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Will Dunham
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 24, 2023
Scientists explain alien comet 'Oumuamua's strange acceleration
Hypotheses were floated in light of its unexpected behavior, including fleeting speculation that it might actually have been an alien spacecraft, but a new study has a more sober take.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Mar 22, 2023
Ryugu asteroid samples suggest ingredients for life came from space
Two organic compounds essential for living organisms have been found in samples retrieved by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Hayabusa2 spacecraft.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 16, 2023
New analysis reveals dynamic volcanism on Venus
Radar images taken by NASA's Magellan spacecraft show that a volcanic vent about 1.6 kilometers wide on the Venusian surface expanded and changed shape over an eight-month span in 1991.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 10, 2023
Dwarf elephants? Giant rats? Strange island creatures at high risk
Extinction risk has been seen by researchers to be highest among island species that have undergone more extreme body size shifts compared to mainland relatives.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 3, 2023
For toothed whales, sound production is all in the nose
Echolocating toothed whales make the loudest sounds in the animal kingdom by forcing highly pressurized air past structures called phonic lips in their nose.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 24, 2023
Bone study transforms understanding of dinosaur growth
Tyrannosaurus, topping 12 meters long, was an example of a large and fast-growing theropod, with a large growth spurt in its teenage years. Other theropods grew at a slower rate.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 22, 2023
Scientists newly confirm 1,350 km metallic structure at heart of Earth's inner core
The research studied waves from 200 earthquakes with magnitudes above 6.0 ricocheting like ping pong balls up to five times within the planet.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 9, 2023
Tree study shows how three years of drought may have doomed ancient empires
'The climate changes that are likely to occur for us in the next century will be much more severe than those the Hittites experienced,' one of the co-authors noted.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jun 6, 2022
'Jaws' may have outmaneuvered 'The Meg' in ancient shark showdown
The megalodon was one of the largest predators in Earth's history, appearing about 15 million years ago and going extinct about 3.6 million years ago.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
May 13, 2022
Scientists unveil image of 'gentle giant' black hole at Milky Way's center
The black hole — called Sagittarius A* — is the second one ever to be imaged.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 17, 2022
New research helps explain the brightest, most energetic objects in the universe
The latest observations support a 'unified model' of active galactic nuclei, which holds that all such objects are the same but appear to have different properties when seen from Earth.
Japan Times
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Feb 15, 2022
Analysis of elephant tusk DNA reveals poachers' links with ivory trafficking networks
The new study suggest between three and six criminal organizations were responsible for most shipments, with poachers returning repeatedly to the same elephant populations.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 27, 2022
Researchers achieve milestone on path toward nuclear fusion energy
Using the world's largest laser, the researchers coaxed fusion fuel for the first time to heat itself beyond the heat they zapped into it, achieving a phenomenon called a burning plasma.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 3, 2021
Hot little planet as dense as iron zips around red dwarf star
Scientists are eager to find exoplanets — as these alien worlds are known — to look for good candidates that may nurture extraterrestrial life.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History
Nov 15, 2021
Japanese-Korean-Turkish language group traced to farmers in ancient China
Various descended languages and peoples are thought to have spread across an area of some 8,000 kilometers.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 5, 2021
'Super-Earth' may offer clues about atmospheres on distant worlds
Scientists have spotted a planet orbiting a star relatively near our solar system that may offer a prime opportunity to study the atmosphere of a rocky Earth-like alien world — the type of research that could aid the hunt for extraterrestrial life.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Aug 23, 2019
U.S. billionaire industrialist and conservative donor David Koch dies at 79
Billionaire industrialist David Koch, a driving force behind conglomerate Koch Industries who as one of the world's richest people became a major financier of conservative causes and political candidates, has died at age 79, his brother said on Friday.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 8, 2019
Mirror test in Japanese study suggests self-awareness in fish, raising questions about animal intelligence
Small tropical reef fish were able to recognize themselves in a mirror, scientists said Thursday, in a finding that raises provocative questions about assessing self-awareness and cognitive abilities in animals.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Jul 20, 2018
Ghostly neutrinos offer new view of universe as scientists find deep-space source
A breakthrough in the study of ghostly particles called high-energy neutrinos that traverse space, zipping unimpeded through people, planets and whole galaxies, is giving scientists an audacious new way to expand our understanding of the cosmos.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Mar 12, 2016
Amber-entombed flower may have been toxic
Do not let its beauty fool you. A newly identified and exquisitely preserved flower found entombed in amber — fossilized tree sap — may have packed quite a punch.

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