Science

Lockdowns have been eased in the United Kingdom, but now there's a new variant called delta plus emerging. Will it take off the way delta did?

People wonder if they should keep calm and carry on in the face of delta plus variant

6:17pm October 22, 2021

by Michaeleen Doucleff

A new coronavirus variant — known as delta plus — has cropped up in the U.K. There's concern it could be more dangerous than the highly contagious delta variant. What does the science actually show?

Menari, the critically endangered Sumatran orangutan, is seen climbing in her enclosure at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans. The zoo announced Thursday that Menari is pregnant with twins.

An endangered Sumatran orangutan at the New Orleans zoo is expecting twins

8:34pm October 21, 2021

by Jonathan Franklin

The births will be the first for Menari, zoo officials say. She is expected to give deliver the twins sometime this winter.

Canada, Newfoundland, L'anse Aux Meadows Nhp, Replicas Of Norse Houses From 1000 Years Ago.

Science

Researchers pinpoint when the Vikings came to Canada. It was exactly 1,000 years ago

10:20am October 21, 2021

It has long been known that the Vikings arrived in the Americas sometime before Christopher Columbus. Now, a new article in the journal Nature concludes the exact year was 1021.

Erica Cuellar, her husband and her daughter moved in with her father in his home early in the pandemic, after she lost her job. She and her husband were worried they wouldn't be able to afford the rent on their house in Houston with only one income. In Ju

Why helping people pay rent can fight the pandemic

5:00am October 21, 2021

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

A family in Houston and a plumber in Maryland couldn't afford rent, which pushed them into crowded living quarters. During the COVID-19 pandemic, that common predicament has increased viral spread.

The Schuylkill River floods Philadelphia in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida in September. The extreme rain caught many by surprise, trapping people in basements and cars and killing dozens.

Climate change is bad for your health. And plans to boost economies may make it worse

6:31pm October 20, 2021

by Nathan Rott

A Lancet medical journal report finds that human-caused climate change is worsening human health in just about every measurable way. It calls for more urgent action from world leaders.

Scientists made a wooden steak knife that's 3 times sharper than a steel blade

4:54pm October 20, 2021

Researchers have hardened wood and fashioned a knife out of it. It's three times sharper than steel and can slice through steak, and could be a sustainable alternative.

Safeway pharmacist Ashley McGee fills a syringe with the Pfizer COVID-19 booster vaccination at a vaccination booster shot clinic on Oct. 1, in San Rafael, Calif.

The U.S. is ready to roll out the COVID vaccine once it's approved for kids age 5-11

3:12pm October 20, 2021

by Joe Hernandez

The White House says the U.S. has enough doses for the country's 28 million kids age 5 to 11 and has laid out a plan to get them inoculated as soon as the vaccine is authorized for the age group.

Primatologist Jane Goodall is honored for her lifetime achievements at a ceremony on her 85th birthday at City Hall in Los Angeles on April 3, 2019.

Jane Goodall encourages all to act to save Earth in 'The Book of Hope'

7:40am October 19, 2021

by Barbara J. King

The primatologist says it's crucial that young people know how positive action can still shift the frightening trajectories of climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and the ongoing global pandemic.

Fewer cars on the road during lockdowns was good news for frogs and salamanders

5:07pm October 18, 2021

Fewer cars were on the road during pandemic lockdowns. And for Maine's frogs and salamanders, that translated to far fewer roadkill deaths.

California's farmers are pumping billions of tons of extra water from underground aquifers this year, because of the drought. But new restrictions on such pumping are coming into force.

Satellites reveal the secrets of water-guzzling farms in California

3:40pm October 18, 2021

by Dan Charles

California wants to limit the water that farmers can pump from depleted aquifers. To enforce those limits, regulators are turning to remote sensing satellites.