Maris Fessenden

 

Maris Fessenden is a freelance science writer and artist who appreciates small things and wide open spaces.

This Gene Might Be Why Elephants Don't Get Cancer

Their large bodies and many cells mean more elephants should be dying of cancer, scientists are trying to figure out why not

Harvesting a cocoa tree

Who Will Save the World’s Chocolate?

As climate change threatens cocoa crops, rival food companies are banding together

Wet Weather Causes Shortage of Pumpkins (and Pie)

Intense summer rains cut pumpkin yields in half

An artist's interpretation of what ancient Mars may have looked like

The Past and Present of Mars Look Wetter and Wetter

From salty streaks of flowing water to an ancient system of rivers and lakes, Mars seems more hospitable to life than previously thought

Screenshot from "Live Texturing of Augmented Reality Characters from Colored Drawings" video

Thanks to Augmented Reality, These Coloring Books Come to Life

The new technology takes 2D pictures and turns them into 3D magic

Ancient Romans in Pompeii Had 'Perfect Teeth'

A new study reveals what life was like in Pompeii — and how it ended when Mount Vesuvius erupted

Gilgamesh statue at Sydney University

Iraqi Museum Discovers Missing Lines From the Epic of Gilgamesh

One of the world's first great stories just got a new chapter

The hand and foot of Homo naledi

The Increasingly Muddled Origins of Homo Naledi

Detailed analyses of Homo naledi shows a mosaic of both early and modern human features

What Cyclists Can Learn From Schools of Fish

A weaker athlete might be able to keep up if they stay to the back of a group

Butt Dials Blamed for a Spike in 911 Calls

Reports put accidental pocket dials at 30 to 50 percent of mobile emergency calls

A lava fountain on Kilauea Volcano

It Wasn’t Just an Asteroid That Killed the Dinosaurs, Epic Volcanoes Helped

A new study ignites a decades-old debate about what killed the dinosaurs

The team had a single day to uncover the massive mammoth's skeleton.

Michigan Farmer Stumbles on a Mammoth Skeleton

Paleontologists excavated the skeleton, prying the bones from the dark muck of the field

Notoriously Durable Styrofoam Could Be Munched by Mealworms

Microbes in the beetle larvae's guts help break down polystyrene

Here's What Whale Songs Look Like as Sheet Music

Musical notation created by a musician and a designer make whale song look almost like an alien language

Why Scientists Are Gathering Seeds From Roadside Sunflowers

Climate changes threatens commercial sunflower production, where plants are grown for their oil

Justine Siegal pitching for the Cardinals during batting practice in 2011

The Oakland A’s Hire the First Woman to Coach Major League Baseball

Justine Siegal will be a guest instructor for the team

A newspaper report of Leoti Blaker, who stabbed a man with a hatpin when he would not leave her alone.

American Women in the 1900s Called Street Harassers 'Mashers' and Stabbed Them With Hatpins

These are the turn-of-the-century women who fought back when men tried to grab them

What Fingerprints Can Reveal About Ancestry

Clues as to whether people have European or African lineage may show up in the fine details of their fingers

Helen Keller in a photograph taken to promote her efforts to give radios to poor blind children.

How Helen Keller Experienced Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony

"I could actually distinguish the cornets, the roll of the drums, deep-toned violas and violins singing in exquisite unison"

What a cute little schemer

Babies Time Their Adorable Smiles to Manipulate Adults

By timing their grins, babies can get adults to grin

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