Rachel Nuwer

Rachel Nuwer

 

Rachel Nuwer is a freelance science writer based in Brooklyn.

A wolf-dog (left) and a mastiff.

New Hampshire Has Too Many Wolf-Dogs

Are they domesticated pets or wild animals?

Long-Haul Space Flights Might Damage Astronauts' Brains

This warning is based on a study involving rats, but researchers think it could apply to humans as well

Cougars Survived the Pleistocene Extinction Because They’ll Eat Just About Anything Meaty

Eating everything that's in front of you is key to eking by when times are tough

Pistols equipped with silencers, confiscated from drug dealers.

Sales of Gun Silencers Have Shot Up Nearly 37 Percent Last Year

Proponents argue that they make firearms safer; others say it's just the opposite

Facebook Users Most Often Unfriend People They Knew From High School

And how does that make the victim of the unfriending feel? Surprised, usually

"Fellow hermit crab? I'll eat you up!"

Cannibalistic Hermit Crabs Salivate at the Smell of Their Dead

Instead of responding to the smell of a relative’s death as the sign that a predator could be about, hermit crabs interpret this cue as fresh dinner

When Museum Specimen Get Infested With Bugs, Curators Have to Freeze Them

Freezing and heating can oftentimes keep invertebrate enemies at bay

Antarctica Was Once As Warm As Sunny California

Nearby polar regions got up to Florida-level temperatures

The Mississippi River Carries More Than Enough Sand to Rebuild Its Sinking Delta

The mighty Mississippi carries enough sand and silt to rebuild Louisiana's disappearing marshes for the next 600 years

Sound Experts Want to Record One Full Day of Human Noise From All Over the Earth

The project could help scientists better understand the human soundscape and quantify how it changes over time

Less Than a Fourth of Jet-Wheel Stowaways Survive—And That's a Generous Estimate

One teen recently survived a jet wheel ride from California to Hawaii

An Avalanche on Mount Everest Made This the Deadliest Day in the Mountain’s History

With at least 12 dead, today is worse than the day in 1996 when eight people were killed in a storm

These MRI-Scanned Fruits And Vegetables Unfold Like Alien Births

An MRI technologist's hobby turns every-day foods into something new and intriguing

Schools Ban Chocolate Milk; Kids Just Stop Drinking Milk Altogether

Kids wind up consuming less protein and wasting more milk when skim is all that's on the shelves

Real-Life True Blood Might Be Used in Trial Transfusions by 2016

Researchers in the U.K. have created the first man-made red blood cells of high enough quality to be introduced into the human body

5 Great Historical Myths And Traditions About Hot Cross Buns, a Pre-Easter Pastry

From solidifying friendships to driving evil spirits away, legends abound about these sweet dough balls

Students at a school in Nigeria.

A Militant Group Is Fighting to Keep Nigerian Students From Education

Islamic extremists from the group Boko Haram have kidnapped 200 girls from a boarding school

Mom's ample body serves as this baby's bed for now, but soon she'll grow up to build sleeping nests of her own.

Chimpanzees Are Extremely Picky About Where They Sleep

The primates painstakingly rebuild their nest from scratch every night—a pre-bed ritual reminiscent of the "Princess and the Pea"

A wolfdog.

Dogs That Should Be Guarding Sheep Are Mating With Wolves Instead

Intimate encounters between dogs and wolves are relatively common in Georgia's Caucasus Mountains

We Might Hit Our Cognitive Peak Before 24

As we age beyond about 24, we become mentally slower and slower

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