Science

The lakes where Africa's flamingos congregate in spectacular numbers are producing less food for the iconic birds as their water levels rise, researchers said Friday, threatening the survival of a much-loved species.

Three-quarters of the world's lesser flamingos live in East Africa and more than a million birds at a time can gather at lakes in huge "flamboyances" for feeding and courtship.

Salmon fishing off the coast of California will be banned for a second consecutive year, authorities said Wednesday, citing lower fish stocks impacted by drought and wildfires.

The heavy blow for the state's salmon sector -- which one industry group says supports 23,000 jobs -- comes as salmon have struggled to successfully reproduce in low or warm waterways.

U.S. space scientists on Thursday unveiled the interplanetary probe NASA plans to send to one of Jupiter's icy moons as part of humanity's hunt for extra-terrestrial life.

The Clipper spacecraft is due to blast off in October bound for Europa, one of dozens of moons orbiting the Solar System's biggest planet, and the nearest spot in our celestial neighborhood that could offer a perch for life.

A faster and vastly more effective treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis is being rolled out in the Asia-Pacific region, raising hopes of a "new era" in tackling one of the world's deadliest infectious diseases.

The region had most of the world's estimated 10.6 million new TB cases in 2022, and more than half of the 1.3 million deaths, World Health Organization (WHO) figures show.

Despite many efforts to find better, more effective ways to treat cancer, it remains a leading cause of death by disease among children in the U.S.

Cancer patients are also getting younger. Cancer diagnoses among those under 50 has risen by about 80% worldwide over the past 30 years. As of 2023, cancer is the second-leading cause of death both in the U.S. and around the world. While death rates from cancer have decreased over the past few decades, about 1 in 3 patients in the U.S. and 1 in 2 patients worldwide still die from cancer.

When one Chinese national recently petitioned the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to become a permanent resident, he thought his chances were pretty good. As an accomplished biologist, he figured that news articles in top media outlets, including The New York Times, covering his research would demonstrate his “extraordinary ability” in the sciences, as called for by the EB-1A visa.

But when the immigration officers rejected his petition, they noted that his name did not appear anywhere in the news article. News coverage of a paper he co-authored did not directly demonstrate his major contribution to the work.

The French government on Wednesday introduced a bill on assisted suicide, paving the way for euthanasia under strict conditions. The text, which was deemed too restrictive by some and irresponsible by others, will be debated by lawmakers at the end of May.

The French Minister of Labour, Health and Solidarity Catherine Vautrin on Wednesday presented the bill on assisted suicide to the government before its examination by the National Assembly on May 27.

A lucky Japanese astronaut will become the first non-American to set foot on the Moon during one of NASA's upcoming Artemis missions, US President Joe Biden announced Wednesday.

The offer to Japan -- an opportunity many nations have long dreamed of -- came as part of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's state visit, and as Washington seeks to strengthen ties with its key Asian ally.

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com.

U.S. President Joe Biden's administration on Wednesday announced the first nationwide tap water standards to protect the public from toxic "forever chemicals" linked to serious health harms ranging from cancers to developmental damage in children.

Invisible and present in the water, soil, air and food supply, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) accumulate inside our bodies and never break down in the environment.

British physicist Peter Higgs, whose theory of a mass-giving particle – the so-called Higgs boson – jointly earned him the Nobel Prize for Physics, has died aged 94, the University of Edinburgh announced on Tuesday.

"He passed away peacefully at home on Monday 8 April following a short illness," the Scottish university, where he had been a professor for nearly five decades, said in a statement.

Flowers may look delicate – but flowering plants, what scientists call angiosperms, are one of the most successful evolutionary organisms on the planet. Including more than 350,000 known species, they dominate the ecological system, shape food webs and play a vital role in oxygen production. Plus, many of them are valuable commercial crops – think of roses, grains and tomatoes.

Have you ever wondered when flowers first evolved, and what has been unfolding over millions of years of evolution to cultivate these beautiful species? Recent research is bringing new insights to this longstanding debate among scientists.

When you think of fossils, you probably think of dinosaurs and ammonites – creatures with bones or hard shells that stayed preserved in the rock despite huge geological changes. But flowers with frail petals and tiny pollen can also be preserved by being sealed in amber, crystallized, or carbonized.

Europe's climate monitor said Tuesday that March was the hottest on record and the tenth straight month of historic heat, with sea surface temperatures also hitting a "shocking" new high.

It is the latest red flag in a year already marked by climate extremes and rising greenhouse gas emissions, spurring fresh calls for more rapid action to limit global warming.