The OSIRIS-REx sample NASA/Erika Blumenfeld & Joseph Aebersold All the essential ingredients to kick-start life as we know it have now been found in samples from the asteroid Bennu. This shows that asteroids could have delivered all the prerequisites for life to Earth – and perhaps elsewhere. In 2020, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission extracted samples from…
Meghan Rosen is a senior writer who reports on the life sciences for Science News. She earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology with an emphasis in biotechnology from the University of California, Davis, and later graduated from the science communication program at UC Santa Cruz.
December 2, 2025 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm James Webb Space Telescope Spots Swirling Cradle for Exomoons Scientists found evidence of a distant planet’s moon system forming By Elise Cutts edited by Sarah Lewin Frasier An illustrated moon-forming disk surrounds an alien planet. NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Gabriele Cugno/University of Zürich, NCCR…
“On those days when I have even less time, there are still ways for me to maintain my fitness…” Romy Arroyo Fernandez/NurPhoto via Getty Images The holidays are always the most stressful part of my year, no matter how much I try to plan ahead. Amid the chaos, my usual workout routine – and often…
PABLO PORCIUNCULA/AFP via Getty Images Imagine you have a life-threatening disease. All available scientific tests point to a clear diagnosis, and a deadly prognosis. But when you visit your doctor, they make no direct mention of the disease. After some brief pleasantries, they shake you by the hand and ask you to book another appointment…
Most cats aren’t keen on water mclemay137/Getty Images Cats with injuries and disabilities can benefit from underwater treadmill therapy and swimming pools without fear, thanks to a newly developed training protocol. This adaptation programme leads to low stress levels, meaning cats can take advantage of the same kinds of water-based rehabilitation therapies that help heal…
An HIV-infected human cell STEVE GSCHMEISSNER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY A man has become the seventh person to be left HIV-free after receiving a stem cell transplant to treat blood cancer. Significantly, he is also the second of the seven who received stem cells that were not actually resistant to the virus, strengthening the case that HIV-resistant…
Exercise starves cancer cells in mice – and perhaps in humans too Alfredas Pliadis/Xinhua/Alamy Exercise can slow tumour growth in mice by shifting the body’s metabolism so that muscle cells, rather than cancer cells, take the glucose and grow. A similar process may occur in people. It is well known that exercise is linked to…
Corals build their skeletons out of calcium carbonate, emitting carbon dioxide as a by-product Reinhard Dirscherl/Alamy The extent of coral reefs worldwide has played a key role in Earth’s climate in the past 250 million years – but not in the way you might expect. Coral reefs are net producers of carbon dioxide because the…
December 1, 2025 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm The Her Talking Phone May Have Arrived—She Speaks Chinese The company behind TikTok is rolling out a smartphone AI assistant that behaves less like an app and more like a secretary By Deni Ellis Béchard edited by Claire Cameron A 3D display from a…
