Fruit flies beat their wings 250 times a second. How fast do they sense attitude and adjust their wings to avoid crashing? Ultra fast! More
Fruit Fly Flight
Motions and forces
Secrets of the sidewinder
The sidewinder rattlesnake winds sideways up hills that would defeat footed animals. A robot snake climbs a hill — returns some More
Oceans’ true boundaries explain source of ocean water — and “garbage patches”
Plastic garbage enters oceans and accumulates in circulating “gyres”, revealing a new world ocean map defined by winds and currents. More
On the wing: Birds, skeeters, jet planes: Same design rule applies!
The “Constructal” theory purports to show similarities in the evolution of airplanes and birds. Both must live in the air. But how More
Wave power
The first ocean wave energy-capturing device with a permit to connect back to a public power grid will enter the Pacific next month. More
Pitching the biomechanics
The fate of baseball teams valued at millions of dollars and followed by millions of rabid fans can come down to the elbow. More
Dunewatching, Martian style
New pix from Mars show sand dunes on the move. Mars has been dry for 1.5 billion years; could massive erosion be due to wind? Yes, says More
Breaking the bubble!
High-speed movies of popping bubbles show a ring of “daughter” bubbles forming around the edge. A close look reveals a third generation More
Electric eye learns from animal eye!
Lenses cannot project a perfect image on the flat back of a camera, so images are distorted at the edges. More
Dig the latest top tech tricks
What you can’t see can still interest you. Archeologists use radar, magnetic, electrical gizmos to see through the ground. More
The sounds of sax
New study shows that controlling throat shape helps pro players hit the high notes that elude amateurs. More
It’s snow-time! Dig into our all-flake, no fake feature!
Frosty questions: Are some snowflakes identical? How do flakes form, and how does weather affect their shape? More
Science Meets Sports
The Why Files looks at kinesiology, sports medicine, psychology and some ancient Olympic history, brought to life. More
Understanding Volcanoes
How do volcanoes work, and how accurate are predictions? How have volcanoes changed the landscape? More
Star Formation: The Ultimate How-To…
Infrared survey of Milky Way shows massive star formation. How could a supernova cause stars to start? More