Science Says

Science Says: Diet plays big role in how huge whales can get

NEW YORK (AP) — Whales are big, but why aren’t they bigger? A new study says it’s basically about how many calories they can take in.

Science Says: Airplane turbulence can strike out of the blue

‘Michael Jackson drug’ still prompts curiosity from patients

Meatsplainer: How new plant-based burgers compare to beef

Science Says: Tiny ‘water bears’ can teach us about survival

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Science Says: Why scientists prize plant, animal genomes

NEW YORK (AP) — Just about every week, it seems, scientists publish the unique DNA code of some creature or plant.

Science Says: Internet craze behind a brain-tingling beer ad

A new Super Bowl commercial aims to calm frenzied football fans with oddly relaxing images of actress Zoe Kravitz whispering into a pair of microphones and softly tapping on a bottle.

Science Says: Get used to polar vortex outbreaks

WASHINGTON (AP) — It might seem counterintuitive, but the dreaded polar vortex is bringing its icy grip to parts of the U.S. thanks to a sudden blast of warm air in the Arctic.

Next generation of biotech food heading for grocery stores

WASHINGTON (AP) — The next generation of biotech food is headed for the grocery aisles, and first up may be salad dressings or granola bars made with soybean oil genetically tweaked to be good for your heart.

About the series

What happens to the brain on opioids? How do genes affect how long you live? How do scientists know climate change is happening?

Science Says: Fatal outbreak germ a threat to frail patients

A common virus blamed for a deadly outbreak at a New Jersey children’s rehabilitation center usually poses little risk for healthy people but can lead to dangerous pneumonia in already frail patients.

Science Says: Sex and gender aren’t the same

WASHINGTON (AP) — Anatomy at birth may prompt a check in the “male” or “female” box on the birth certificate — but to doctors and scientists, sex and gender aren’t always the same thing.

Memory’s frailty may be playing role in Kavanaugh matter

NEW YORK (AP) — She says he sexually assaulted her; he denies it. Is somebody deliberately lying?

Not necessarily.

Science Says: Hawaii hurricanes rare, but getting less so

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hurricanes seldom get close to Hawaii and it’s even rarer for one of the islands to take a direct hit.

Science Says: Record heat, fires worsened by climate change

Heat waves are setting all-time temperature records across the globe, again. Europe suffered its deadliest fire in more than a century, and one of nearly 90 large fires in the U.S.

Science Says: How family separation may affect kids’ brains

CHICAGO (AP) — Doctors have long known that separating families and other traumatic events can damage children’s well-being.

Science Says: What makes something truly addictive

CHICAGO (AP) — Now that the world’s leading public health group says too much Minecraft can be an addiction, could overindulging in chocolate, exercise, even sex, be next?

Science Says: What happens when researchers make mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes, but when scientists do, the remedy goes far beyond saying you’re sorry. Two fresh examples show how some journals and universities react when the need arises to set the record straight.

How do you count deaths from a hurricane?

NEW YORK (AP) — How many people died in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria?

It’s a question that has been debated since the powerful storm slammed into the island and devastated the U.S. territory last year.

Science Says: Ambien’s odd side effects don’t include racism

Ambien and similar sleep aids are well-known for sometimes causing some weird behavioral side effects, but changing one’s political or cultural views is not one of them.

After a death, how much can ‘broken heart’ hurt survivors?

You hear it whenever someone gets sick or dies soon after losing a spouse: Was it because of a broken heart?

Science Says: Amount of straws, plastic pollution is huge

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cities and nations are looking at banning plastic straws and stirrers in hopes of addressing the world’s plastic pollution problem.

UK says ex-spy poisoned with Soviet-developed nerve agent

LONDON (AP) — The use of Russian-developed nerve agent Novichok to poison ex-spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter makes it “highly likely” that Russia was involved, British Prime Minister Theresa May said Monday.

Science Says: Arctic not so chill this record warm winter

WASHINGTON (AP) — Winter at the top of the world wimped out this year.

The Arctic just finished its warmest winter on record.

Cracking the mysteries of the elusive, majestic whale shark

GALAPAGOS ISLANDS, Ecuador (AP) — It’s the biggest shark — and the biggest fish — in the sea, often found roaming in warm waters around the globe with its huge mouth agape in search of dinner.

Science Says: European art scene began with Neanderthals

NEW YORK (AP) — From the murky depths of Spanish caves comes a surprising insight: Neanderthals created art.

Science Says: Why there’s a big chill in a warmer world

WASHINGTON (AP) — Anchorage, Alaska, was warmer Tuesday than Jacksonville, Florida. The weather in the U.S. is that upside down.

Science Says: Are poinsettias poisonous? Some holiday truths

CHICAGO (AP) — Are poinsettias really poisonous? Are snowflakes really pure as the driven snow? Does feasting really put on the pounds?

Striking a chord, NIH taps the brain to find how music heals

WASHINGTON (AP) — Like a friendly Pied Piper, the violinist keeps up a toe-tapping beat as dancers weave through busy hospital hallways and into the chemotherapy unit, patients looking up in surprised delight.

Are 3-D mammograms really better? US puts scans to the test

WASHINGTON (AP) — A better mammogram? Increasingly women are asked if they want a 3-D mammogram instead of the regular X-ray — and now U.S. health officials are starting a huge study to tell if the newer, sometimes pricier choice really improves screening for breast cancer.

Trump calls attackers ‘deranged’ but mental health link weak

CHICAGO (AP) — President Donald Trump called the Texas church shootings gunman “deranged,” the New York bike path attacker “a very sick and deranged person,” and the Las Vegas massacre shooter “a sick, demented man.”

Science Says: Jack Frost nipping at your nose ever later

WASHINGTON (AP) — Winter is coming ... later. And it’s leaving ever earlier.

Across the United States, the year’s first freeze has been arriving further and further into the calendar, according to more than a century of measurements from weather stations nationwide.

Science Says: Era of monster hurricanes roiling the Atlantic

WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s not just this year. The monster hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, Jose and Lee that have raged across the Atlantic are contributing to what appears to be the most active period for major storms on record.

Soft soil makes Mexico City shake like it was built on jelly

WASHINGTON (AP) — The soft soil that lines the ancient lake bed that Mexico City is built on amplified the shaking from Tuesday’s earthquake and increased its destructive force, seismologists say as they try to better understand the quake that has killed more than 200 people.

Science Says: How repeated head blows affect the brain

CHICAGO (AP) — Researchers are tackling fresh questions about a degenerative brain disease now that it has been detected in the brains of nearly 200 football players after death.