
The mystery of how and when the Grand Canyon formed gets a new clue
A new study suggests a proto–Colorado River filled a large basin before spilling westward to set the Grand Canyon’s modern path
Cody Cottier is a freelance journalist based in Fort Collins, Colo, who frequently covers evolution and the environment.

The mystery of how and when the Grand Canyon formed gets a new clue
A new study suggests a proto–Colorado River filled a large basin before spilling westward to set the Grand Canyon’s modern path

Octopus sex is even weirder than you think
Scientists have learned how male octopuses’ specialized sperm-depositing arm knows where to go

Why pristine mountain lakes are suddenly turning green
High in the Rockies, researchers are discovering that wind-borne pollution and rising heat are fueling unprecedented algal blooms

‘Mind-blowing’ baby chick study challenges a theory of how humans evolved language
Newborn chicks connect sounds with shapes just like humans, suggesting deep evolutionary roots of the “bouba-kiki” effect

How long you live may depend much more on your genes than scientists thought
A new analysis suggests that genes play a much larger role in human longevity than previously believed. But lifestyle factors still matter

Mysterious tower fossils may come from a newly discovered kind of life
Towering Prototaxites ruled Earth before trees—and they may have been a form of life entirely new to science

T. rex Bones Reveal These Dinosaurs May Have Lived Far Longer Than We Thought
New clues hidden inside T. rex bones suggest that the carnivore lived longer lives than we thought

Do monkeys make faces on purpose?
A new study suggests that primate facial expressions may not just be reflexive

Earliest Human Ancestor May Have Walked on Two Legs
A fossil belonging to an ancient hominin that lived seven million years ago bears the hallmarks of bipedalism, according to a new study

Before Flowers Existed, These Plants Lured Insects with Heat
New research on strange cycad plants offers a glimpse into the prehistoric origins of pollination

Chimps Can Weigh Evidence and Update Their Beliefs Like Humans Do
Are we the only rational thinkers? New research on our primate cousins suggests otherwise

Watch These Parasitic Worms Use Static Electricity as a Tractor Beam
For microscopic worms, physical laws we seldom notice take on life-or-death importance

Genetics Can Track How Languages Mixed in the Past
New research shows that wherever human populations mix, their languages blend as well

For Dolphins, Echolocation May Be More like ‘Touching’ Than ‘Seeing’
Dolphins seem to “feel” their way across the sea with narrow, sweeping beams of sonar
When Baboon Dads Stick Around, Their Daughters Live Longer
New research shows father-daughter relationships have a positive influence on female baboons’ lives—when the dads stick around

See How Animals Sculpt the Planet
This tally of animals’ effect on Earth’s geology, equivalent to that of thousands of extreme floods, most likely is an underestimate

Linguists Find Proof of Sweeping Language Pattern Once Deemed a ‘Hoax’
Inuit languages really do have many words for snow, linguists found—and other languages have conceptual specialties, too, potentially revealing what a culture values

These Fish and Flies Are Engineered to Break Down Mercury
Bacterial genes protect animals—and their predators—from harmful contamination

Future Paleontologists Will Understand Modern Humans through Our ‘Technofossils’
Discarded authors Sarah Gabbott and Jan Zalasiewicz, observers of the geological past, look into the future

Denisovan Fossil Shows Enigmatic Human Cousins Lived from Siberia to Subtropics
The third confirmed location of extinct hominins known as Denisovans shows these human cousins adapted to an impressive range of environments

Bonobos’ Complex Calls Share an Extraordinary Trait with Human Language
Bonobos’ grunts, peeps and whistles may share an advanced linguistic property with human language

Life on Earth May Have Been Jump-Started by ‘Microlightning’
Charged water droplets generate sparks that can forge organic compounds

Whale Songs Obey Basic Rules of Human Languages
Humpback whales learn their haunting melodies in much the same way humans learn words

Out of Sight, ‘Dark Fungi’ Run the World from the Shadows
The land, water and air around us are chock-full of DNA from fungi that scientists can’t identify