 3D Cross-Section Of Greenland’s Ice Sheet

NASA scientists have used ice-penetrating radar to create a remarkable visualization of the many frozen layers that constitute Greenland’s expansive ice sheet. Prior to the new analysis, scientists who wanted to study the ice sheet had to drill down into it. By pulling up core samples, researchers were able to detect signs of past snow…

11 Ways The Future Could Turn Out Differently Than You Expect

Many of us, owing to an intuitive sense of where technological and social progress are taking us, have a preconceived notion of what the future will look like. But as history has continually shown, the future doesn’t always go according to plan. Here are 11 ways the world of tomorrow may not unfold the way…

Early Humans May Have Interbred With Neanderthals 55,000 Years Ago

It’s widely acknowledged that modern Europeans mated with Neanderthals at some point in the past. We’re just not entirely sure when or where. The recent discovery of an ancient skull in Israel may represent the critical missing link anthropologists have been looking for. The 55,000-year-old partial skull was discovered in Northern Israel’s Mano Cave in…

To commemorate 100 years of making maps, National Geographic’s Cathy Newman has penned a fascinating summary of the organization’s cartographic influence on not just nature journalism, but on history and science itself. To date, NatGeo has produced 438 insert maps, 10 atlases, dozens of globes, and 3,000 maps for the magazine. Above: Europe just before…

New Technique Allows Bioengineers To “Reprogram” Genetic Code

Scientists at Stanford University have found a way to program DNA in such a way that genes can be turned on or off in living cells. Incredibly, the new tool can affect two different genes at the same time, an advance that will allow scientists to treat even the most complex genetic disorders. There are…

Anthropologists Have Mapped All 61 Tattoos On Ötzi The Iceman

By using an innovative non-invasive photographic technique, European researchers have managed to locate and map the extensive set of tattoos on the exquisitely preserved remains of Ötzi the Iceman. Remarkably, they even found a previously unknown tattoo on his ribcage. Ötzi’s frozen remains were discovered by two German tourists in the Ötzal Alps on the…

What The World Would Look Like If Countries Were Scaled By Population

Redditor TeaDranks has created a super-interesting cartogram in which the size of each country is apportioned according to population. Suddenly, the largest countries in the world don’t look so mighty — Russia and Canada, we’re looking at you. What’s cool about this map is that TeaDranks managed to maintain the shape and relative position of…

This Gigantic Landslide In Northern India Can Be Seen From Space

Late last year, a landslide in Northern India sent enough debris into the Tsarap River, creating an obstruction about 2,000 feet (600 meters) long, and a brand new 300-acre lake. Authorities in Jammu and Kashmir are now concerned that this dam could lead to damaging floods. The landslide occurred sometime around December 31, 2014. Detailed…

We’re fast approaching an era when companies will be able to run themselves. Called Distributed Autonomous Corporations (DACS), they’ll utilize cloud robots to manage supply chains without human supervision. But as an article at Aeon asks, will these blockchain-style systems set us free, or just make the rich richer?