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A lake full of algae will wreck more than your summer swimming plans

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Algae bloom in Lake Erie, September 2017

Algae blooms in lakes and oceans generate pollution that harms people, pets, and the planet.

Algae blooms are a serious problem for lakes, rivers, streams, and seas around the world. Farmers use fertilizer to grow crops, and fertilizer runoff empties into…

Do you make the cut? Four of history's trickiest entrance exams.

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Psychologists are still arguing about the best methods to spot intelligence.

Since the turn of the 20th century, psychologists have tried to pin down what it means to be smart. More than 100 years later, they're still arguing about the best…

Scientists finally confirm that Uranus is surrounded by fart clouds

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But the cold would kill you before the smell did.

Sometimes science simply confirms what we already know to be true. You know what I’m talking about: researchers will find evidence that losing sleep makes you cranky and…

Last week in tech: A robot ate my iPhone

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last week in tech

Apple's new recycling bot, Nike's new 3D-printed shoe, and Chrome finally shuts up auto-play videos.

Be sure to download the latest edition of the Last Week in Tech podcast!

Proving precognition, programming a screenwriter, and other tales from the field

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memory experts

Scientists share their favorite stories.

When one crow sees another dead on the ground, it caws an alarm. Then others—five to six on average, but in rare cases as many as 60—fly in and perch on branches,…

New poop sample analysis reveals interspecies monkey romance

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a hybrid monkey in a tree

The hybrid kids are alright.

In 1994, when Kate Detwiler rode the bus to her research site in Gombe National Park, what she was going to observe wasn’t part of the mainstream scientific discourse.

It's rude to ask a galaxy's age. Luckily, its shape offers a clue.

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galaxies

Younger galaxies appear flatter than their more well-rounded elders

Previous research suggested the 3-D shape of a galaxy may hold important hints about its history. Now astrophysicists find these shapes may reveal clues about the age of…

You’d have to give birth to a 30-pound baby to truly know how a kiwi bird feels

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kiwi bird

If it looks like a fruit and acts like a mammal, what is it?

Kiwis are as un-bird-like as you can get while still being a nationally treasured bird. And they lay unbelievably large eggs. Check out this x-ray image showing an egg…

How to log into your computer with your fingerprint or face

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Windows Hello

Upgrade to biometric security.

Your phone isn't the only device that accepts a fingerprint log-in. Your computer will also let you verify your identity with your finger or even your face.

In photos: a rare glimpse inside the heart of a quantum computer

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quantum computing lab

Inside the lab where computing makes a quantum leap.

For decades, the promise of quantum computing has tickled the neurons of drug-makers, spies, and tech CEOs.

Is Masdar City a ghost town or a green lab?

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Masdar City

Tour Abu Dhabi’s ambitious, and incomplete, eco-utopia.

It’s not quite a mirage, but it is a work-in-progress: Masdar City, the most ambitious—and expensive—urban planning experiment on the planet today.

The world’s best freedivers seem to have evolved super-sized spleens

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If you want to be a successful freediver, work out your spleen.

The indigenous group live among the islands of Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. To find food, groups of the Bajau take daily plunges, often more than 230 feet…

While you're staring at your new phone, scientists are finding ways to recycle your old one

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Consumer demand for the latest electronic devices contributes to the large amount of e-waste, and cell phones are the biggest problem.

Used cellphones are a huge source of electronic waste.

How often do you swap out your old smartphone for a new one? Today, phone companies make it easy with deals to trade in your old phone for the newest version. But those…

Crowdfunding helps women succeed in tech because venture capital won't

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On Kickstarter and Indiegogo, women outperform men.

Women entrepreneurs received only 2 percent of venture capitalist money in 2017. But they outperform men on crowdfunding platforms like Indiegogo and Kickstarter.

Scientists just discovered a strange new DNA shape lurking in human cells

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an illustration of DNA

But what does it do?

The discovery of DNA as a double helix is a hallowed story of scientific triumph. But decades later, we’re still learning that DNA is a more furiously complicated piece…

How to safely dispose of your old medications

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pills spilling out of bottles

A handy guide to help you, yes YOU, combat the opioid epidemic.

The rising opioid epidemic has prompted a lot of folks to get a handle on their old medications. Three-quarters of all opioid abuse starts with misusing a prescription…

Generation robot: From science fiction to reality

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A look at the companies bringing humans and robots together.

This five-part series takes Grant around the world to explore the companies that are bringing humans and robots together.

A sting-free guide to becoming a DIY beekeeper

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BEES!?!

Keeping bees is hard and sometimes dangerous work. But the benefits are exactly as sweet as honey. Here’s how to do it right.

New York should ban plastic bags—and so should the rest of the country

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New York’s governor has been drifting through the wind; wants to start again.

Plastic bag bans work—the results are clear in cities and states that have taken the plunge. But that doesn’t mean they’re without controversy.

We have too many jellyfish, so scientists want to cover them in chocolate

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Atlantic sea nettle jellyfish

From face cream to fertilizers, all sorts of products are under development to make use of soaring jellyfish populations.

Recently, a collaboration of marine researchers from eight different countries began a project called GoJelly to create an array of jellyfish-based products, including…
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