The hairs’ microstructure and shape help keep vision clear from liquid droplets  Eyelashes help propel droplets of water away from the eye, as shown in this composite image. L. Jiang et al. Next time you’re caught in the rain, thank your eyelashes for keeping your vision clear. Experiments with human eyelashes and eyelash-mimicking fibers pinpoint

These are the 5 most popular Science News stories of 2024 Brain imaging data show small everyday changes in brain activity in a single person (green and yellow colors). After a dose of psilocybin, activity changes dramatically as neural collectives fall out of sync (yellow, orange and red). After the drug wears off, activity returns

In some parts of the rural United States, accessing in-person health care can feel impossible. Local emergency rooms and specialists might be nonexistent, and a trip to the clinic can take hours. Telehealth has changed the game. Stephen Martin, a family physician and addiction medicine specialist, has witnessed how the recent influx of virtual appointments

Excerpt from the December 21, 1974 & December 28, 1974 issue of Science News This image of the star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion was taken in 2009 by the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope. P. Kervella/AFP via Getty Images Surface features of a distant star — Science News , December 21, 1974 &

Women with early breast cancer who opted to wait and see fared as well as those who had surgery Breast cancer surgeon Shelley Hwang and colleagues have data that suggest that with active monitoring, it’s safe for some Stage 0 breast cancer patients to delay surgery for two years. Duke Health Watch and wait may

Each year we dedicate the final issue of Science News to reviewing the big stories in science, technology and medicine. And each year, I marvel at the many significant news events and research discoveries crammed into a year. Most significant: The growing tyranny of heat. For the second year in a row, our planet experienced

Noteworthy findings include jumbo black hole jets, an ultrapetite frog and more Bits of rock in Antarctica suggest an asteroid disintegrated over the icy continent roughly 2.5 million years ago.    Mark A. Garlick/markgarlick.com   2024 was studded with record-setting scientific discoveries. From tracing the origins of glow-in-the-dark animals to developing the world’s fastest microscope

A machine learning algorithm identified the top five flavor notes in 16 whiskies A whisky drinker savors the spirit’s scent at Glenkinchie distillery in Edinburgh. New machine learning algorithms may be as adept at identifying the liquor’s flavor profile as human experts, researchers say. Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images News Humans’ noses can be adept at

Older adults are especially vulnerable to health harms from exposure to the cold People make their way through a major winter storm in New York City. The cold-related death rate has grown from 1999 to 2022 in the United States, driven by an increase since 2017. Spencer Platt/Getty Images Over time, deaths from cold temperatures

The bead breaks down into molecules similar to sugars and amino acids Newly-developed microbeads that break down in water could replace plastic ones used as exfoliants in skin cleansers. Alex Potemkin/Getty Images A new degradable microbead could soon replace plastic exfoliants in skin cleansers. The polymer spheres effectively remove permanent marker and eyeliner on animal