Shells, composed mostly of invasive zebra mussels pile up at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore in Michigan. The Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Species Control and Prevention Act of 1990 and the United States Geological Survey's Nonindigenous Aquatic Species database were created in response to this mussel. corfoto/Getty Images hide caption
Science
The central European bicolored ant, L. emarginatus, wanders around a rock in New York City. Researchers hope that people will continue uploading sightings of the so-called ManhattAnt to sites like iNaturalist so they can track the ants' movement and learn more about their behaviors. Julian F./iNaturalist hide caption
These ants quietly took over Manhattan — and they're not stopping there
Many people get into their phones when they're bored, then scroll through social media in the hopes of alleviating that boredom. But new research suggests that swiping from video to video might increase boredom, not alleviate it. Tippapatt/Getty Images hide caption
At this point, public health officials generally agree that COVID is endemic, meaning it is here to stay in predictable ways. Peter Zelei Images/Getty Images hide caption
The CDC says COVID is endemic. That doesn't mean the danger is past
During its 1997 flight, the Galileo spacecraft returned images of the Moon. This color picture is a mosaic assembled from 18 images taken by Galileo's imaging system through a green filter. NASA/JPL/USGS hide caption
Braille literacy is directly linked to higher rates of academic success and better employment outcomes for blind and low vision adults. Hill Street Studios/Getty Images hide caption
Transforming braille education could help millions of visually impaired Americans
During the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, many U.S. military personnel were exposed to blast waves from nearby explosions. Over time, the military realized that soldiers' brains had been injured by these blast waves — and that being exposed to many smaller blast waves could cause some of the same problems as getting hit by one big one. Stocktrek Images/Getty Images hide caption
Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, the International Olympic Committee advised athletes to acclimatize to hot weather with a technique called heat training. Natacha Pisarenko/AP hide caption
Cool off like an Olympian: Here's how athletes cope with intense heat
This composite image shows the Cartwheel Galaxy, located about 500 million light-years away. In the heat death scenario, the universe would expand so far that the light of one galaxy would be unable to reach its neighbor. NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI hide caption
Researchers glued cameras and tracking instruments to small pieces of neoprene, that they then glued to the fur of the sea lions Nathan Angelakis hide caption
Scientists attach video cameras to sea lions to map the ocean floor
United States' Katie Ledecky competes in the women's 800-meter freestyle final at the Summer Olympics. Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi hide caption
The horn antenna in Holmdel, NJ used in the 1960s by Bell Labs scientists Penzias and Wilson, who accidentally discovered the cosmic microwave background (CMB). Bettmann / Contributor hide caption
What the "background noise of the universe" tells us about spacetime's origins
In 2009, only about half of teens said they used social media every day. By 2022, 95% of teens said they used some social media — and about a third say they use it constantly, a poll from Pew Research Center found. Daniel de la Hoz/Getty Images hide caption
Simone Biles, widely considered one of the best athletes, competes on the uneven bars during a women's artistic gymnastics qualification round at the 2024 Summer Olympics. Abbie Parr/AP hide caption
From floor routine to vault, here's the science behind Simone Biles' Olympic gold
Over 500 million Rubik's Cubes have been sold. vitranc via Getty Images hide caption
The Rubik's cube is turning 50. This is how the iconic puzzle really works
This illustration depicts a supermassive black hole consuming the matter around it. NASA/Aurore Simonnet (Sonoma State Univ.) hide caption
There are over eight hundred species of leeches, but researchers estimate that only ten percent of all leeches are terrestrial. Auscape/Contributor/Getty Images hide caption
Two chimpanzees groom each other — a behavior that can involve several gestures. Anup Shah/Getty Images hide caption