Stories by Mary Randolph

A new study of the Helix Nebula shows a never-before-seen detail of how dying stars recycle elements. Researchers found it by accident

This dying star appears to have a face of gas and a mane of space dust

The vagus nerve is the autonomic nervous system’s highway, connecting every major organ

Doctors used to warn coffee drinkers. Now research reassures them

This seismic event is of a similar magnitude to the pair of earthquakes that hit Venezuela in June

July also saw its second-highest air temperatures on record this year

The backlash raises a bigger question for science communicators: Where should AI fit into their work?

This artificial intelligence system largely accomplished the task it was built to solve, and researchers outside DeepMind have already been carrying its work forward

Charles Darwin predicted in 1875 that some members of the Saxifraga genus could be carnivorous—now scientists have finally proven him right

Dry conditions and climate change are putting forests across the country at risk for disaster

The extreme conditions of atomic bomb explosions create “uncontrolled microexperiments” that, in Hiroshima, forged a never-before-seen metallic alloy

Giant black holes adrift in deep space are normally invisible—unless they’re dining on stars

Thousands of people have gotten sick from Cyclospora. Experts can’t agree whether the end is in sight

Nobody knows why insects aren't found living in the ocean. Scientists just eliminated one theory

The nation’s first statewide moratorium on new hyperscale facilities gives officials up to one year to work out how to measure their environmental effects amid the AI building boom

Shaving under a minute off our daily commutes costs Americans $22 million daily

A controversial new ruling from the Federal Communications Commission leaves no one responsible for regulating light pollution and other ill effects from skyrocketing numbers of satellites

Alpha-gal syndrome is increasing across the U.S., driven by lone star ticks

Living at altitudes with less than half the oxygen at sea level, these mice have adapted to their environment in unique ways

A best-yet measurement of one of general relativity’s most mind-boggling effects is “another feather in Einstein’s cap”

Getting as little as 90 minutes less sleep than usual may lead to gaining weight and becoming more sedentary, a new study finds

The hominins may have gone on adventures, but they lacked key skills of modern humans