discoveries

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

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Mars Mystery: Bizarre 125-Mile-High Plumes

Scientists have 2 theories, neither likely

(Newser) - Amateur astronomers have made an unexpected discovery: massive plumes spouting up at least 125 miles from the surface of Mars. Two plumes, up to 620 miles wide, were spotted over the Terra Cimmeria area in the red planet's Southern Hemisphere by at least 18 people over two 10-day periods...

Ladies, Your Hot Flash Phase Could Last 14 Years
Ladies, Your Hot Flash Phase Could Last 14 Years
STUDY SAYS
Feb 16, 2015 3:43 PM CST

Ladies, Your Hot Flash Phase Could Last 14 Years

And researchers find the earlier they start, the longer they tend to last

(Newser) - No woman looks forward to menopause, especially the accompanying hot flashes. Which is why a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine may not bring relief to those hoping for a quick demise to the excessively warm, sweaty stage: A 17-year review of 1,449 women from a variety of...

Spotify Reveals the Songs We Have Sex To

Service sifts through 2.5M 'sex' playlists

(Newser) - Spotify knows some pretty personal stuff about users—like what songs they like to be playing in the background while they get it on. That's thanks to the 2.5 million "sex" playlists Spotify users have put together, the Guardian reports. Inspired by Valentine's Day, the music...

Housekeeper's Letter Reveals Lennon's Dark Side

She says he was cheating husband, bullying father

(Newser) - When the Beatles were soaring in popularity, the John Lennon that the world didn't see was a lousy husband and father, according to newly unearthed divorce papers. In a letter to lawyers in 1968, the Lennons' housekeeper, Dorothy Jarlett, described how the atmosphere in the house became increasingly tense...

Darkness Reigned for 550M Years

Stars didn't appear until 100M years later than we thought

(Newser) - After the Big Bang, it was dark for a very, very long time—even longer than experts had previously believed, the Smithsonian reports. Scientists had thought that the dark period between the Big Bang and the emergence of the first stars lasted about 440 million years, the Press Association reports...

The Violin&#39;s Shape Was an Accident

 The Violin's Shape 
 Was an Accident 
study says
Feb 15, 2015 6:16 AM CST

The Violin's Shape Was an Accident

Researchers reveal how it 'evolved'

(Newser) - The shape of today's violin wasn't the result of some genius's design specifications; instead, it developed over time, likely improving by chance, researchers say. As the Christian Science Monitor reports, an instrument's sound depends heavily on the way air flows through it: The more air that...

Western US Poised for Worst Drought in 1K Years: Study

But experts say there's still time to change our ways

(Newser) - Within a few decades, a significant chunk of the US could be in for the worst drought in more than a millennium. That's if we don't change our greenhouse-gas-emitting ways, scientists say: A study co-author says the chance of a megadrought in the central and western US sometime...

Spanish Is the Happiest Language
 Spanish Is 
 the Happiest 
 Language 
study says
Feb 14, 2015 7:51 AM CST

Spanish Is the Happiest Language

Scientists' analysis of websites suggests as much

(Newser) - If you're in a foul mood, it might be time to learn Spanish. Languages, and the people who use them, tend to favor using positive words over negatives, researchers find, and they've learned that that's particularly true in Spanish. Experts at the University of Vermont and the...

Young Couple Found in Embrace of 6K Years

They apparently died holding each other in Greece

(Newser) - Your dose of Valentine's Day coupledom comes courtesy of archaeologists in Greece, who unearthed a man and woman locked in an embrace for about 6,000 years. The pair in their early 20s were found buried together in southern Greece at a dig site known as Alepotrypa Cave, reports...

Smile! 5 Most Incredible Discoveries of the Week

Including two snack-themed mysteries solved

(Newser) - A secret about Earth's core and an interstellar emoticon make the list:
  • The Hubble Spots 'Smiley Face' in Space : You've probably experienced the phenomenon of "face pareidolia"—seeing non-existent faces in things—before, but this one is out of this world. The Hubble Telescope has
...

Stoners Are &#39;Safer&#39; Drivers Than Lushes
 Stoners Are 'Safer' 
 Drivers Than Lushes 
STUDY SAYS
Feb 12, 2015 3:28 PM CST

Stoners Are 'Safer' Drivers Than Lushes

Report finds those with THC in systems crash far less often than drunk drivers

(Newser) - As more states push to legalize marijuana , scientists have started to turn their attention toward the effects of driving after toking up. Stoners will likely rejoice at two recent studies by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that appears to put them on the safer side of things: According to...

Did Dinosaurs Hallucinate After Chewing Grass?
Did Dinosaurs Hallucinate After Chewing Grass?
NEW STUDY
Feb 11, 2015 9:15 AM CST

Did Dinosaurs Hallucinate After Chewing Grass?

Oldest grass specimen ever found was topped with fungus linked to LSD

(Newser) - If you're glad you weren't on the planet in the days when Stegosaurus was whipping its spiked tail around in agitation, imagine the dino stumbling around with its eyes ablaze on the prehistoric equivalent of an acid trip, courtesy of newly discovered fungus-tipped grass. A perfectly preserved, 100-million-year-old...

Here's How Many Licks Get You to Tootsie Pop's Center

Scientists learn the answer while investigating action of water

(Newser) - In the classic commercial asking how many licks it takes "to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop," the conclusion was: "The world may never know." Turns out that was wrong—scientists have figured out how many licks are required, though the figure...

Scientists Figure Out Why Popcorn Goes 'Pop'

If you guessed it's the sound of the kernel breaking, you're wrong

(Newser) - Popcorn pops because ... you set your microwave to two minutes on high, right? As you might expect, there's a little more science to it than that, and two French engineers have dug into exactly what happens when a kernel of corn does its thing. Their formula-filled study, published in...

Earth&#39;s Core Has Its Own Core
 Earth's Core Has Its Own Core 
STUDY SAYS
Feb 11, 2015 4:08 AM CST

Earth's Core Has Its Own Core

Earthquake waves reveal mystery beneath us

(Newser) - In research that didn't involve incredible advances in drilling technology, researchers have found some surprising secrets at our planet's core. What was once thought to be a single core of solid iron actually contains an inner core of its own with properties very different from what geologists who...

The Hubble Spots 'Smiley Face' in Space

Its 'eyes' are actually galaxies

(Newser) - The universe is smiling down on us—almost literally. The Hubble Telescope has captured a "smiley face" in space: two bright yellow eyes (a cluster of galaxies called SDSS J1038+4849), a white nose, and a faint smile and incomplete circle around the entire face. But those curving lines "...

Think You Can&#39;t Carry a Tune? Just Sing More
Think You Can't Carry a Tune? Just Sing More
study says
Feb 9, 2015 2:34 PM CST

Think You Can't Carry a Tune? Just Sing More

Study finds singing can be learned, like any other instrument

(Newser) - Just as you can learn to play an instrument, you can learn to sing even if you believe you're completely tone deaf, a new study out of Northwestern University finds. Researchers had people from three different age groups sing (kindergarten, sixth grade, and college-age); subjects listened to what they...

8 Signs That Mean Cancer Death Is Nigh
 8 Signs That Mean 
 Cancer Death Is Nigh 
new study
Feb 9, 2015 10:00 AM CST

8 Signs That Mean Cancer Death Is Nigh

Researchers studied 357 cancer patients to arrive at findings

(Newser) - It's possible to know when a cancer patient's death is imminent, according to a new study that has identified eight "tell-tale" signs that indicate that the end is nigh. A researcher involved in the study, published in Cancer , explains why the findings are so novel: Previous studies...

5 Most Incredible Discoveries of the Week

Including a shipwreck off Oregon and new guidelines for snoozing

(Newser) - Steel that's stronger than titanium as well as new discoveries from a murderous mutiny make this week's list:
  • Experts Think They've Made a Big Michelangelo Discovery : Two sculptures of nude men atop "ferocious" panthers might seem attention-grabbing of their own accord, but the pair are generating
...

Scientists Create New &#39;Super Steel&#39;
 Scientists Create 
 New 'Super Steel' 
STUDY SAYS
Feb 5, 2015 12:40 PM CST

Scientists Create New 'Super Steel'

Titanium-strength metal is lighter, stronger, cheaper—and less likely to break

(Newser) - A group of South Korean scientists says it's finally come up with the perfect metallurgical cocktail to create a new form of steel that's flexible, lightweight, relatively inexpensive—and as strong as titanium, Popular Mechanics reports. The South Korean study published in Nature , which is being heralded by...

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