NYT > Science

1. California Needs Water and Clean Power. It Might Have a Fix for Both.
   A pilot program is building solar panels over irrigation canals to generate electricity. As a bonus, the shade prevents water from evaporating.
2. François Englert, Nobelist Who Helped Predict the ‘God Particle,’ Dies at 93
   His work paved the way for the discovery of the Higgs boson, which explained how particles acquire mass, solving one of the deepest mysteries in physics.
3. Is Climate Change Supercharging El Niño?
   As a new, potentially record-breaking El Niño begins, researchers are vigorously debating whether climate change is driving the phenomenon’s intensity.
4. Buildings May Soon Have ‘Immune Systems’ That Fight Airborne Disease
   Following the pandemic, the federal government is spending $150 million on new technology to ensure clean indoor air. Here’s what scientists are pursuing.
5. In Ancient Pits Near Stonehenge, Scientists See Hints of Solstice Ritual
   British archaeologists may have found the remains of a site where people celebrated the solstice thousands of years ago, a few miles from the famed stone circle.
6. A Deadly Outbreak of Plague, Nearly 5,000 Years Before the Black Death
   The oldest known cases, discovered among hunter-gatherers in Siberian graves, contradict the theory that the disease once was mild.
7. D.O.J. Seeks to Halt Pollution Lawsuit Against Elon Musk’s Data Center
   The department cited national security concerns, saying Elon Musk’s company had played a crucial role in the Iran war. It also argued it has the authority to stop environmental lawsuits brought by citizens.
8. How Does One Brain Speak Two Languages?
   A new study of bilingual speakers suggests that a single “grammatical engine” in the brain can power multiple languages at once.
9. New Coral Study Identifies Areas Where Reefs Are Hanging On
   New research has identified areas around the world where cooler currents and other favorable conditions are helping to protect coral from the worst effects of global warming.
10. An Influx of Climate Cash
    Many philanthropists are backing away from climate giving. But one is writing very big checks.
11. Europe’s Heat Has Scientists Asking: How Much Hotter Can It Get?
    Records are being broken for the second time in a month, leading scientists to probe the upper limits of what the warming climate can dish out.
12. Ebola Symptoms in Current Outbreak May Be Milder Than in Previous Ones
    That is good news for patients, but officials fear it will make controlling the spread of the disease harder.
13. Energy Dept. Promises $17.5 Billion in Loans for Nuclear Power
    The federal government wants to help utilities buy large components for up to 10 large nuclear reactors. It’s unclear which, if any, companies might participate.
14. Former NOAA Employees Revive Climate.gov Web Site
    The database of federal global warming research recreates a website that was closed amid the administration’s broad retreat from climate science.
15. Europe Created Heat-Wave Protections. Now Comes the ‘Crash Test.’
    Searing temperatures in Western Europe are drawing comparisons to 2003, when a deadly heat wave sparked a reckoning.
16. X-Ray Specs for the World’s Oldest, Sealed Letters
    A team of historians, scientists and engineers has developed a portable X-ray scanner to study 4,000-year-old letters encased in clay envelopes.
17. Justice Department Makes It Easier to Bypass Pollution Controls on Pickups
    It has stopped criminal prosecutions of people who install “defeat devices,” which make diesel trucks faster and more efficient but also dirtier.
18. A Loophole Brings Cystic Fibrosis Patients a ‘Miracle Drug’ in Generic Form
    A generic version of a breakthrough cystic fibrosis drug, manufactured in Bangladesh for a fraction of the American price, may give some families around the world an unlikely lifeline.
19. Cities and Schools Are Testing Wastewater for Illicit Drugs
    The White House recently endorsed monitoring sewage for evidence of drug use. Critics fear such efforts could violate privacy and stigmatize neighborhoods.
20. Jean Houston, ‘Midwife of Souls’ Who Advised Hillary Clinton, Dies at 89
    The author of books like “The Possible Human,” she held workshops that drew on mythology, psychology and the experiential ethos of Esalen. But she refused to be called a guru.
21. Renato Rosaldo, Anthropologist Who Disrupted His Discipline, Dies at 85
    After his wife’s death while doing fieldwork, he rejected writing as a detached observer, setting off a profound shift in cultural anthropology.
22. Wordle’s Hard Mode Is Actually Easier, 730 Million Games Show
    As the game turns 5 years old, the data reveals that while standard-mode players have much more freedom, they’re not making the most of it.
23. New Plan Scales Back C.D.C.’s Work on Diseases Abroad
    The State Department is taking over much of the control of global health initiatives, for which critics say the department does not have the expertise.
24. Trump Administration to Pay $765 Million to Cancel 4 More Wind Projects
    It’s the third such deal the Interior Department has struck to pay firms to abandon plans for offshore turbines, spending roughly $2.5 billion to get companies to abandon their wind projects.
25. Richard Tapia, Mathematician Who Pushed to Diversify His Field, Dies at 88
    A math whiz as a young man, he later blazed trails, both with his theoretical advances and his advocacy for minority students.
26. Trump’s FEMA Nominee Calls Staff Cuts a ‘Challenge’ for Disaster Agency
    Cameron Hamilton, who briefly led the agency on an acting basis last year but was fired for contradicting the president, also said he would get money out to states faster.