NYT > Science

1. Four Young Mathematicians Receive Prestigious Fields Medals
   The awards are bestowed only once every four years to mathematicians under the age of 40.
2. What Were the Lotus-Eaters Eating in Homer’s ‘Odyssey’?
   In Homer’s epic, Odysseus’s men eat something so powerful that they forget about home. Which plants could have produced such a soporific, narcotic and amnesiac effect?
3. He’s the Last Great Land Artist You’ve Never Heard Of
   Charles Ross spent 50 years building “Star Axis,” a naked-eye observatory in New Mexico. Now his masterwork is ready. How to share it with a changed world?
4. With Saudi Deal, Trump Loosens Nuclear Standards for One Close Ally
   Nuclear experts say it throws fuel on the smoldering fire of atomic proliferation, creating a destabilizing situation that could raise the risk of nuclear war.
5. How to Eat a 2,000-Pound Fish? These Orcas Choose to Pulverize It.
   Marine biologists in Mexico captured video of a strange maneuver that killer whales used to shred their meal.
6. Deep in This Lake, a Contagious Cancer Is Spreading
   Transmissible tumors have been reported in a handful of animal species, but never before among fish. Is it possible in humans?
7. Saudis Reach Deal With U.S. That Could Let Them Enrich Nuclear Fuel
   U.S. lawmakers and Israeli officials have expressed opposition to such a plan, to be announced Wednesday, fearing that the kingdom could use a civilian nuclear project to develop nuclear weapons.
8. Monkeys Understand Shapes in Almost the Same Way as Humans
   Our geometric intuition, long considered something that sets us apart, seems to be shared with other primates.
9. ‘Too Rare to Care’? A New Center for Rare Diseases Hopes to Change That
   A new nonprofit wants to streamline gene therapy for diseases often avoided by pharmaceutical companies — making treatment more like a routine procedure than a bespoke drug.
10. Can This New Enzyme Turn Back the Clock in Bodily Tissues?
    In a recent study, scientists devised a way of reversing the buildup of compounds that lead to some age-related diseases.
11. Jackie, Bald Eagle and Webcam Star, Is Recovering After an Attack in California
    Jackie found an online audience through a webcam pointed at her nest in California. She was rescued last week after a fight with other eagles, officials said.
12. What to Know About Peptides the FDA Is Considering for Use
    The agency is considering whether compounding pharmacies should be allowed to produce BPC-157, TB-500 and other previously banned peptides.
13. Health Care Agency Discontinues Dozens of Active Research Awards
    The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality slowed the awarding of new grants last year. Now it is stopping existing ones.
14. John Pardon Untangles the Theoretical Loops
    The mathematics professor has won a prestigious Fields Medal for his work at the intersection of geometry, topology and physics.
15. Jacob Tsimerman Lives in Number Theory
    Dr. Tsimerman won one of four Fields Medals, an award for top mathematicians under 40, for his work on the André-Oort conjecture, but is now changing his focus to artificial intelligence.
16. Yu Deng Predicts the Actions of the Whole From Its Tiniest Parts
    Dr. Deng, a mathematics professor at the University of Chicago, received a Fields Medal for his work on an equation describing fluid mechanics.
17. Hong Wang Twirls in Fractal Dimensions of Three
    The young mathematician won a prestigious Fields Medal for her work on the so-called Kakeya conjecture.
18. FDA Panel Supports Lifting Restrictions on Four Peptides
    In an all-day hearing, the agency’s scientists argued against allowing broad access to unproven drugs that the agency had banned three years ago.
19. Should Travelers Give Up on Summer in Western Europe Because of the Heat?
    A favorite vacation option may be at risk because of rising temperatures. Even those sticking with their summer plans agree: More air conditioning would help.
20. Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Stripped of Endangered Status by Judge
    The dunes sagebrush lizard, found only in the oil-rich Permian Basin, was classified as endangered two years ago.
21. What the Cyclospora Outbreak Reveals
    Warming is expected to fuel the spread of food-borne pathogens. We might not be prepared.
22. Susumu Tonegawa Dies at 86; Nobel Laureate Showed How Antibodies Fight Infection
    The first Japanese scientist to win the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, he went on to discover how memories are stored, advancing understanding of how the brain works.
23. Cameron Hamilton Poised to Lead FEMA Once More
    Cameron Hamilton defended the agency last year when President Trump talked about eliminating it. Emergency managers hope for more stability if he’s confirmed as administrator.
24. 1,700 H.I.V. Treatment Sites Closed After Trump Aid Cuts, a Study Finds
    New research also shows that children and high-risk adult populations have been particularly affected.
25. The U.S. Is Pulling Back on Energy Efficiency
    The Trump administration is undoing fuel-saving efforts even as war in Iran, data centers and heat waves are pushing up gasoline and electricity costs.
26. Trump Attacks National Academies Over Climate Chapter in Judges’ Manual
    The president joined Republican officials who slammed the National Academies of Sciences for a chapter about climate science in an educational guide for judges.
27. The Sewer Knows What You Ate
    During the Covid-19 pandemic, wastewater testing became a virus warning system. Now, scientists are using the approach to understand how communities eat.
28. The Best Genetic Risk Tools Don’t Work Equally for Everyone
    Genetic prediction models are poised to revolutionize medicine. But because they have been trained on European DNA, they threaten to widen health care disparities.
29. Taylor Farms Expands Iceberg Lettuce Recall to 27 States Amid Cyclospora Outbreak
    The affected products were shipped starting June 29 and have expiration dates through Aug. 3.
30. As Natural Disasters Expand, a Disaster-Tracking App Is Booming
    Known for tracking California wildfires, Watch Duty is moving beyond that mission. Millions of people are turning to it for help.
31. The Latest Texas Floods Tested Warning Systems. This Time, They Passed.
    A lack of sirens and flood forecasting systems made the state’s Hill Country vulnerable to deadly floods last summer. That has changed.
32. Rudolph Marcus, Who Illuminated Electrochemical Processes, Dies at 102
    He received a 1992 Nobel Prize for developing a theory that explained fundamental processes behind photosynthesis, respiration, oxidation and even how fireflies produce light.
33. E.U. Proposes Changes to Emissions Trading System
    The European Union is facing a green backlash as emissions cuts become harder and require bigger overhauls to industry and livelihoods