NYT > Science

1. SpaceX’s Latest Starship Launch Skips Attempt to Catch the Booster
   SpaceX could still try to catch the rocket’s upper stage tomorrow. Progress toward a fully reusable rocket remains mixed.
2. These Male Dolphins Do Something Rare: Day Care
   Male Franciscana dolphins are exceptional babysitters. Scientists are trying to figure out if they are thoughtful fathers or just hope to be.
3. These Killer Female Apes Challenge the ‘Man the Hunter’ Origin Story
   Bonobos are as closely related to humans as chimps. New evidence that female bonobos are the primary hunters could radically alter our understanding of early human societies.
4. He Made a Game of Chance. His Obituary Is a Game, Too.
   Steve Selvin has died. To understand his significance, try to wrap your head around the Monty Hall Problem.
5. 25 Years After the Anthrax Attacks, America Remains Vulnerable
   Letters filled with anthrax spores exposed flaws in the United States’ biosecurity systems. Experts say many of those issues still exist.
6. Could Alien Life Thrive in Sulfuric Acid Instead of Water?
   Best known for dissolving bodies in bathtubs, sulfuric acid has the potential to be the elixir of life on other worlds.
7. El Niño Is Hitting California Hard
   Rising sea levels and violent weather are testing residents in some of the most picturesque cities along the Pacific Coast.
8. How Did Greek Fire Work? And 6 Other Lost Inventions.
   Even once-widespread innovations have been forgotten, leaving scholars puzzling over the details.
9. Timing of Climate Science Reports Ignites a Hot Fight at U.N. Talks
   Several countries that rely heavily on fossil fuels want to delay the next round of scientific assessments that governments use to inform their climate policies.
10. A Key Paris Agreement Goal Is Dead. What Now?
    Leaders at COP31 are confronting a new reality as global warming enters the “unsafe zone.”
11. Democrats Put Targets on Notice as Trump Oversight Takes Shape
    Letters sent by two key House committees tell companies and officials not to destroy documents.
12. Malawi Lacks Money to Fund its El Niño Plans
    The question is being asked across the developing world, where hunger risk is high from the extreme weather El Niño is expected to bring. Malawi has a big plan, but little money.
13. The Russian Scientist Behind the Deadly Novichok Nerve Agents Has Died
    Vladimir Uglev, a lead developer of a Cold War-era chemical weapon used on the dissident Alexei Navalny, later turned against the government. He was 80.
14. ‘Fight Harder,’ U.N. Chief António Guterres Implores, Rousing Climate Ambassadors at COP31
    The United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, spoke at COP31, a meeting aimed at reducing emissions, amid a sharp drop in attendance by world leaders.
15. New Research Compares Long-Term Relief From 21 Antidepressants
    In the meta-analysis, a few drugs stood out for offering greater effectiveness over time.
16. From Climate Activism to the House of Representatives
    William Lawrence, a co-founder of the Sunrise Movement, flipped a seat in Michigan for the Democrats.
17. The U.S. Has Lost Its Measles-Elimination Status, Data Suggests
    An international panel of scientific experts will convene on Tuesday to evaluate the status, but genetic data already shows the virus is once again entrenched in the United States.
18. Iran War Unexpectedly Drove Down Carbon Emissions This Year
    It’s the first drop in planet-warming pollution since the pandemic in 2020. But researchers cautioned that the decline could be short-lived.
19. What Is Congress’s Plan to Speed Up Energy Permits?
    The sprawling bill, which has divided Democrats, would overhaul major environmental laws to streamline the permitting process.
20. An Anti-Trump Protest. Police Threats. Inside a Rift in Diabetes Research.
    It began with a protest at an American Diabetes Association conference. Now a resulting boycott has caused a scientific slowdown, with no end in sight.
21. A Guide to COP31 Climate Talks in Antalya, Turkey
    Negotiators and leaders are gathering for annual United Nations climate talks. They come as global temperatures are set to breach a key threshold.
22. With Hopes Low and Temperatures High, Climate Summit Opens in Turkey
    War, artificial intelligence and the Trump era have overshadowed climate change. But officials from nearly every nation are meeting to confront global warming.
23. Did These Scientists Find Evidence of Blood in a Dinosaur Bone?
    Mineralized “structures” discovered in the bone were the fossilized remains of red blood cells, according to a recent study. Other experts aren’t so sure.
24. How an Intern and a Biologist Rescued an Orphaned Walrus in Alaska
    An injured five-month-old walrus was found huddled next to carcasses in remote Alaska after it became separated from its mother. Its rescue took days and lots of patience.
25. Top Astrophysicist Leaves U.S. After Trump Policies Affect Her Work 
    Kelly Holley-Bockelmann was one of the top astrophysicists in the country until President Trump’s policies affected every part of her work.
26. NASA Is Selecting Future Astronauts. Here’s How to Apply.
    The space agency is recruiting its next class of space travelers for missions to low-Earth orbit and the moon. Applications are due Dec. 3.
27. Doctors Absorb the Stunning Failure of Two High-Profile Heart Drugs
    By every measure, the drugs were no better than placebos, full data revealed on Saturday. Was it the fault of the design of the studies, or our very hypotheses about heart disease?
28. Still on the President’s Agenda: Daylight Saving Time
    Following an election-year rout for Republicans, Trump castigated lawmakers for not passing the Sunshine Protection Act. Some scientists have warned against the change.