Science

October 21, 2022

Study Finds That Petting Dogs May Give Us the Same Brain Benefits as Socializing With Humans

We all love our animal friends, and there's nothing better than spending some downtime with a loyal canine companion. In fact, science now suggests that interaction with a pet is comparable to one with human friends. According to the new study, petting and stroking our furry friends may even give us the same benefits as socializing, and the evidence of it lies in our neurology.

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October 17, 2022

Wax Worms Can Break Down Plastic With Their Saliva

A scientist was tending to her amateur beehives one day when she noticed something strange. She had removed a bunch of wax worms—larvae that live in beehives and feast upon the wax combs—and placed them in a plastic trash bag. Strangely, the bag was now full of holes. “We found it wasn’t only chewing,” Dr. Federica Bertocchini from the Biological Research Centre in Madrid recalls, “it was [chemical breakdown], so that was the beginning of the story.

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October 13, 2022

NASA’s DART Mission Successfully Moved a Stadium-Sized Asteroid’s Orbit

Someday an asteroid might threaten Earth. In preparation for that day, NASA has been strategizing how to deflect incoming celestial bodies. This plan for planetary defense was recently tested for the first time when the DART mission's spacecraft collided intentionally with a small asteroid named Dimorphos which currently poses no danger to us. The results are now in: the collision shortened the period of Dimorphos' orbit.

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My Modern Met

Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening.