Science Times: The psychedelic evangelist

Plus: NASA is recruiting astronauts —

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story March 26, 2024 SUPPORTED BY CYTIVA Caitlin Teal Price The Psychedelic Evangelist A Johns Hopkins scientist was known for rigorous studies of psychedelics. Was he a true believer? By Brendan Borrell Alan Dyer/VWPics, via Alamy Out There Cosmic Forecast: Blurry With a Chance of Orbital Chaos Astronomers have gotten better at tracking the motions of stars just beyond the solar system. But that's made it harder to predict Earth's future and reconstruct its past. By Dennis Overbye Andres Kudacki for The New York Times A Conversation With Life After Asteroid Bennu Dante Lauretta, the planetary scientist who led the OSIRIS-REx mission to retrieve a handful of space dust, discusses his next final frontier. By Katrina Miller Chandan Khanna/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images NASA Is Recruiting a New Class of Astronauts Victor Glover, a nine-year veteran of the astronaut corps who will fly around the moon in 2025, said the search for excellence and diversity were not mutually exclusive. By Kenneth Chang and Emma Goldberg Continue reading the main story A MESSAGE FROM CYTIVA What's Hampering the Delivery of Therapeutics? In 2023, findings from the Global Biopharma Resilience Index, undertaken by Cytiva, found that 18 percent of biopharma executives reported an insufficient supply of vaccines at least once a year. This challenge has led organizations to seek out ways to establish and strengthen domestic manufacturing operations. The index highlights government investment as a key way to build resilience, as it can help bolster biopharmaceutical infrastructure and provide incentives for innovation. Read more in the 2023 Global Biopharma Resilience Index. Learn more. Email us Let us know how we're doing at sciencenewsletter@nytimes.com. Adara Sánchez Essay Do Birds Dream? What new research on the avian brain and REM sleep in birds might reveal about our own dream lives. By Maria Popova Catharine Bott Toddlers Smell Like Flowers, Teens Smell 'Goatlike,' Study Finds Two musky steroids, and higher levels of odorous acids, distinguish the body odors of adolescents and tots. By Emily Anthes Blue Nile Survey Project Origins Fossil Trove From 74,000 Years Ago Points to Remarkably Adaptive Humans An archaeological site in Ethiopia revealed the oldest-known arrowheads and the remnants of a major volcanic eruption. By Carl Zimmer Cambridge Archaeological Unit This Was Village Life in Britain 3,000 Years Ago The superbly preserved remains of a Bronze Age settlement offer a glimpse of a "colorful, rich, varied" domestic life circa 850 B.C. By Franz Lidz Peter Bagde/Typos1/Abel Prize 2024 Abel Prize Awarded for Studies of Universe's Randomness Michel Talagrand of France has credited a brush with blindness for leading to the work that resulted in his recognition by the math equivalent of the Nobel Prize. By Kenneth Chang Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT It's a Golden Age for Shipwreck Discoveries. Why? More lost shipwrecks are being found because of new technology, climate change and more vessels scanning the ocean floor for science or commerce. By Michael Levenson Trilobites These Mobile Games Are for the Birds How do you design an app for a parrot? Consider games that are "made to be licked," a new study suggests. By Emily Anthes Trilobites Long Before Amsterdam's Coffee Shops, There Were Hallucinogenic Seeds A nearly 2,000-year-old stash pouch provides the first evidence of the intentional use of a powerful psychedelic plant in Western Europe during the Roman Era. By Rachel Nuwer Prehistoric Amphibian Ancestor Is Named for Kermit the Frog The species seemed to have bug eyes and a smile, so a team of researchers named it Kermitops gratus in honor of the banjo-playing Muppet. By Michael Levenson Frans de Waal, Who Found the Origins of Morality in Apes, Dies at 75 An unusually popular primatologist, he drew the attention of Newt Gingrich, Isabella Rossellini, the philosopher Peter Singer and the reading public. By Alex Traub SOLAR ECLIPSE OF 2024 Matthew Abbott for The New York Times A Total Solar Eclipse Is Coming. Here's What You Need to Know. These are answers to common questions about the April 8 eclipse, and we're offering you a place to pose more of them. By Katrina Miller The New York Times Maps of the April 2024 Total Solar Eclipse On April 8, the moon will cast a shadow across much of North America. By Jonathan Corum Elvis Gonzalez/EPA, via Shutterstock Eclipses Injured Their Eyes, and the World Never Looked the Same A number of case studies published after recent total solar eclipses highlight the importance of safe viewing. By Gina Kolata Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT We hope you've enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times. HEALTH Sophie Park for The New York Times Use of Abortion Pills Has Risen Significantly Post Roe, Research Shows Two new studies show fast-growing use of the pills on the eve of the Supreme Court's consideration of a case seeking to ban or restrict them. Write a summary here and then click the Summary toggle above so it only shows up in the metadata field. By Pam Belluck Photo Illustration by Matt Chase Patients Hate 'Forever' Drugs. Is Wegovy Different? The new obesity drugs might be an exception to a chronic, deadly problem: the failure to stick with medication. By Gina Kolata Cydni Elledge for The New York Times What's Next for the Coronavirus? Scientists studying the virus's continuing evolution, and the body's immune responses, hope to head off a resurgence and to better understand long Covid. By Apoorva Mandavilli Gregory Morgan Overlooked No More: Yvonne Barr, Who Helped Discover a Cancer-Causing Virus A virologist, she worked with the pathologist Anthony Epstein, who died last month, in finding for the first time that a virus that could cause cancer. It's known as the Epstein-Barr virus. By Delthia Ricks Surgeons Transplant Pig Kidney Into a Patient, a Medical Milestone The man continues to improve, doctors said. Organs from genetically engineered pigs one day may make dialysis obsolete. By Roni Caryn Rabin Doctors Say Diagnosis of Catherine's Cancer Is a Familiar Scenario The Princess of Wales did not reveal the type of cancer she has, but oncologists say the disease is often identified during other procedures. By Gina Kolata Spring Allergy Season is Getting Worse. Here's What to Know. Experts explain how to tell if you have allergies, and how to find relief if you do. By Nina Agrawal Ice Skating and the Brain How champion skaters' brains keep them from falling or feeling dizzy By Pam Belluck Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT 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. Continue reading the main story 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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