Everyone Thought This Ancient Reptile Only Laid Eggs. They Were Wrong.

An embryo preserved in a 250 million-year-old fossil is evidence that a type of animal previously thought to only lay eggs could actually have a live birth, rewriting scientists’ understanding of the evolution of reproductive systems.

The fossil, which came from China, was of a pregnant long-necked marine reptile called a dinocephalosaurus, a fish-eating creature that would snake it…

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Ignoring Russia, China Seeks New Partners For Moon Missions

It was little more than a year ago, in June 2021, at a gathering of the International Astronautical Federation (IAF) in St. Petersburg, Russia, that China and Russia announced bold plans for a joint International Lunar Research Station (ILRS)—a crewed base at the moon’s south pole. But that was 16 months—and one invasion of Ukraine—ago, and, as SpaceNews reports, the doi…

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Insurance Claim Data Show How Much Teen Mental Health Has Suffered During the U.S. COVID-19 Pandemic

As early as last spring, psychologists were warning that even as children and teens were spared most of the physical impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the shuttering of schools, the lack of contact with friends and the loss of milestones like birthday parties, graduations and more would exact a heavy emotional and developmental price. Now, a year on, the numbers are in—and they’re in…

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NASA’s InSight Probe Lands on Surface of Mars

Humanity may be years away from setting foot on Mars, but the Red Planet is turning into something of a monument park for our species all the same. Rovers and landers—some still operating, some having completed their functional life—dot the surface, and orbiters cross the skies overhead. On November 26 at 2:47 PM EST, one more machine joined the growing fleet, and it will be less co…

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Reluctant Towns, Cities and States Are Being Dragged Into Court to Fix Sidewalks for People With Disabilities

From her Baltimore dining room, Susan Goodlaxson can see her neighbor gardening across the street. But while other neighbors stop to chat, Goodlaxson just watches from the window. She uses a wheelchair, and there isn’t a single curb ramp on her block.

If the 66-year-old wanted to join, she’d have to jump her wheelchair down the 7.5-inch curb and risk a fall. Ditto if she wante…

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Should Anyone in the U.S. Get COVID-19 Booster Shots-

Update, Aug. 13: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Aug. 12 said immunocompromised individuals in the U.S., such as those who have received organ transplants or have certain types of cancer or other illnesses can get a third dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccines to boost their immune responses. That extended authorization applies only to immu…

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There’s a Travel Ban on Dogs, and You Can Blame COVID-19

Marine Sgt. John Weldon was deployed in Syria when a dying, days-old puppy appeared at his military base in the middle of May.

To save the newborn, which was barely bigger than the hand of the local who dropped it off, the infantryman scoured the Internet for a recipe for puppy formula that he could make with limited ingredients. He nursed the pup every two to three hours with a mixture o…

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These 5 Photos From the James Webb Space Telescope Are Mind-Blowing. Here’s What They Can Tell Us

This week, NASA revealed for the first time five pictures taken by the James Webb Space Telescope. Together, these images—from the birth of stars to one of the deepest looks into the far reaches of space—offer some of the most detailed glimpses into the beginnings of our universe ever seen.

Here’s what each image shows and why it helps us better understand space:

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The Miami Marlins’ Disastrous COVID-19 Outbreak Proves That Bubbles Matter

As of Tuesday morning, the Miami Marlins were still scheduled to play a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday night in Baltimore. That game was originally scheduled to take place in Miami, a pandemic hotspot. But after a COVID-19 outbreak struck the Marlins—as of Tuesday, at least 17 players and coaches have tested positive—the game was shifted to Charm City. Two …

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