All Stories by Sophie Hartley
- Animals
Giant rats could soon help sniff out illegally smuggled goods
African giant pouched rats can detect landmines and diseases. Now some have been trained to sense elephant ivory, pangolin scales and more.
- Health & Medicine
Are synthetic food dyes bad for you? Here’s what the science says.
California is banning them in schools. The FDA says they’re fine. But synthetic dyes added to food to make them more colorful have a long, troubled history.
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Megafire smoke may dampen California’s nut harvests
The summer after wildfire smoke blocked sunlight for long stretches, harvests at some almond tree orchards in California’s Central Valley dropped.
- Environment
An idea to save Mexico’s oyamel forests could help monarch butterflies too
Climate change is putting monarch butterflies’ overwintering forests in Mexico at risk. Could planting new forests solve that problem?
- Genetics
The discovery of microRNA wins the 2024 physiology Nobel Prize
Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun found a new principle of gene regulation essential for all multicellular organisms.
- Archaeology
The world’s oldest cheese is now revealing some of its secrets
A DNA analysis of the kefir cheese, first found about 20 years ago on 3,600-year-old mummies in China, confirms its age and pinpoints its origins.
- Agriculture
‘Smart lighting’ might make vertical farming more affordable
A new computer program adjusts grow lights to cut down on electric bills without sacrificing photosynthesis.
