NYT > Science

1. That Mummy for Sale on Facebook Could Make You Ill
   Experts warn that online black markets for mummified remains could pose health risks.
2. These Snakes Cartwheel Out of Dangerous Situations
   To escape predators, dwarf reed snakes trade slithering for rolling to safety.
3. A Meteorite Found in the Sahara Is a 4.1-Billion-Year-Old Piece of Mars
   Minerals in the space rock provide hints about the early history of the red planet, when water was flowing on the surface.
4. How Trump Is Dismantling America’s Scientific Research Machine
   The system that has driven life-altering discoveries and helped make the United States a superpower is now under intense strain.
5. Conservation Efforts for Caucasian Leopards Show Promise
   In Armenia, a three-legged Caucasian leopard’s astonishing hike signals that conservation efforts for the endangered animal may be working.
6. As Picard on ‘Star Trek’, Patrick Stewart Influenced Generations of Scientists
   Stewart’s iconic “Star Trek” character inspired astronomers and astronauts in countless ways: “You were the captain of my childhood,” one astrophysicist said.
7. Dozens of Headless Skeletons Pose a Macabre Mystery
   Mass graves found at a Stone Age farming settlement in Slovakia have researchers baffled about the details — including the location of the missing skulls.
8. The New DNA Technology That Linked Ted Bundy to a 52-Year-Old Cold Case
   Software known as STRmix was instrumental in identifying Mr. Bundy’s DNA in a decades-old sample.
9. Three Stone Age Caves Reveal Continual Cannibalism
   A tour of the three caves in southern Spain suggests that people in the area cannibalized one another as funerary practice over many generations.
10. Cyril Hilsum, Who Helped Invent Flat-Panel Displays in TVs and iPhones, Has Died at 101
    The man who helped develop the technology for liquid crystal displays — the screens in flat-panel televisions and laptops — has died at 101.
11. Swarms of Butterflies Land at New York’s Natural History Museum
    The cartoonist Peter Kuper has filled a corridor with drawings of monarchs, depicting the beauty of the annual mass migration to Mexican forests — as well as its perils.
12. COP17 Biodiversity Talks in Yerevan, Armenia
    Countries renewed their promises to protect wildlife at U.N. talks in Armenia, but how to cover the costs remains a question.
13. Doctors in Ukraine Try Treating Infections Like Biological Warfare Attacks
    As many as 40 percent of injured soldiers face severe infections that can lead to amputations and death. One initiative is trying to fix that.
14. Scary Ghost Stories From New York Times Archives
    From haunted zoo cages to ghostly bar owners, here are five stories from our archives that will make you shiver, or maybe chuckle.
15. A Marathon Runner’s Hard Lesson
    Racing in Chicago showed your newsletter host firsthand how warming is disrupting the sport.
16. These Patients Struggle With Runaway Bones. Finally There’s Hope.
    F.O.P., a rare genetic condition, causes uncontrolled explosions of bone. New drugs may slow or halt the process.
17. After Reinventing Mathematics, Can A.I. Eradicate Computer Bugs?
    Using the same techniques that allowed A.I. technologies to crack a million-dollar math problem, researchers are building new systems that aim to solve the world’s cybersecurity crisis.
18. New Batteries That Store Blistering Heat Are Taking Off
    Large batteries that store electricity have revolutionized power grids and car markets. Now some start-ups are betting that “heat batteries” could be just as transformative.
19. After Flying Past the Moon, an Artemis II Astronaut Lands at a New Job in California
    Reid Wiseman, now a retired emeritus astronaut, will become deputy director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA’s premier center for deep-space robotic missions.
20. RFK Jr. to Allow Broad Use of Unapproved Peptide Injections
    In a unilateral declaration by the health secretary, several injections promoted by online influencers will become widely available. The F.D.A. had advised against the move.
21. Brain Disease Is Pervasive in N.F.L., New Estimate Suggests
    Using statistical techniques, a new study has arrived at a harrowing estimate: Three of four retired pro football players most likely had C.T.E. at death.
22. Can Scientists Make Football Safer?
    Researchers are exploring novel ways to treat, even prevent, the brain disease C.T.E. One of the most surprising: near-infrared light.
23. U.S. Restricts Trade With Chinese Genomics Company
    The move will block shipments from BGI, a major Chinese firm that U.S. officials allege is associated with forced labor and the abuse of minority groups.
24. Trump Administration Backs Down on an Opioid Ban After Kratom Industry Lobbying
    Health officials will now allow some levels of a powerful substance to remain in products marketed as natural. The change could help a G.O.P. donor facing wrongful death lawsuits.
25. A New Dwarf Planet (Probably) Spotted Beyond Pluto
    The object, known for now as 2026 ED138, is one of the first discoveries by the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile.
26. E.P.A. Loosens Methane Rules for Oil Firms
    The Biden administration had sought to crack down on methane leaks, a big driver of climate change. Those rules are now being scaled back.
27. Nanotyrannus Skeleton ‘Jodi’ Is Auctioned for $47.3 Million
    The T. Rex cousin is the latest dinosaur fossil to fetch a high price at an auction, this time at Sotheby’s.
28. Did the Hardest A.I. Problem Just Get Much Easier?
    A prominent researcher claims to have a revolutionary approach to “interpretability,” or the science of why A.I. models do what they do. Other experts aren’t so sure.
29. Antidepressants Don’t Correct A Chemical Imbalance. How, Then, Do They Work?
    Here’s how psychiatrists like me think about the most promising hypotheses.
30. It’s Docktober. Do You Know Where the Sea Slugs Are?
    Where there are floating docks, there are often communities of colorful marine organisms just below — and a community of curious people just above.
31. The Science Behind Your Reaction to Art
    The Honolulu Museum of Art is showing how art can influence thinking, perspective and mood, in an exhibition that is part of a trend by museums to mix science and art.
32. Gaze at the Cosmic Dawn in Dizzying Detail
    A new simulation offers a highly immersive look at what happened during the first couple of billion years following the Big Bang.
33. Neutrinos Are Everywhere. A Physicist Explains.
    Dr. Francis Halzen, the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics, sheds some light on the mysterious, subatomic particles that whiz through us every day.
34. Shiny Glass Skyscrapers Are a Hot Thing. Literally.
    They’re transforming cities with million-dollar views and a message of modernity. But climate change makes cooling them tricky and costly.
35. What Happened to the Neanderthals?
    Scientists now know that they shared many of the sophisticated abilities of Homo sapiens. So why are we the only humans left standing?