Evolution

The Scientific Reason You Can’t Stop Watching Baby Animal Videos

We are all helpless in the face of cute

By Jeffrey Kluger May 3, 2017

America May Miss Out on the Next Industrial Revolution

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute March 17, 2017

What These 3.66 Million-Year-Old Footprints Tell Us About Our Human Ancestors

The footprints are about the same age as the famous Lucy skeleton

By Justin Worland December 15, 2016

Facebook Can and Should Wipe Out Fake News

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute November 30, 2016

Humans First Used Tools to Eat Meat 250,000 Years Ago. Here’s What the Discovery Means

A dig in the desert reveals crude technology dating back a quarter of a million years

By Jeffrey Kluger August 8, 2016

How Our Babies Make Us Smarter

These are today's best ideas

By The Aspen Institute May 26, 2016

What Science Says About the Bathroom Debate

Your genes don't care who you share a bathroom with, but your politicians do

By Jeffrey Kluger May 19, 2016

The Scientific Reason Men Like Sports More Than Women

For both males and females, spectators and players, love of sports is deep in the genes—but in the men it's deeper

By Jeffrey Kluger May 9, 2016

Curt Schilling Is No Stranger to Social-Media Controversy

The former Red Sox pitcher's outspokenness has landed him in trouble in the past

By Rishi Iyengar April 21, 2016

13 Million-Year-Old Crocodile Offers Insight Into Evolution

A species that vanished long ago offers insights into how evolution works today

By Jeffrey Kluger April 20, 2016

Sorry Vegans: Here's How Meat-Eating Made Us Human

If you want a big brain, you'll need more than vegetables

By Jeffrey Kluger March 9, 2016

How Lucy the Australopithecus Changed the Way We Understand Human Evolution

The important discovery—made on Nov. 24, 1974—gave scientists their "best clues yet" as to what mankind's ancestors looked like

By Lily Rothman November 24, 2015

What Birds Can Teach Us About Waiting for 'the One'

It increases your chances for genetic compatibility

September 18, 2015

6 Discoveries That Helped Explain Human Origins

When a new species related to humans is discovered, it's big news

By Lily Rothman September 10, 2015

Horses Smile and Pout Just Like Humans, Study Says

Horses are pros at sad puppy dog eyes and cheesy smiles

By Mandy Oaklander August 5, 2015

Scientists Discover What Makes T-Rex Teeth Deadly

The jagged teeth of Theropods, a classification of mostly flesh-eating dinosaurs, were useful for grasping and tearing at prey

By Daniel White July 29, 2015

Remembering the Scopes Monkey Trial on Its 90th Anniversary

It was a turning point for the acceptance of evolution

By Victor Luckerson July 10, 2015

Why You're Pretty Much Unconscious All the Time

A surprising new paper argues that consciousness is just a bit player in the human brain

By Jeffrey Kluger June 26, 2015

Study Says Hip-Hop Made Biggest Impact on U.S. Music

Forget the British invasion of the 1960s or the synth-pop of the 1980s

By Helen Regan May 7, 2015

People With Back Pain May Have Chimpanzee-Shaped Spines

Research shows that people with spines similar to chimpanzees' have more trouble walking upright

By Victor Luckerson April 28, 2015

You’re Not Fooling Anyone With Your Pretend Laughter

A fake laugh is produced with a slightly different set of vocal muscles controlled by a different part of our brain

By Zócalo Public Square April 2, 2015

Men Prefer Curves for Evolutionary Reasons

And it's one curve in particular

By Sabrina Toppa March 20, 2015

Why Women Like War Heroes More than Any Other Kind of Guy

And why men don't find brave women attractive

By Belinda Luscombe March 12, 2015

Researchers Find Neanderthal-era Bone Tool in France

A multipurpose bone tool dating back to before the Stone Age was discovered in France

By Rishi Iyengar January 15, 2015

Newly Discovered Frog Gives Birth to Live Tadpoles

As opposed to eggs, like most frogs

By Denver Nicks January 1, 2015

Watch Bill Nye Explain Evolution Using Emoji

“We emojinized it.”

By Eliza Berman December 12, 2014

On Evolution Day, Remember That Darwin Knew He'd Meet Resistance

Plus, TIME's original coverage of the anti-evolution arguments of the 1925 Scopes trial

By Jeffrey Kluger November 24, 2014

What You Didn’t Know About William Jennings Bryan. What You Should Know About Darwin

Enthusiasm for improving the human race could have negative consequences

By History News Network November 23, 2014

Scientists Discover Why Mosquitos Love Human Blood

You get mosquito bites because of your smell

By Tessa Berenson November 13, 2014

Why the First Comet Landing Matters

This mission may be our most informative one yet

By Arpita Aneja November 12, 2014

Science Finally Proves Your Cat Is Wild

That kitty curled up on your lap is only one genetic step away from jungle killer

By Helen Regan November 11, 2014

Genitals May Have Formed Like Limbs

Harvard researchers probe genetic connections between the two

By Rishi Iyengar November 6, 2014

Scientists Trace Back the First Sexual Act Ever, to Weird Ancient Fish

Ancient fish were the first to copulate. And according to a world renowned paleontologist, it looked a lot like square dancing

By Laura Stampler October 21, 2014

Study: Chimps Learn How to Use New Tools From Other Chimps

This means chimps have a prerequisite for human culture

By Charlotte Alter October 1, 2014

The Remarkable, Movable Whale Penis: It's Just Science, People

A new study of cetacean pelvic bones reveals how pleasing the ladies gave some male ocean mammals a reproductive edge

By Michael D. Lemonick September 9, 2014

Humans and Neanderthals Were Actually Neighbors

Paleontologists know plenty about our nearest human cousins, the Neanderthals. They know that this highly successful species walked the Earth for some 300,000 years (we've been around for less than 200,000). They know the Neanderthals...

By Michael D. Lemonick August 20, 2014

Study: Society Flourished When Humans Got Less Manly

Does lower T lead to higher tech? Research links decrease in manly traits to an increase in sophisticated toolmaking in early humans

By Charlotte Alter August 4, 2014

Want to See a Live Dinosaur? Set Up a Bird Feeder

An exciting new study lays out in detail how our fine feathered friends evolved from the same ancestors as the T. Rex and velociraptors over the course of millions of years, and how they managed to avoid the same doomed fate as their dinosaur cousins

By Michael D. Lemonick July 31, 2014

Study: BFFs May Have Similar DNA

Really close friends might be as genetically similar as fourth cousins

By Belinda Luscombe July 15, 2014

These Goosebump Sensors Can Read Your Emotions

Sounds crazy right? Read on

By Alexandra Sifferlin June 25, 2014

Diving Beetles Could One Day Help Scuba Divers

It's all about the suction-cup pads on the male beetle's legs

By Melissa Hellmann June 11, 2014

We Evolved To Withstand Getting Punched in The Face

"When modern humans fight hand to hand, the face is usually the primary target," a researcher says

By Melissa Hellmann June 9, 2014

The Economy Is More Important Than Fighting Over Evolution

An evolutionist went fly-fishing with Tea Partiers, and they had more in common than she thought.

May 29, 2014

Evolution Expert: ‘Boys Will Be Boys’ Doesn’t Explain Sexual Harassment

How Telling Stories Makes Us Human

Sometimes Teleworking Isn’t As Good As Advertised

How Beauty Drives Evolution