Science Times: The ex-Hollywood chimps

Plus: Why humans cry —

View in browser|nytimes.com November 19, 2024 Jamie Kelter Davis for The New York Times Can These Ex-Hollywood Chimps Find a Place Among the Apes? Behind the scenes at a Chicago zoo, chimpanzees who spent years entertaining humans are learning to befriend their own kind. By Emily Anthes Marco Garro for The New York Times Where Glaciers Melt, the Rivers Run Red As the glaciers of South America retreat, the supply of freshwater is dwindling and its quality is getting worse. By Mitra Taj and Marco Garro Whitney Curtis for The New York Times Americans Have Regained Modest Trust in Scientists, Survey Finds A sharp partisan divide remains over how involved researchers should be in policy decisions. By Teddy Rosenbluth Desiree Rios for The New York Times Why Kennedy Sees an 'Epidemic' of Chronic Disease Among Children Trends in child health are in fact worrisome, and scientists welcome a renewed focus on foods and environmental toxins. But vaccines and fluoride are not the cause. By Roni Caryn Rabin Email us Let us know how we're doing at sciencenewsletter@nytimes.com. Why Humans Cry We're the only species that sheds emotional tears, but much about them remains an enigma. By Dana G. Smith and Dominic Kesterton Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory The Quest to Build a Star on Earth Start-ups say we're closer than ever to near-limitless, zero-carbon energy from fusion. When will we get there? By Raymond Zhong A.V. Lopatin et al., Scientific Reports 2024 Trilobites A Mummified Saber-Toothed Kitten Emerges in Siberia The Homotherium cub was preserved in Siberian permafrost with its dark fur and flesh intact. By Asher Elbein Sergio Flores/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images SpaceX Starship's Sonic Boom Creates Risk of Structural Damage, Test Finds An independent researcher found that noise recorded miles away from the site of a recent test flight was equal to standing 200 feet from a Boeing 747 during takeoff. By Eric Lipton Chandan Khanna/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Trump Plans to Attend Musk's SpaceX Launch on Tuesday The president-elect's decision to witness the liftoff is another example of his close ties to the world's wealthiest entrepreneur. By Michael Gold and Theodore Schleifer M. Kornmesser/European Southern Observatory Out There Barnard's Star Finally Has a Planet, and Possibly More For a century, exoplanet hunters have "discovered" planets around a nearby star, only to retract the claims. But the latest find is for real. By Dennis Overbye Trilobites The Surprising Social Lives of Pythons Ball pythons were long assumed to be solitary, but scientists discovered the snakes in captivity prefer each others' company when given the chance to live socially. By Asher Elbein Trilobites 'Devious' New Deep Sea Creature Hid Its Identity From Scientists It took nearly 25 years for biologists to discover that a swimming and glowing organism in the ocean's midnight zone was actually a sea slug. By William J. Broad NASA Says Space Station Astronaut Is in 'Incredible Health' The agency's top medical official was responding to rumors that Suni Williams had lost an unusual amount of weight during an extended stay in orbit. By Kenneth Chang Thomas E. Kurtz, a Creator of BASIC Computer Language, Dies at 96 At Dartmouth, long before the days of laptops and smartphones, he worked to give more students access to computers. That work helped propel generations into a new world. By Kenneth R. Rosen CLIMATE CHANGE Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA, via Shutterstock Nuclear Power Was Once Shunned at Climate Talks. Now, It's a Rising Star. Growing worldwide energy demand and other factors have shifted the calculus, but hurdles still lie ahead. By Brad Plumer The New York Times A Big Climate Goal Is Getting Farther Out of Reach A new report forecasts global temperature increases well above the level that world leaders have pledged to avoid. By Brad Plumer and Mira Rojanasakul Maxim Shemetov/Reuters Climate Summit, in Early Days, Is Already on a 'Knife Edge' Negotiators agree that trillions are needed to help lower-income countries adapt and cope, but not on who should pay. By David Gelles and Brad Plumer Punit Paranjpe/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images 'Fossil Fuels Are Still Winning': Global Emissions Head for a Record Countries promised to move away from coal, oil and natural gas at last year's climate summit. New research shows they're burning more than ever before. By Brad Plumer We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. HEALTH Michelle Gustafson for The New York Times A.I. Chatbots Defeated Doctors at Diagnosing Illness A small study found ChatGPT outdid human physicians when assessing medical case histories, even when those doctors were using a chatbot. By Gina Kolata Lindsey Nicholson/Universal Images Group, via Getty Images Kennedy's Vow to Take On Big Food Could Alienate His New G.O.P. Allies Processed foods are in the cross hairs of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., but battling major companies could collide with President-elect Donald J. Trump's corporate-friendly goals. By Christina Jewett and Julie Creswell Rachel Woolf for The New York Times Kennedy's F.D.A. Wish List: Raw Milk, Stem Cells, Heavy Metals Robert F. Kennedy Jr., one of President-elect Donald J. Trump's advisers on health, is taking aim at the agency's oversight on many fronts. By Christina Jewett Nature's Faces/Science Source Pancreatic Cancer Surge May Be Less Worrisome Than It Seemed A rise in the disease in younger people was not followed by an increase in deaths, a study found, and might be a sign of overdiagnosis. By Gina Kolata Arin Yoon for The New York Times Is Being Busy Good for People With A.D.H.D.? New research suggests symptoms of the disorder may be less severe in those with a demanding schedule. By Christina Caron First U.S. Case of Spreading New Mpox Type Reported in California The unidentified patient had recently returned from Africa, where the virus has caused a deadly epidemic, health officials said. By The New York Times Three-Quarters of U.S. Adults Are Now Overweight or Obese A sweeping new paper reveals the dramatic rise of obesity rates nationwide since 1990. By Nina Agrawal At Long Last, the Surge in S.T.I.s May Be Leveling Off Rates of gonorrhea declined in 2023, while diagnoses of syphilis and chlamydia held roughly steady, according to new C.D.C. data. By Apoorva Mandavilli Canada Detects Its First Human Case of Bird Flu A teenager in British Columbia was hospitalized in critical condition with the disease, and officials were working to find out how the person was exposed to the virus. By Vjosa Isai Make a friend's day: Forward this email. Got this from a friend? Subscribe to the Science Times newsletter. Check out other New York Times newsletters (all free!) including: Climate Fwd: for climate coverage and expert analysis. The Upshot for a data-driven look at the news. Well for the latest on health, fitness and nutrition. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Science Times from The New York Times. To stop receiving Science Times, unsubscribe. 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