NYT > Science

1. A Hopeful Forecast: More Accurate Long-Term Weather Predictions
   Improving technology could make it possible to better anticipate weather conditions weeks in advance, especially in the tropics.
2. Why So Blue, Tarantula? A Mystery Gets a New Clue
   The large arachnids have long been thought to be colorblind, but new evidence suggests they can perceive each others’ brilliant coloring.
3. Nothing Eats Viruses, Right? Meet Some Hungry Protists
   New genetic evidence builds the case that single-celled marine microbes might chow down on viruses.
4. Beaked Whale Shatters Record With 3 Hour 42 Minute Dive
   Scientists still don’t know how the marine mammals go so long without air.
5. 356 Elephants Dropped Dead. Did This Bacteria Poison Them?
   Some conservationists accepted the explanation provided by Botswana’s government, but others raised doubts.
6. Bringing the Ocean’s Midnight Zone Into the Light
   The Monterey Bay Aquarium has learned how to raise the deepest sea life to the surface and keep it alive for display.
7. ‘Mussel-bola’ Could Be Spreading. Maybe Now You’ll Pay Attention.
   New findings suggest a previously unknown virus may play a role in the sudden death of many freshwater mussels in recent years.
8. In a Desert’s Burning Sands, Shrimp
   When it rains in Iran’s Dasht-e Lut desert, the ground comes alive with tiny, upside-down crustaceans.
9. Aromatherapy in the Apiary Is What Bees Need
   Honeybees were better at pollinating crops after scent training.
10. How to Get Focused
    The average person’s mind wanders nearly half the time. Here’s how to pull it back to attention.
11. A Man Died After Eating a Bag of Black Licorice Every Day
    Doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital said the unusual case highlighted the risk of consuming too much glycyrrhizic acid, which is found in black licorice.
12. Covid-19 Live Updates: Latest News and Analysis
    A study offered an explanation for children’s ability to fight off the virus. Thousands protested new lockdown measures in London.
13. In Isolating Times, Can Robo-Pets Provide Comfort?
    As seniors find themselves cut off from loved ones during the pandemic, some are turning to automated animals for company.
14. Coronavirus Survey Halted After Workers Faced Racial Slurs, Officials Say
    Workers were followed, videotaped and threatened in confrontations across Minnesota, the state Department of Health said.
15. How Do Children Fight Off the Coronavirus?
    The secret may lie in an “innate” immune response that targets unrecognized invaders, scientists say.
16. Robert Gore, Inventor of Gore-Tex, Is Dead at 83
    Experiments with a polymer led him to create the breathable, waterproof material used in numerous applications, including ski jackets and medical implants.
17. At Climate Week, America’s Cascading Disasters Dominate
    This year’s events come amid a climate reckoning in the world’s richest country. Here are the takeaways.
18. Under 10 Percent of Americans Have Covid-19 Antibodies, Study Finds
    At least six U.S. states reported records for new cases. The French Open is scaled back. A top Australian health official resigned amid questions about Melbourne’s second wave of infections.
19. Trump Administration Releases Plan to Open Tongass Forest to Logging
    The effort to open the Alaskan wilderness area, the nation’s largest national forest, has been in the works for about two years.
20. Blue Cross Insurers Reach Tentative Settlement in Antitrust Lawsuit
    The health insurance group may pay $2.7 billion to resolve allegations that the chain blocked competition.
21. Virus Cases Surged in Young Adults. The Elderly Were Hit Next.
    Infections among young adults eventually may have spread to older, more vulnerable people, the C.D.C. reported.
22. Novavax Enters Final Stage of Coronavirus Vaccine Trials
    The Maryland company, which has never brought a vaccine to market, has started its Phase 3 trial in the United Kingdom, with plans to begin in the United States in October.
23. Ocean Heat Waves Are Directly Linked to Climate Change
    The “blob” of hotter ocean water that killed sea lions and other marine life in 2014 and 2015 may become permanent.
24. Stalled Talks Over Covid-19 Stimulus in the U.S. Show Signs of Life
    It was far from clear that Republican and Democratic negotiators would be able to reach a deal. Rio de Janeiro’s annual Carnival parade will be delayed for the first time in decades.
25. Chief Executive of Embattled Alaskan Mine Project Resigns
    The executive made “offensive” remarks about the state’s political leaders, the company said, in meetings recorded by an environmental group.
26. California Plans to Ban Sales of New Gas-Powered Cars in 15 Years
    The proposal would speed up the state’s efforts to fight global warming at a time when California is being battered by wildfires, heat waves and other consequences of climate change.
27. E.P.A. Rejects Its Own Findings That a Pesticide Harms Children’s Brains
    The agency’s new assessment directly contradicts federal scientists’ conclusions five years ago that chlorpyrifos can stunt brain development in young children.
28. Heat and Drought Team Up More Frequently, With Disastrous Results
    A new study finds that what used to be a rare weather double whammy has been occurring more frequently in recent decades because of climate change.
29. Ron Cobb, a Pioneer in Science Fiction Design, Dies at 83
    An artist and movie production designer, he helped shape the aesthetics of science fiction with his work on movies including “Star Wars,” “Alien” and “Back to the Future.”
30. We’ll Have to Learn to Live With Smoke. Here’s Why.
    There’s a huge fire debt in the West that must be paid off, experts say, either through controlled burns or out-of-control blazes. Either way, that means smoke.
31. Johnson & Johnson Begins Phase 3 Trial of Covid-19 Vaccine
    Unlike some of its competitors, Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine does not need to be frozen and may require just one shot instead of two.
32. Undercutting Scientists, Trump Says Tightening Covid-19 Vaccine Guidelines ‘Sounds Like a Political Move’
    Dr. Anthony S. Fauci and three other top U.S. health officials told lawmakers they would take a vaccine approved by the F.D.A. Johnson & Johnson announced plans to enroll 60,000 people in a major vaccine trial. Israel will tighten its coronavirus restrictions on Friday.
33. Supreme Court Could Give Trump Second Chance at Environmental Rollbacks
    Court losses are piling up for President Trump's environmental deregulation agenda. But a second term in the White House could help them stick.
34. F.D.A. to Release Stricter Guidelines for Emergency Vaccine Authorization
    The new guidelines underscore the fact that a vaccine is highly unlikely before the election.
35. China, in Pointed Message to U.S., Tightens Its Climate Targets
    President Xi Jinping pledged, among other goals, to achieve “carbon neutrality by 2060.” It was China’s boldest promise yet on climate change.
36. Climate Disruption Is Now Locked In. The Next Moves Will Be Crucial.
    The Times spoke to two dozen experts who said decisions made now would spell the difference between a difficult future and something far worse.
37. Despite Claims, Trump Rarely Uses Wartime Law in Battle Against Covid
    The president often criticized the Defense Production Act as anti-business. Now he’s campaigning on having frequently used the law to ramp up production of medical gear.
38. ‘I Had Heart Surgery in the Middle of a Coronavirus Hot Spot’
    Anxiety and uncertainty about the pandemic are leading some patients to delay surgery. But how safe is that when you have an aneurysm in your heart?
39. Hundreds of Whales Stranded Off Tasmania
    More than 450 pilot whales became stranded on the west coast of the island state in Australia. Rescuers estimate that over half of them have already died.
40. Fourth-Largest U.S. School District to Allow Students Back in Classrooms
    Over 200,000 people have died in the U.S. from the coronavirus, a staggering toll. Japanese researchers suggest plastic face shields are insufficient to reduce the virus’s spread.
41. Democratic Donors Push Biden for a Cabinet Free of Fossil Fuel Connections
    A group of more than 60 donors is urging Joe Biden to renounce advisers with ties to the fossil fuel industry.
42. Arctic Sea Ice Reaches a Low, Just Missing Record
    Only 2012 had less sea ice coverage, scientists say, as climate change takes its toll in the region.
43. Advice on Airborne Virus Transmission Vanishes From C.D.C. Website
    The new guidance, published only on Friday, had acknowledged that fine particles floating in air may spread the virus.
44. An Alaska Mine Project Might Be Bigger Than Acknowledged
    In secretly recorded meetings, executives with the Pebble Mine project said the operation could run nine times longer than outlined in their permit filings.
45. Coronavirus Upends College Admissions Tests, Creating Chaos for Students
    An Iowa school district that defied a reopening order is moving toward a “hybrid” model. South Korea suspends a plan to provide free flu shots to 19 million people.
46. Top U.S. Health Officials Tiptoe Around Trump’s Vaccine Timeline
    The administration’s experts tried to find a way to support both the president and the reality of scientific and medical constraints he doesn’t always recognize.
47. A New York Clock That Told Time Now Tells the Time Remaining
    Metronome’s digital clock in Manhattan has been reprogrammed to illustrate a critical window for action to prevent the effects of global warming from becoming irreversible.
48. Health Officials Tiptoe Around Trump’s Coronavirus Vaccine Timeline
    New Zealand says it will ease its virus measures. Lockdowns return as Europe faces a second wave.
49. How California Became Ground Zero for Climate Disasters
    The engineering and land management that enabled the state’s tremendous growth have left it more vulnerable to climate shocks — and those shocks are getting worse.