NYT > Science

1. Filoplumes Are Nature’s Super Feather
   Filoplumes may be tiny, but these hairlike feathers enable nonstop flights that span thousands of miles.
2. Cows Use Tools, Too, New Study Finds
   A pet cow named Veronika can scratch her own back with a broom — the first scientifically documented case of tool use in cows, researchers say.
3. A Bite-Size Column About Delight and Wonder in Science
   In Trilobites, reporters aim to share new findings in the science world, be it interspecies friendships or discoveries of ancient fossils.
4. Artemis II Moon Mission: NASA Completes Giant Rocket’s Slow Ride to Launchpad
   The Space Launch System and Orion capsule were transported to the launchpad before an astronaut mission that could launch as soon as Feb. 6.
5. If the Volcanic Eruption Doesn’t Scare You, the Mudflow Should
   Studying tree rings helped scientists pinpoint when Mount Rainier last sent a lahar down its steep slopes, which could help planners anticipate future mudflows.
6. Joel Primack, Physicist Who Helped Explain the Cosmos, Dies at 80
   A professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz, he was a key contributor to a landmark paper that laid out how the universe came to look like it does today.
7. NASA Astronauts Return to Earth After Medical Evacuation From International Space Station
   The members of Crew-11 — two American, one Russian and one Japanese — splashed down after one became ill, prompting an early return.
8. For the World’s Food Supply, Federal Funding Cuts Have Long-Term Impacts
   The U.S. Agency for International Development has been a major supporter of global agriculture research. Now many studies are being scuttled or scaled back.
9. Toby Kiers, World Champion of Mycorrhizal Fungus
   This year’s recipient of the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement talks about “punk science,” microbial economics and thinking like a mycorrhizal fungus.
10. Thing-Like Robotic Hand Makes Life Resemble ‘The Addams Family’
    The very capable robotic picker-upper can grasp things on both sides and roam around freely.
11. Democrats Seek Investigation of $3.5 Million Deal by Interior Official’s Husband
    Records show that Karen Budd-Falen, a top Interior Department official, didn’t disclose a contract between her husband and the developers of a mine approved by the agency.
12. How to Cut an Infinitely Large Pancake into as Many Pieces as Possible
    A team of mathematicians seeks to cut an infinitely large pancake into as many pieces as possible, in a new take on an old puzzle.
13. Will ‘Psychiatry’s Bible’ Add a Postpartum Psychosis Diagnosis?
    Leaders of the D.S.M., the world’s most influential psychiatric manual, have been split for more than five years over whether to recognize postpartum psychosis as a distinct disorder.
14. A Look Through a Century of Times Reporting From Antarctica
    Generations of Times journalists have journeyed there with scientists. Their coverage traces humankind’s changing relationship with the most mysterious continent.
15. 3 Policy Moves Likely to Change Health Care for Older People
    Two regulatory rollbacks, along with a new A.I. experiment in Medicare, raise some worrisome questions.
16. World’s First Treaty to Protect the High Seas Becomes Law
    Over two decades after negotiations began, the High Seas Treaty is designed to protect biodiversity in international waters by enabling conservation zones.
17. No Link Between Acetaminophen in Pregnancy and Autism, a Study Finds
    The review looked at more than three dozen studies and found no evidence that acetaminophen increased the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders in children.
18. Supreme Court to Decide if the Pesticide Roundup Is Shielded From Lawsuits
    The case could affect thousands of claims that the widely used weedkiller causes cancer.
19. Virginia Coastal Offshore Wind Project Can Continue, Judge Rules
    Construction can continue on an $11.2 billion project off the coast of Virginia, said to be 70 percent complete.
20. For Men, How Much Alcohol Is Too Much?
    Federal officials working on the new dietary guidelines had considered limiting men to one drink daily. The final advice was only that everyone should drink less.
21. Empire Wind Project Can Resume Construction, Judge Rules
    A federal judge said the Empire Wind project off Long Island would suffer “irreparable harm” if the Trump administration continued to hold up work.
22. U.S. Cuts Health Aid and Ties It to Funding Pledges by African Governments
    The Trump administration has signed $11 billion in agreements with African nations, in deals tied to foreign policy goals.
23. Who is left on the International Space Station?
    
24. How NASA deals with astronauts’ medical needs on the I.S.S.
    
25. What happens during the astronauts’ return to Earth?
    
26. Is it risky to fly a sick astronaut home to Earth?
    
27. Kaiser Permanente Agrees to Pay $556 Million to Settle Medicare Overbilling Claims
    The Justice Department and whistle-blowers accused the major health insurer of overbilling the government for about $1 billion under the private plans.
28. NASA Begins Astronaut Space Station Medical Evacuation: What to Know
    Four astronauts departed from the I.S.S. about a month earlier than scheduled because a crew member, who was not identified, has an undisclosed medical issue.
29. Weather Detours a Scientific Expedition to Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier
    Bad weather has postponed attempts to set up camp on the Thwaites Glacier. So researchers got onto the sea ice and met a local.
30. What a Wolf Pup’s Stomach Revealed About the Woolly Rhino’s Extinction
    Scientists prepared a high-quality sequence of the giant mammal’s genome based on a specimen preserved in Siberian permafrost.
31. Extreme Weather Events Hit Around the World in 2025
    Last year was Earth’s third hottest globally, but temperature is just one measure of climate change’s influence.
32. E.P.A. Moves to Limit States’ Ability to Block Pipelines
    The agency wants to curtail a section of the Clean Water Act that Democratic governors have used to restrict fossil fuel development.
33. Initial Obamacare Enrollment Drops by 1.4 Million as Expiring ACA Subsidies Drive Up Premiums
    That number could increase significantly as more consumers are faced with higher bills brought on by expiring premium subsidies.