Will Sullivan

Will Sullivan

 

Will Sullivan is a science writer based in Washington, D.C. His work has appeared in Inside Science and NOVA Next.

Covid-19 cases are on the rise in the U.S., but experts say it is not unexpected.

Covid-19 Hospitalizations Show an Uptick in the U.S. but Remain Low

Since the end of the nation's public health emergency for the virus, hospitalizations are one of the best available indicators of trends in case totals

A model of a Neanderthal at the Natural History Museum in London. Researchers theorize that molecules that existed in our extinct ancestors could be used to treat pathogens today.

Scientists Turn to Human Ancestors' DNA in Search for New Antibiotics

Microbe-fighting molecules that once existed in Neanderthals and Denisovans have been re-created in the lab and tested in mice

An image of the Ring Nebula captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. The interior of the ring is filled with hot gas and the ring itself is a complex structure made up of thousands of dense clumps of hydrogen gas.

James Webb Telescope Captures the Glowing Ring Nebula in Magnificent Detail

The colorful ring, located some 2,600 light-years away from Earth, is made from the remnants of a dying star

The young swell shark glows under a blacklight. The swell shark's eyes have adapted to filter out other wavelengths of light so they can better see other sharks.

See the Baby Glow-in-the-Dark Shark Hatched at the Tennessee Aquarium

In coastal waters, swell sharks appear a glowing green color to other members of their species due to a special eye adaptation

The family of Henrietta Lacks pose with a statue of Henrietta Lacks and the artist at an unveiling in the United Kingdom in 2021.

Henrietta Lacks' Family Settles Lawsuit Over the Use of Her Cells Without Consent

Lacks' endlessly replicating cancer cells, collected without her knowledge in 1951, have enabled major medical breakthroughs

The meat allergy is linked to bites from the lone star tick, most commonly found in the southeastern, south-central and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.

A Meat Allergy Linked to Tick Bites May Be Increasing in the U.S., CDC Report Finds

As many as 450,000 people may have the potentially life-threatening condition, with thousands of those cases undiagnosed, the agency estimates

A test image taken by Euclid's infrared light instrument showing distant stars and galaxies.

See the First Stunning Test Images From the Euclid Space Telescope

Meant to study the “dark universe,” Europe's space observatory will eventually peer ten billion years into the past and map more than one-third of the sky

Permafrost melts into the Kolyma River outside of Zyryanka, Russia, in 2019. The worms in the new study seem to have survived buried deep in the permafrost for tens of thousands of years.

Scientists Revive 46,000-Year-Old Roundworms From Siberian Permafrost

The nematodes had survived in a state of slowed metabolism called cryptobiosis, according to a new paper

The abdomens of Australian honeypot ants can swell to hold honey that the colony uses as a food source when stores run low. 

Honey Made by Ants Could Protect Against Bacteria and Fungi

Australian honeypot ants create and store a sugary substance that may kill microbes, per a new paper that aligns with Indigenous knowledge

A southern Pacific rattlesnake. Previous studies had found examples of companionship reducing stress in birds and mammals, but not reptiles.

Having a Companion Could Help Rattlesnakes Stay Calm

During a stressful event, snakes experienced a smaller spike in heart rate when they were in the presence of another snake, according to a new study

A saber-toothed tiger skull during a press preview at Sotheby's in July 2022.

Saber-Toothed Tigers and Dire Wolves Suffered From Bone Disease

Some fossils preserved in the La Brea tar pits showed signs of an inherited joint condition that may have proliferated as the animals neared extinction

An artist's rendition of the highly reflective exoplanet LTT 9779 b orbiting its host star.

This Mirror-Like Exoplanet Is the Most Reflective Ever Discovered

The ultra-hot world is wreathed in metallic clouds that prevent the planet from evaporating and keep its atmosphere intact

Scientists have long debated how we perceive the absence of sound waves hitting our ears.

We Can Hear Silence Like a Sound, Scientists Say

In a study, participants were tricked by "silence illusions" in the same way that illusions with sound fool the brain

The northern lights as seen through a layer of wildfire smoke in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada, in September 2022.

Aurora Borealis Could Dazzle the Northern U.S. This Week

The current forecast from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, says the glowing display could be visible as far as Madison, Wisconsin

Roughly six million Americans have Alzheimer's disease.

FDA Fully Approves First Drug Meant to Slow Alzheimer's Disease

The drug showed promise in an 18-month clinical trial, but some experts have expressed concerns about its safety and cost

The U.S. has a signifcantly higher maternal death rate than many other high-income countries, and maternal mortality among Black Americans is more than double that of white Americans.

U.S. Maternal Death Rates More Than Doubled in the 21st Century, Study Finds

Between 1999 and 2019, pregnancy-related mortality rose dramatically, with the worst outcomes among Native American, Alaska Native and Black people

The James Webb Space Telescope's first image of Saturn.

See the James Webb Telescope's First Image of Saturn and Its Rings

The new shot also features three of the planet's many moons, including Enceladus, a strong candidate for hosting life

Euclid will travel almost a million miles from Earth to image distant galaxies.

What to Know About Euclid, Europe's Space Telescope Launched to Study the 'Dark Universe'

The telescope will image more than one billion galaxies and peer ten billion years into the past

A researcher holding human embryonic stem cell cultures in 2004. In the new research, scientists use human stem cells to make models similar to human embryos. The models cannot develop into fetuses.

Researchers Create Model Human Embryos Using Stem Cells

The teams hope to learn more about the first few weeks of human development and provide insights into treatments for infertility and diseases

The IceCube Neutrino Observatory first detected evidence of neutrinos originating from outside the Milky Way a decade ago.

Scientists Find Ghostly Neutrino Particles From the Milky Way

It's no surprise that neutrinos come from within our galaxy, but the tiny, chargeless particles are very hard to detect

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