They drew with crayons, possibly fed on maggots and maybe even kissed us: Forty millenniums later, our ancient human cousins continued to make news. (John P. Dessereau/The New York Times) By FRANZ LIDZ Neanderthals, who flourished across Eurasia for hundreds of thousands of years before vanishing around 40,000 years ago, had a notable return to the scientific spotlight in 2025. More than a dozen high-profile scientific studies explored all sorts of aspects of their existence,

The Artemis II rocket rolls out to the launchpad from the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (Cassandra Klos/The New York Times) By KENNETH CHANG Reid Wiseman, a NASA astronaut selected in 2011, said Saturday morning that a few days ago he looked up and saw the crescent moon in the light of the sunrise. He thought about the far side of the moon — the part that is always hidden from Earth. “You just think about a

A Narcan kit, on April 23, 2025. Less than 24 hours after the Trump administration informed more than 2,000 addiction and mental health programs nationwide last week that it was immediately terminating almost $2 billion of their funding, the administration reversed course and reinstated the money. (Arin Yoon/The New York Times) By JAN HOFFMAN Less than 24 hours after the Trump administration informed more than 2,000 addiction and mental health programs nationwide that it was

In an undated image provided by Gonzalo Ignazi, a puma and penguins in the Patagonia region of South America. In Argentina, the return of pumas brought top predators back to the landscape — much to penguins’ dismay. (Gonzalo Ignazi via The New York Times) By ALEXA ROBLES-GIL Penguins throughout the southern seas have to worry about being picked off by seals or hunted by orcas. On land, they can find safety in numbers. But in the Patagonia region of Argentina, the flightless s

Secretary of Health and Human Service Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks about new dietary guidelines during a briefing for reporters at the White House in Washington, on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. In a striking reversal of past nutrition guidance, the Trump administration released new dietary guidelines that flip the food pyramid on its head, putting steak, cheese and whole milk near the top. (Eric Lee/The New York Times) By ALICE CALLAHAN and DANI BLUM In a striking reversal of pas

To counteract the midday gloom, consider a brief yoga break. (Theodore Tae/The New York Times) By CHRISTINE YU For many people, the afternoon is a dreaded time of day when energy slumps, concentration fizzles and stress builds. To counteract the midday gloom, consider a brief yoga break. It’s a great way to pause and reset your body and mind, said Elena Cheung, a yoga instructor and yoga teacher trainer in Seattle. Yoga can also help offset the effects of prolonged sitting, s

An image provided by University of British Columbia (A.Trites), Dalhousie University (S. Fortune), Hakai Institute (K. Holmes), Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (X. Cheng) shows researchers near killer whales in waters off British Columbia, Canada. (University of British Columbia, Dalhousie University, Hakai Institute, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research via The New York Times) By ALEXA ROBLES-GIL In the waters off British Columbia, an unusual partn

Many shots seem to have “off-target” benefits, such as lowering the risk of dementia, studies have found. (Jackson Gibbs/The New York Times) By PAULA SPAN Let’s be clear. The primary reason to be vaccinated against shingles is that two shots provide 90% protection against a painful, blistering disease that a third of Americans will suffer in their lifetimes, one that can cause lingering nerve pain and other nasty long-term consequences. The most important reason for older adu

A wary red-footed tortoise in Casanare, Colombia, June 26, 2024. Long dismissed as unintelligent, reptiles are emerging as cognitively and emotionally complex animals — a new study involving tortoises suggests that they also possess mood states. (Federico Rios/The New York Times) By BRANDON KEIM Should you meet a turtle basking on a log in the sun, you might reasonably conclude that the turtle is in a good mood. Granted, there has been little scientific evidence that reptiles

In an undated image provided by Ibiricu et al, Nature Communications 2025, Joaquinraptor, one of the most complete megaraptor specimens ever found. A fossil of the 23-foot-tall predator could help unlock secrets of an order of dinosaurs that remain poorly understood. (Ibiricu et al, Nature Communications 2025 via The New York Times) By ASHER ELBEIN In 2019, a team of researchers uncovered a 70-million-year-old dinosaur in a Patagonian province of Argentina. The dinosaur, a hu