CLIMATEWIRE | Texas knows it isn’t prepared for floods. But the state has done little to address the risk — and the federal government under President Donald Trump is unlikely to help Texas cover the cost. The threat was underscored last week when floodwaters ravaged central Texas — killing more than 100 people, including more…
Antidepressant withdrawal symptoms include nausea and headaches Savushkin/Getty Images Antidepressant withdrawal symptoms may be less common than we thought, at least for short-term use – but questions remain about what happens to people who stop taking the drugs after much longer periods. We know that people taking antidepressants for conditions such as depression, anxiety and…
Humans are wired to treat machines as social beings Abdillah Studio/Unsplash Think of what it feels like to be in love. What comes to your mind? The giddy excitement of first falling for someone or the everyday calm reassurance of someone at your side? For a handful of people, love is opening up their laptop…
An artist’s impression of the moa, one of the largest extinct birds Christopher Klee/Colossal Biosciences Colossal Biosciences has announced plans to “de-extinct” the New Zealand moa, one of the world’s largest and most iconic extinct birds, but critics say the company’s goals remain scientifically impossible. The moa was the only known completely wingless bird, lacking…
An underwater gold rush may be on the horizon — or rather, a rush to mine the seafloor for manganese, nickel, cobalt and other minerals used in electric vehicles, solar panels and more. Meanwhile, scientists and conservationists hope to pump the brakes on the prospect of deep-sea mining, warning that it may scar the seafloor…
Rachel Feltman: For Scientific American’s Science Quickly, I’m Rachel Feltman. In case you missed it we’re spending this week revisiting some of our favorite episodes from the past year. Today we’re diving into the subject of coral reefs. Even if you’re not an avid snorkeler or diver, chances are that movies and childhood trips to…
Adding sunlight-reflecting particles into the upper atmosphere could help cool the climate alexnako/Shutterstock One of the many dangers of continuing to pump carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is that we could trigger tipping points such as the shutdown of crucial ocean currents. Now, a modelling study suggests that injecting aerosols into the stratosphere to reflect…
Ancient humans adapted to deeper forests as they migrated out of Africa and away from the savannah LIONEL BRET/EURELIOS/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY This is an extract from Our Human Story, our newsletter about the revolution in archaeology. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every month. Humans come from Africa. This wasn’t always obvious, but today…
A firefighting plane dropping water over a wildfire near Athens, Greece Costas Baltas/Anadolu via Getty Images An intense heatwave in June and July killed 2300 people across London and 11 other European cities, a death toll that was nearly tripled by climate change. It can take months to determine the impact of climate change on…
The Geology of Texas’ ‘Flash Flood Alley’ Explained A hydrologist explains why Texas Hill Country is known as Flash Flood Alley and how its geography and geology can lead to heavy downpours and sudden, destructive floods By Hatim Sharif & The Conversation US A man conducts a search near the Guadalupe River in Kerrville, Texas…
