Here’s what Cities: Skylines 2’s new developer is updating first

Visual upgrades include new UI, realistic snow cover, better lighting.  Back in November, Cities: Skylines 2 publisher Paradox made the surprising announcement that longtime series developer Colossal Order would be ceasing work on the series as part of a “mutual” breakup. Now, we’re getting our first glimpse into the kinds…

Narwhals become quieter as the Arctic Ocean grows louder

Increasing shipping traffic is interfering with the whales’ ability to hunt and communicate. For most of their evolutionary history, narwhals have relied more on sound than sight to survive in the Arctic’s dark icy waters. The speckled toothed whales—sometimes referred to as “unicorns of the sea” for the long,…

At NIH, a power struggle over institute directorships deepens

The research agency has 27 institute and center directors. Will those roles become politicized? When a new presidential administration comes in, it is responsible for filling around 4,000 jobs sprinkled across the federal government’s vast bureaucracy. These political appointees help carry out the president’s agenda, and, at least in…

Fungus could be the insecticide of the future

Plant chemicals made more potent by insect pests are detoxified by the fungus. Exterminators keep getting calls for a reason. Wood-devouring insects, such as beetles, termites, and carpenter ants, are constantly chewing through walls or infecting trees and breaking them down. The fight against these insects usually involved noxious…

Research roundup: 6 cool stories we almost missed

A lip-syncing robot, Leonardo’s DNA, and new evidence that humans, not glaciers, moved stones to Stonehenge It’s a regrettable reality that there is never enough time to cover all the interesting scientific stories we come across each month. So every month, we highlight a handful of the best stories…