Most Viewed Science News

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ordinary paper could one day be used as a lightweight battery to power the devices that are now enabling the printed word to be eclipsed by e-mail, e-books and online news.

The biggest black holes in the universe are also the most perplexing. Scientists have long been confused about just how the earliest, most massive black holes formed, but new evidence now suggests they could have originated inside giant cocoon-like stars.

MOJAVE, Calif. - The sleek, bullet-shaped spacecraft is about the size of a large business jet — with wide windows and seats for six well-heeled passengers to take a thrill ride into space.

COPENHAGEN - A leaked Danish document at the U.N. climate conference provoked angry criticism Tuesday from developing countries and activists who feared it would shift more of the burden to curb greenhouse gases on poorer countries.

Petunias and potatoes may actually be carnivorous plants, scientists now suggest.

The human body may be equipped with a separate sensory system aside from the nerves that gives us the ability to touch and feel, according to a new study.

The revamped Hubble Space Telescope has spied what might be the oldest, most distant galaxies yet seen, astronomers announced today.

If asked to describe how skin cream feels, you might use words like "smooth," "thick," or "greasy."

Unusual fluctuations in the brightness of older sun-like stars have long mystified astronomers, and new, detailed observations of the phenomenon have only deepened the mystery.

SYDNEY (AFP) - A space-age powerboat which holds the round-the-world record sped off from Australia on Tuesday on a mission to harass Japanese whaling ships in Antarctic seas.

Taking an antidepressant can lead to significant personality changes, likely for the better, a new study finds.

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - For three years Olga Lopez desperately searched for her baby daughter who was snatched from her home in Guatemala, until her face appeared in government paperwork for an international adoption.

Wet and wintry weather was expected across the Central U.S. on Tuesday as a low pressure system continued to track over the Central Rockies and into the Plains.

STOCKHOLM - Intellectual freedom, independent research and frequent coffee breaks with colleagues helped this year's Nobel Prize winners make their groundbreaking scientific discoveries.

Off the coast of California, the bat ray Myliobatis californica glides over the seafloor looking for buried clams to eat. Well, "looking" isn't the right word. The ray's eyes, after all, are on top of its head, not great for looking down.

COPENHAGEN (AFP) - Bangladesh, Myanmar and Honduras were the countries most severely affected by extreme weather events from 1990 to 2008, according to a climate change risk study published on Tuesday.

A massive volcanic eruption that occurred in the distant past killed off much of central India's forests and may have pushed humans to the brink of extinction, according to a new study that adds evidence to a controversial topic.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The Minerals Management Service on Monday conditionally approved plans by Shell Oil Co. to drill three exploratory wells next year in the Chukchi Sea off Alaska's northwest coast.

WASHINGTON — The Interior Department on Monday gave the go-ahead for Shell Oil to begin drilling three exploratory wells in the Chukchi Sea, a move that opens the door for offshore oil and gas production in the Arctic.

GENEVA (AFP) - Climate change is already forcing people to migrate, with most moving within their countries or to a neighbouring country, a report by the International Organization for Migration said Tuesday.