Science Quickly

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