You might imagine that the spinosaur mind was one-of-a-kind. Trampling through the British Isles as many as 125 million years ago, it makes sense to think that these dinosaurs had something special swirling around inside their heads. But a paper published in the Journal of Anatomy says otherwise. According to the paper, a team of researchers recently reconstructed the basic brain structure of two spinosaur specimens based off the shape and size of their braincases. And despite the fact that thes ...read more

This article was originally published on Oct. 26, 2022 and has been edited to include recent information on UAPs and unidentified objects. A 16-member crew from NASA will study Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, an updated name from Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs) — formerly known as Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs). According to a NASA press release, the team will analyze and establish the framework for future studies around UAPs for NASA and other organizations. UAPs interest nation ...read more

Exoplanet hunting is evolving from a science searching for exotic new worlds into one that is attempting to better understand these planets and to characterize them. Astrobiologists are especially interested in worlds that might support life. One important characteristic is the existence of liquid water, which is essential for life on Earth. So astrobiologists have focused on finding other Earths in the region around stars where liquid water might exist, the so-called habitable zone. And they ha ...read more

Archeologists recently recovered a nearly 16-meter (52-foot) long ancient Egyptian papyrus writing from a tomb in Saqqara, Egypt. The writing — which is more than 2,000 years old — was found inside a coffin and contained a portion of the Egyptian Book of the Dead.  Experts have already completed the work needed to preserve the papyrus, and are translating the writing into Arabic to better understand what it means and why it was placed in its specific coffin.  What is the Book of the Dead? ...read more

Science and romance may seem like strange bedfellows, yet some of the most groundbreaking scientific advances have been made by couples working together. Like the rest of us, the scientists involved in these love affairs had their share of drama and tragedy — and their romances didn’t always end happily. Nevertheless, we honor their stories and discoveries today. Happy Valentine’s Day to them and to all science lovers!  1. Marie-Anne and Antoine Lavoisier If Antoine Lavoisier is considere ...read more

While taking a road trip, looking for that hot new restaurant or looking for your new office building, what tool has come in handy more than a Global Positioning System (GPS)? Maybe a car, but that's beside the point. Having a GPS on our phones makes getting around more efficient. And while we may not give our GPS a second thought once we've reached our destination, there is a fascinating story behind it. The prominent hidden figure, Dr. Gladys West, was a true pioneer who pushed past racial ba ...read more

For most humans today, the threat of encountering a wild bear in daily life is quite slim. And yet, the likelihood of experiencing a stress response as if you are evading or defending yourself from a bear remains high. In our bodies, this stress reaction can play out the moment we’re called upon at work to give a presentation, or perhaps during a nerve-racking first date: sweaty palms, bowel discomfort, the sensation of pins and needles pricking the skin. This is the reality of living as socia ...read more

Sometimes, it seems like muscles have a mind of their own. Whether it’s a twitchy eyelid, a sudden spasm in your thigh or a muscle that seems to contract without cause, involuntary muscle movements are exceedingly common. (One might even be happening to you, right now, as you read this sentence.) Most muscle twitches fall under the category of fasciculations — small, involuntary movements that can occur at random to any muscle in the body, although they’re most common in the eyelids and l ...read more

Ancient DNA preserved in the icy climate of Siberia has revealed new insights about how ancient humans migrated five to seven millennia ago. The finding is important because it helps scientists fill in a big gap in their knowledge about ancient humans. We know, for example, that humans began to migrate out of Africa at least 50,000 years ago. But it took until roughly 10,000 years ago before they began to develop farming. The humans living in the intermittent period — as well as much more rece ...read more

The Science Near Me blog is a partnership between Discover magazine and ScienceNearMe.org. If you’re on the hunt for fun date night ideas, here's an option you may not have considered: a science center. What could be more romantic than nerding out with a loved one? Science centers can be part museum, part theater, part classroom and more all rolled into one. They’re filled with hands-on exhibits that demonstrate science concepts in fun and entertaining ways, and they often host events or put ...read more