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Science / Human Behavior

During and after pregnancy, hormones drive profound changes in the brain’s structure and function.

Pregnancy Changes Mothers’ Brains. These Recent Discoveries Are Showing Us How

“Baby brain” isn’t the deficit it’s stereotyped to be, research suggests. Neural adaptations during pregnancy can prime soon-to-be-moms to become more attuned to their children and enhance social cognition

About 50 organisms have been named for David Attenborough or elements of his legacy, from an orchid to a marine worm to one of the earliest known predators.

David Attenborough Has Inspired Countless Scientists. To Mark His 100th Birthday, Here Are Ten Living Things They’ve Named After Him

Researchers around the planet grew up watching documentaries hosted by the English broadcaster and naturalist, which sparked their love of the natural world. Now, their discoveries become tributes to his legacy

Some cancer patients ring a bell to signal the end of their treatment and their return to normal life. But many would benefit from specialized long-term medical care to manage the ongoing effects of the disease and its treatments.

Cancer Survivors Are Living Longer but Still Have Complex Needs. That’s Why Doctors and Advocates Want Post-Treatment Care Plans

Survivors have a heightened risk of developing cardiovascular disease, pain, insomnia, psychosocial distress and new cancers. Many, patient advocates say, are not receiving adequate long-term care

Western monarch butterflies bask in the sun on a eucalyptus branch at Lighthouse Field State Beach. In December 2025, researchers placed ultralight radio tags on some monarchs at this site, hoping to track their movements and identify areas to prioritize for the species’ conservation.

Butterflies Are in Dramatic Decline Across North America. A Close Look at the Western Monarch Shows Why

Pesticides, habitat loss and climate change have taken their toll on the beloved insects. But the experts working with them still find hope for their future

From the perspective of the Orion spacecraft, seen at left, the moon eclipsed the sun on April 6.

What Lies Beyond Artemis 2? These Other Missions Are Setting Their Sights on the Moon This Year—and on a Future With Humans in Space

As the historic lunar flyby comes to a close, space companies and nations around the world are also shooting for the moon. Upcoming landings aim to change the landscape of space exploration

More than 95 percent of the world’s bergamot oil production is concentrated in Southern Italy’s Calabria region. But harsh conditions driven by climate change threaten that supply.

Earth’s Smells Are Disappearing Because of Climate Change, and It’s a Vast Cultural Loss

A triple threat of pollution, extinction and warming temperatures is altering the way the planet smells. Scientists are only beginning to understand the stakes for humans

Purple martins are long-distance migrants that nest in human-provided boxes across North America.

Purple Martins Rely on Human ‘Landlords’ to Provide Nest Boxes Each Spring. Can That Dynamic Last?

The large swallows have nested alongside human settlements for centuries. Now, the birds’ breeding success depends on caretakers who are beginning to age out of the role

Onlookers capture photos and videos as the Space Launch System rocket carrying the Artemis 2 crew’s Orion spacecraft Integrity lifts off at 6:35 p.m. Eastern time on April 1.

Spectators Flocked to the Artemis 2 Launch to Witness History Being Made. One Awed Viewer Called It ‘the Best Thing Ever’

Wednesday evening, a human mission to the moon lifted off for the first time in more than 50 years. These 13 photographs capture what it was like to experience the moment

Modern fish traps require pilings that are driven into the riverbed and netting that reaches across part of a river.

Fish Traps Have Been Banned on the Columbia River for Nearly a Century. Could Bringing Them Back Help Save Salmon?

A new experiment is testing the commercial success of fish traps in Washington and Oregon. Even as some conservationists embrace the technique, its return has reopened old wounds among local fishers

Snowdrops can push through snow and icy ground to bloom in winter, bringing their blossoms to the largely dormant landscape.

How a Small Winter Flower Has Attracted Droves of Admirers—and Offers a Symbol of Resilience

The snowdrop, or Galanthus, blooms when the world is still frozen. Gardeners enamored with the plant gather each year in Pennsylvania to celebrate its subtleties and endurance

Swimmable Cities is a global alliance of local government officials, experts and advocates working to make urban waterways clean enough to swim in.

Would You Jump Into Your Local River? Swimmable Cities May Be Within Reach as Once-Polluted Waterways Are Restored

Efforts to improve the “swimmability” of urban areas are gaining global traction, from Paris to Chicago

Jaguars in Porto Jofre, Brazil, support a lucrative tourism industry, leading conservationists to argue that the big cats are most valuable when they’re alive.

In the World’s Best Place to See Wild Jaguars, Residents Are Using the Big Cat’s Appeal to Reach Conservation Goals

Brazil’s Pantanal region has the highest jaguar density on Earth, drawing camera-toting visitors to its riverbanks. Despite overtourism concerns, one enclave may offer a model for how to protect the charismatic apex predator

Despite its growing popularity, ADHD coaching has not been well-studied.

As ADHD Coaching Gains Popularity, Researchers Stress the Importance of Careful Vetting

A recent survey highlights variation in the training credentials and experience across the burgeoning industry, which is mostly unregulated and unlicensed

Once treated by humans as prey, horses became key to transportation, warfare, trade and companionship. Their history is intertwined with our own.

Gallop Into the Year of the Horse With These Five Amazing Equine Discoveries

Since their domestication, horses have changed the course of human history. It’s no wonder the Chinese zodiac associates them with prosperity and success

For their scale, these microbes are faster and more resilient than any human athlete.

If Microbes Entered the Olympics, These One-Celled Superstars Would Win Gold

They race, they spin, they shoot. Meet the organisms for which physical prowess is more than sport—it’s a matter of life and death

A juvenile harbor seal lies on a beach in the Netherlands.

Seals Are Seemingly Vanishing Off the Dutch Coast. These Scientists Are Trying to Get to the Bottom of the Mysterious Disappearances

Recent counts of the Wadden Sea’s adult harbor seal population have revealed a surprising trend of decline, prompting a consortium of researchers to investigate whether the animals are dying off, relocating or experiencing something else altogether

A gentoo penguin peers up from its colony’s nesting grounds on Booth Island, in the Antarctic Peninsula. The species, an adaptable forager that can switch prey when krill are scarce, has expanded into parts of the Antarctic Peninsula that were once too icy to inhabit.

The Penguins That Thrive—and the Ones Left Behind—as Antarctica Warms

A new decade-long study tracked 37 penguin colonies and found that the birds are breeding earlier. The shift marks one way among many that climate change is transforming life at the bottom of the world

Through gene-editing, researchers in the field of synthetic biology hope to make endangered species more resilient against disease or climate change and protect human health, among other goals.

Three Stunning Ways Biologists Aim to Edit Animal and Plant Genes to Fight Diseases and Extinction

The strategy, known as synthetic biology, is gaining momentum globally as a conservation tool and human health solution, despite attracting some critics

Some solutions are reached incrementally, with logic or calculations. But others seem to just pop into your head—and neuroscientists are investigating how this happens.

‘Aha’ Moments Seem to Come Out of Nowhere. How Does the Brain Create These Sudden Bursts of Insight?

Neuroscientists are tracking the brain activity that underlies a cognitive breakthrough and unraveling how it might boost memory

In “Depicting Dark Waters,” British sculptural model maker Alice Baker collaborated with marine biologists from the Netherlands and Sweden to depict European cold-water corals in glass and raise awareness about deep-sea ecosystems.

Art Meets Science

The Hidden World of Cold-Water Corals Rises to the Surface With These Glass Sculptures That Are Resurrecting a Lost Craft

As increased industrial activity puts fragile deep-sea ecosystems at risk, one artist is raising awareness about imperiled corals through scientific model making

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