A Scroll-able History of Earth’s Oceans

For its latest issue “Water,” Nautilus takes a look back at the evolution of our often unpredictable oceans. A short, scrolling interactive history provides playful animated backgrounds to colorfully illustrate each major phase of our seas, beginning with the centuries of rain it required to initially fill in our beaches. Over the next billions of years, varying water temperatures, winds and mass currents all contributed …

Pollution May Be Giving You Dementia

While the quality of American air is the cleanest it’s been in 40 years, it’s no reason to breathe easy. Many scientists now believe that the millions of fine particles floating around—mainly from the increasing number idling car engines sitting in traffic—may be leading to an increased risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. In fact, we could save nearly two million deaths globally just by …

Eco-Friendly Cows

Scientists in Britain are working to develop the country’s first eco-friendly cows in order to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases created from cattle farming. Due to their unique way of digesting food—and the subsequent flatulence they produce—cows leave behind a massive carbon footprint each year. By experimenting with both sugar-heavy and protein-packed grass diets, scientists at Rothamsted Research aim to curb the production of …