Study of Over 1 Million People Reveals Heart Attacks Can Reduce Parkinson’s Risk

We know the devastating effects Parkinson’s disease can have, but scientists are still trying to figure out how it gets started and how to cure it. Some new research may have found helpful clues, linking having a heart attack with a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s later.   The drop in risk is around 20 … Read more

The Milky Way’s Dramatic History of Violence Has Been Charted in a New Map

Over the course of the history of the Universe, the Milky Way has not been serenely sailing through intergalactic space. Quite the contrary, actually. Over the last 13.6 billion years or so, it has collided with and consumed multiple other galaxies.   Now, through painstaking work, astronomers led by Khyati Malhan of the Max Planck … Read more

Nearly 50% of US Bald Eagles Have Chronic Lead Poisoning, Heartbreaking Study Shows

It’s a common pattern during hunting season in the winter: Hunters shoot elk or deer, then eagles scavenge the waste.  That scavenged meal may have deadly consequences for eagles, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science.   The researchers detected high rates of lead poisoning among the two most common types of eagles in … Read more

NASA Says Tonga Eruption Sent Up Highest Ash Plumes Ever Captured by Satellite

When a volcano in Tonga erupted on January 15, it gave satellites their first glimpse at a plume of volcanic ash shooting into the mesosphere, the third layer of Earth’s atmosphere.   According to NASA, the Tonga event was the largest volcanic eruption since satellites began monitoring our planet. As the Pacific volcano shot a burst of ash … Read more

Microdosing LSD May Not Have The Amazing Brain Effects We Think, New Study Hints

Small doses of the psychotropic LSD has shown promise in recent years for its potential in rewiring the brain to be faster, happier, and more resilient. A recent study led by researchers from the University of Chicago in the US suggests we’ve got good reason to remain cautious in how we interpret the growing pile … Read more

Some Children Die Without Explanation. Genetics Is Finally Giving Us Answers

The sudden and unexpected death of a child is a tragedy made all the worse when there’s absolutely no explanation. Each year in the United States, hundreds of children die for undetermined reasons, usually in their sleep or while resting. Due to the way deaths are investigated and certified, it’s hard to say how often this … Read more

Behold, This Is The First Asteroid Ever Discovered to Have Three Moons

An asteroid discovered in the 19th century has just been identified as the most crowded we’ve ever found. It’s called 130 Elektra, or just Elektra for short, and astronomers have just discovered that it has not one, nor two, but three smaller satellite companions, or moons. That not only makes it the most numerous asteroid … Read more

Fat Cells in Our Skin Could Be Key to Fighting Acne, Scientists Discover

The cells in our skin that fabricate fatty acids could play an unappreciated role in acne breakouts. Recent experiments on human acne and mouse skin have found pimples and lesions are closely regulated by fat-producing fibroblasts.   Fibroblasts are the most common type of connective tissue cell we have in our bodies; they produce and … Read more

Scientists Convert Donor Lungs to Universal Blood Type in a Medical First

Patients can wait a long time for potentially life-saving lung transplants, since the need to find close matches complicates the process. One of the characteristics that need to be matched is patient and donor blood type.   Now new research shows that the blood type of some donated lungs could be altered before transplant, which … Read more

A Creepy, Exceptionally Rare ‘Ghost Shark’ Chimaera Has Been Found in The Pacific

Researchers have discovered an exceptionally rare, newly hatched “ghost shark” near New Zealand’s South Island, according to the country’s National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA).   Translucent, gelatinous and crowned with a pair of giant black eyes on its pointed head, the alien-like baby likely belongs to one of the more than 50 … Read more