Daily Science Brief

Maggot meat may have helped Neanderthals thrive, mice get flu shots by flossing, grief might be deadly, and your frenemies could be aging you—literally. SOURCES Neanderthals likely ate fermented meat with a side of maggots | The Conversation Neanderthals, hypercarnivores, and maggots: Insights from stable nitrogen isotopes | Science Advances Scientists gave mice flu vaccines by flossing their tiny...

New clues about dino friendships, why 7,000 steps—not 10,000—might be enough, how a moon crater helped test for alien life, and a crumpled piece of Bronze Age armor tells a warrior’s tale. SOURCES Remarkable set of tracks suggests different dinosaurs herded together | New Scientist Walking 7000 steps a day seems to be enough to keep us healthy | New Scientist Daily steps and health outcomes in adu...

A fossilized brain rewrites spider evolution, conspiracy theorists think their views are mainstream, a male birth control pill shows early promise, and cleaner air is triggering more heatwaves. SOURCES Ancient animal's fossilised brain prompts rethink of spider evolution | New Scientist Cambrian origin of the arachnid brain | Current Biology Conspiracy theorists don’t realize they’re on the fringe...

A study says your baby’s sex might not be a coin flip, ancient Mars may have had heavy rains, a shorter workweek boosts well-being, and gluten might not be to blame for your IBS. SOURCES Your chance of having a boy or girl may not be 50/50 | New Scientist Is sex at birth a biological coin toss? Insights from a longitudinal and GWAS analysis | Science Advances If aliens existed on Mars 3.7 billion...

Babies born using DNA from three people, sloths settle a flatulence mystery, a simple device turns moon dust into water and fuel, and astronomers find ice cubes in a place they absolutely shouldn’t be. SOURCES Babies made using three people's DNA are free of hereditary disease | New Scientist 8 babies spared from potentially deadly inherited diseases through new 'mitochondrial donation' trial | Li...

Congress fights to keep NASA fully fueled. Eating disorders show brain changes like OCD and autism. NASA's asteroid crash test sent boulders flying. And naps won’t actually wreck your kid’s bedtime sleep SOURCES Congress moves to reject bulk of White House’s proposed NASA cuts | Ars Technica Brain changes with eating disorders similar to those in OCD and autism | New Scientist Neuroimaging insight...

A record-breaking black hole merger, thirsty city trees drinking from leaky pipes, gene therapy restores hearing in kids born deaf, and farms that grow food and solar power at the same time. SOURCES Merger of two massive black holes is one for the record books | Ars Technica Trees on city streets cope with drought by drinking from leaky pipes | New Scientist Gene therapy restores hearing in toddle...

A cancer-fighting side effect of exercise, a surgical robot that doesn't need a human, a miraculous treatment for a rare disease, and dams that are literally shifting the Earth’s poles. SOURCES Exercise helps fight cancer – and we may finally know why | New Scientist Exercise-induced microbiota metabolite enhances CD8 T cell antitumor immunity promoting immunotherapy efficacy | Cell Surgical robot...

A modified herpes virus is fighting skin cancer, chimps launch a bizarre fashion trend, Texas floods reveal our new climate reality, and scientists debate geoengineering to stop climate collapse. SOURCES Herpes virus could soon be approved to treat severe skin cancer | New Scientist Cancer-fighting herpes virus shown to be an effective treatment for some advanced melanoma | AAAS Chimps develop fas...

RFK Jr. suggests a bird flu plan that could backfire, Earth spins a little faster, robots get synthetic skin that feels pain, and melting glaciers may wake sleeping volcanoes. SOURCES RFK's proposal to let bird flu spread through poultry could set us up for a pandemic, experts warn | Live Science Earth is going to spin much faster over the next few months — so fast that several days are going to g...

DARPA pops popcorn with a power laser, Inca string codes reveal ancient climate records, cancer cells steal mitochondria to spread, and a new chip brings quantum computing closer to reality. SOURCES DARPA smashes wireless power record, beaming energy more than 5 miles away — and uses it to make popcorn | Live Science The Inca string code that reveals Peru’s climate history | The Conversation The C...

We finally understand how Tylenol blocks pain, women’s pelvises are evolving with medicine, a giant new telescope just saw first light, and your brain may literally be keeping a sleep debt ledger. SOURCES We may finally know how Tylenol works — and it's not how we thought | Live Science Women's pelvises are shrinking – how is that changing childbirth? | New Scientist Recent evolutionary decrease i...

AI's dirty emissions secret, a peaceful pharaoh succession, trees that can't save us, and a microbe that's almost a virus. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon . Help keep the show going. Thank you! Send us email to dailysciencebrief@gmail.com Host, Resea...

A prehistoric boomerang just doubled its age, gastric bypass might slash cancer risk, scientists grow carbon-guzzling materials, and Gen Alpha's secret slang is stumping both parents and AI. SOURCES Ancient mammoth-tusk boomerang is twice as old as we thought | New Scientist Boomerang and bones: Refining the chronology of the Early Upper Paleolithic at Obłazowa Cave, Poland | PLOS One Gastric bypa...

A breathalyzer test for disease, how much your cat meows is in its DNA, heart attacks are losing their top killer status, and the new US vaccine panel is already causing problems. SOURCES New 'breathalyzer' could detect signs of disease in human breath, scientists say | Live Science New laser-based breathalyzer sniffs out COVID, other diseases in real-time | CU Boulder Today Is your cat vocal or q...

A brutal heat dome across the US this week, mice made from two dads, orcas massaging each other with kelp, and emotionally intelligent AIs. REFERENCES Massive 'heat dome' is bringing 'extremely dangerous' temperatures to the eastern half of the US | Live Science Researchers get viable mice by editing DNA from two sperm | Ars Technica Orcas scrub each other clean with bits of kelp | New Scientist N...

An “off switch” in the brain for binge-drinking, how early humans leveled up before leaving Africa, a mysterious skull that’s been hiding Denisovan secrets for 90 years, and a simple fix that could slash methane on dairy farms. SOURCES: The brain might have a hidden 'off switch' for binge drinking | Live Science Suppression of binge alcohol drinking by an inhibitory neuronal ensemble in the mouse...

Forgotten memories still shaping your behavior, Viking dogs buried at sea, industrial waste turning into rocks, and a 3,000-kilometer-wide dust storm that crossed an ocean to land in Florida. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon . Help keep the show going...

Biofuels may be backfiring on the climate, we’ve finally solved the mystery of the Moon’s orange glass beads, Pluto has a bizarre new kind of climate, and a city-killer asteroid might give the Moon a black eye in 2032. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon...

A paralyzed man speaks again thanks to mind-reading AI, scientists grow brain implants in tadpoles, we finally see the sun’s south pole, and the Romans had a taste kentucky fried songbird. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon . Help keep the show going. T...

RFK Jr. removes every vaccine advisor from the CDC, gene editing may finally reverse kidney damage, artificial blood that works for everyone , and Death Valley’s dry air might just save your life. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon . Help keep the show...

US stops endorsing COVID-19 shots for kids — and a CDC leader resigns. Women find other women’s faces more attractive than men do. How our brains sort imagination from reality. What a sauropod dinosaur’s last meal reveals about its eating habits. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You c...

A plant-based glue that's stronger than epoxy, AI that rewrites biblical history, a massage that might help your brain clean itself, and why even weed edibles could be hurting your heart. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon . Help keep the show going. Th...

A super-termite hybrid could spread globally, NASA’s budget takes a hit, newborns may do better with direct RSV shots, and cockatoos are learning to use drinking fountains. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the show? You can support us too on Patreon . Help keep the show going. Thank you! Send u...

One in four people follow rules—even when it costs them. Bird feeders may be quietly steering hummingbird evolution. There could be trillions of dollars in platinum… on the Moon. And a bold solution to the Colorado River’s water crisis—floating solar panels. Please SUBSCRIBE HERE to get the show delivered straight to you. Special thanks to our supporters who help make this show possible. Enjoy the...