Margaret Osborne

Margaret Osborne

 

Margaret Osborne is a freelance journalist based in the southwestern U.S. Her work has appeared in the Sag Harbor Express and has aired on WSHU Public Radio.

A guanaco successfully retrieves food from a cup with a lid.

Outsider Animals May Be the Best at Solving Problems

Researchers tested whether hoofed mammals could retrieve food from a lidded cup, and those lower in the pecking order were the most successful

Researchers uncovered a cache of 12 right hands in the courtyard of an Egyptian palace in 2011.

Cache of Ancient Severed Hands May Have Been Part of a Ritual

Twelve right hands found in an Egyptian palace courtyard were likely battle trophies that warriors exchanged for gold

An illustration of Diamantinasaurus matildae

Rare 95-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Skull Uncovered in Australia

The first-of-its-kind find reveals how sauropods may have moved between Australia and South America during the mid-Cretaceous

Melanoma cancer cells under a microscope

New mRNA Vaccine Shows Promise Against Skin Cancer

Research suggests the personalized vaccine, paired with an immunotherapy drug, can reduce melanoma recurrence in high-risk patients

Kathleen Corradi, New York City's new director of rodent mitigation, at a press conference on April 12, 2023.

New York City's First 'Rat Czar' Will Fight Its Rodents

Kathleen Corradi says she will "bring a science- and systems-based approach" to the job

Volcanic ash covers the ground and houses in Klyuchi village on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia after the Shiveluch volcano's eruption. 

Volcanic Eruption Spews Ash 12 Miles Into the Air in Russia

The volcano Shiveluch coated villages in dust and prompted flight warnings

Yellow crazy ants (Anoplolepis gracilipes)

These Male Ants Have Two Separate Sets of DNA

A genetic condition called chimerism may have helped yellow crazy ants become a dominating invasive species, a new study suggests

A person clears snow off their car in February 2023 after a snowstorm in Provo, Utah.

Utah Shatters Snowpack Records, but Its Drought Remains

Unprecedented winter storms may provide temporary relief for the state's water problems

The new E.U. renewable energy target comes as Europe moves away from its reliance on Russian gas and oil and after a new U.N. report that warns of a rapidly warming planet.

E.U. Agrees to Raise Its Renewable Energy Target

The 27 member countries will strive to reach 42.5 percent renewable power by 2030, up from their current goal of 32 percent

Swahili people maintained matrilineal family burial gardens such as this one in Faza, Kenya.

Ancient DNA Confirms the Origin Story of the Swahili People

Medieval individuals in the coastal East African civilization had almost equal parts African and Asian ancestry, a new study finds

Black widows are the most venomous spider in North America, with venom about 15 times as potent as a rattlesnake's.

Black Widow Spiders Are Being Killed Off by Non-Native Brown Widows

Despite their reputation as fearsome predators, black widows are on the defensive due to attacks by their cousins, a study shows

Activists from Just Stop Oil marched from London's Pentonville Prison in February 2023 in support of the U.K.'s political prisoners, including seven from their organization.

In Landmark Pledge, British Lawyers Say They Won't Act in the Interest of Fossil Fuels

The litigators refuse to represent new coal, oil and gas developments or prosecute peaceful climate protesters

Google Bard is currently limited to some users ages 18 and up.

Google Launches A.I. Chatbot—How Does it Compare to ChatGPT and Bing?

Bard might give incorrect answers, but it "doesn't go off the rails"

Third Act focused its protests on four banks—Chase, Citibank, Bank of America and Wells Fargo.

'Rocking Chair Rebellion' of Senior Citizens Joins Climate Protest

Thousands of retirees in 90 locations across the U.S. protested banks that finance new fossil fuel infrastructure

Dead fish in the Darling-Baaka river

Millions of Dead Fish Are Rotting in an Australian River

Extreme heat and flooding starved the water of oxygen, leading to the mass die-off

Between 2013 and 2017, 90 percent of the sunflower sea star population was wiped out from a disease called Sea Star Wasting Syndrome.

These Sea Stars Are Literally Wasting Away—but They May Soon Receive Protection

Sunflower sea stars have been recommended for Endangered Species Act protection as disease leads them to “disintegrate into gooey masses”

An aerial view of the Vjosa River near the city of Permet taken on March 14, 2023.

One of Europe's Last Free-Flowing Rivers Declared a National Park

Albania will protect more than 31,000 acres of land, including the undammed Vjosa River

The National Audubon Society was founded in 1905 and named after naturalist John James Audubon, who died in 1851.

National Audubon Society Votes to Keep the Name of an Enslaver

The move has been criticized by some local chapters that have severed ties with naturalist and slaveholder John James Audubon

Australia's 2019 to 2020 wildfires destroyed more than 3,000 homes. New research shows how they also temporarily depleted the ozone layer.

Here's How Wildfires Can Destroy the Ozone Layer

Massive blazes like the ones in Australia three years ago deplete the crucial blanket surrounding our planet through chemical reactions in the atmosphere

Keanu Reeves at a screening of "John Wick: Chapter 4" on March 6. Scientists named a fungus-killing compound after him because of they way his on-screen characters, like John Wick, can defeat their enemies.

Scientists Name New Fungus-Killing Compounds After Keanu Reeves

The bacteria are highly effective against a common plant pest and a pathogen that infects humans

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