Top science news headlines for the week 21

Monday, May 18
Education
86

AI-generated fake citations are flooding scientific literature across publications, scientists warn

Analytical Chemistry
1291

Debunking a core chemistry concept taught in classrooms everywhere

Earth Sciences
376

Sea level rise is swallowing US Mid-Atlantic farmland faster than expected, study finds

Earth Sciences
352

Sea levels rising dramatically in some areas due to land subsidence

Earth Sciences
1698

White hydrogen discovered in billion-year-old Canadian Shield rock points to potential new energy source

General Physics
123

Behold the neuron, a complicated cell with a simple mission

Ecology
134

Microbes for health: New way to feel 'at one' with nature

Tuesday, May 19
Evolution
1901

Why meat-eating dinosaurs like T. rex evolved tiny arms

Astronomy
185

Consistency check casts doubt on evolving dark energy

Astronomy
24

Indigenous Australians were the world's first astronomers. But their knowledge is now at risk

Plants & Animals
8

Non-native diet makes Fischer's Blue butterflies less attractive to mates, influencing reproduction

Social Sciences
7

'Gender criteria gap' places women leaders at disadvantage in the workplace

Earth Sciences
72

Less low cloud cover lets in more heat from the sun—and may lock in centuries of sea level rise

Environment
42

The worst climate future is less likely, but the best one is slipping away, scientists say

Wednesday, May 20
Evolution
357

New insights into how the human hand evolved from our ape-like ancestors

Earth Sciences
516

Scientists improve knowledge on sea level rise—and confirm it has been accelerating since 1960

Evolution
209

Discovery of new fossils in Northwest Canada changes view of early animal evolution

Astronomy
64

An explanation for the massive black holes the JWST found in the early universe

Archaeology
40

Friend or foul? Exploring the ancient bond between pigeons and people

Quantum Physics
46

Quantum sensors use atoms, electrons and light as ultra‑steady rulers

Biotechnology
30

Glowing fungi expose final enzyme that could make bioluminescent tools more efficient

Thursday, May 21
Quantum Physics
856

Quantum supremacy just ran into an unexpected rival: An ordinary laptop armed with new math

Paleontology & Fossils
506

Ancient seas get a new T. rex as massive mosasaur emerges from Texas fossils

Quantum Physics
71

Molecule-in-a-crystal system could boost quantum computing via chemically engineered qubits

Evolution
164

Overpopulation can impair fertility. A new study explains why

Ecology
11

Is organic farming the solution to enhance natural drought resilience in crops?

Plants & Animals
114

Chimpanzees reveal 69 socially learned behaviors, nearly doubling known cultural repertoire

Archaeology
25

Flint reveals changes in human mobility in the southern Pyrenees during the Upper Paleolithic

Friday, May 22
Planetary Sciences
449

Earth's outer core beneath Pacific reversed direction in 2010, satellite data reveal

Plants & Animals
3305

Lost elephant calf reunites with family after researchers track herd across Samburu reserve

Superconductivity
134

'Designer' superconducting diamond: Researchers uncover path to multi-modality quantum chips

Social Sciences
129

Why we live alone—and what it means for the climate and our sense of community

Polymers
40

Student talent drives simpler method for programming artificial muscles in soft robots

Mathematics
293

AI makes a major breakthrough in a math problem that had stumped experts for decades

Polymers
81

Novel porous gel changes color, shrinks and hardens when it detects target molecules

Saturday, May 23
Environment
22

After the flames, wildfires pollute drinking water for years

Plants & Animals
214

Honeybees reveal Weber's law in flight when choosing paths

Biochemistry
97

'Permanently wet' coating method could transform wastewater treatment by helping bacteria survive better

Astronomy
148

Extreme 8.5-minute orbit reveals white dwarf being torn apart by its binary companion

Optics & Photonics
76

Quantum metasurface boosts terahertz detection sensitivity by exploiting in-plane photoelectric effect

Evolution
274

Tiny fossils found in 1.7-billion‑year‑old mud yield clues to the evolution of complex life

Other
54

Saturday citations: Two T. rexes and new exercise guidance that scientists are not calling 'easy'

Sunday, May 24
Bio & Medicine
141

Graphene quantum dots show promise in targeting Parkinson's-related protein clumping

Earth Sciences
40

Expedition to Hess Rise in the Northwest Pacific begins

Mathematics
862

Mathematicians solve decades-old mystery about the hidden order in high-dimensional randomness

Social Sciences
118

Not just a fun hobby: Board games can help build connections and reduce stress

Archaeology
123

'Patchwork families' existed more than 5,000 years ago, Neolithic DNA reveals

Economics & Business
12

Companies struggle to realize circular ambitions, says researcher

Environment
71

Cooling poverty is making extreme heat more dangerous for millions