Researchers in the U.K. trained computers to rate photos of parks and cities for what humans consider to be their scenic beauty. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Forensic entomologists can chemically analyze fly eggs from a corpse, which might speed up detective work. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Century-old records found in Puerto Rico helped reconstruct the damage caused there by a magnitude 7.3 earthquake—and could help disaster experts plan for the next big one. Julia Rosen reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
An experimental cell phone works by absorbing and reflecting radio waves—meaning it's incredibly energy efficient and needs no battery. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In patients with severe eczema, Staphylococcus aureus strains dominated the skin microbe population—suggesting that certain types of bacteria could worsen eczema flares. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Whether lightning rods should have rounded or pointy ends became a point of contention between rebellious Americans and King George III. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Economists calculate that each degree Celsius of warming will dock the U.S. economy by 1.2 percent--and increase the divide between rich and poor. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Quantum bits, aka qubits, can simultaneously encode 0 and 1. But multicolored photons could enable even more states to exist at the same time, ramping up computing power. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Researchers designed an antireflective coating for smartphone screens, with inspiration from the bumpy eyes of moths. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The better study participants scored in the memory test, the faster they got bored. Karen Hopkin reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
DNA analysis of skeletons found in the Pacific Northwest backs up traditional oral histories, and suggests there could have been more than one colonization of the Americas. Emily Schwing reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A team of physicists has revealed why rolling suitcases start rocking from wheel to wheel—and how to avoid that frustrating phenomenon. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Ecologists say wolves should be allowed to roam beyond remote wilderness areas—and that by scaring off smaller predators like coyotes and jackals, wolves might do a good service, too. Emily Schwing reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Researchers built silver–zinc batteries that can bend and stretch—meaning they could be more elegantly integrated into future wearable devices. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
As polar bears are forced onto land, they're feeding on animals with less mercury—reducing their levels of the toxic pollutant. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Only a third of travelers could correctly identify a bed bug—suggesting that some bug sightings in online reviews could be cases of mistaken identity. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The "other victims" of the opioid epidemic are pain patients who need the drugs but cannot now get them because of fears related to their use Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria are unable to transmit viruses to humans—and could curb the spread of viral disease. Karen Hopkin reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
With 700 new greenhouses, Alaska is growing its own produce as deep into winter as the sun keeps rising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Researchers found unique genetic variants that differentiate costly beluga caviar from cheaper fakes that rip off consumers. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
New French president, Emmanual Macron, reacted to the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement by inviting disaffected U.S. researchers to make France "a second homeland." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Evaporation from overwatered lawns cost the city of Los Angeles 70 billion gallons of wasted water a year. But the city's trees were much thriftier. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Tom Frieden, head of the CDC from 2009 to 2017, told graduating medical students that we face challenges from pathogens, and from politicians. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Activity trackers accurately reckon heart rate—but they're way off in estimates of energy expenditure. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Recipes for concrete that incorporate by-products from the coal and steel industries, like fly ash and slag, could reduce road salt–related cracking. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Bumblebees sought out flowers with nicotine in their nectar, and the drug appeared to enhance the bees' memories. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Really big meteorite or asteroid strikes may cause melting and deep deformations that eventually lead to volcanic eruptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A religiously inspired change in the European diet about a thousand years ago led to the development of the modern domesticated chicken. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Earthworm numbers doubled in fields after farmers switched from conventional plowing to no-till agriculture. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
When tiny particles of space debris slam into satellites, the collision could cause the emission of hardware-frying radiation. Christopher Intagliata reports. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
