Doctor-poets search for the right words to help patients heal

Column One – The Los Angeles Times

Ocean robots take the pulse of our planet by measuring microbes

It looks like a trashcan bobbing in the waters off the California coast. But it’s hardly garbage. In fact, it … More

Bones pulled from the La Brea Tar Pits show the perils of being a picky eater

Multiple species of saber-toothed cats went extinct about 10,000 years ago while coyotes survived — becoming the apex predators famous … More

Everything you need to know about toxic algae blooms

Green pond scum floating on a lake is not just unsightly. As animal lovers have learned the hard way, it … More

Gender gap in STEM fields could be due to girls’ reading skills, not math ability

Why don’t more girls grow up to become scientists and engineers? It’s not that they’re bad at math, a new … More

210,000-year-old skull in Greece is earliest sign of modern humans in Europe or Asia

Around 210,000 years ago, an early human died in southern Greece — leaving scientists with the earliest evidence of human … More

Trees could reduce carbon in the atmosphere to levels not seen in nearly 100 years

By removing carbon dioxide from the air, trees are one of our strongest allies in the fight against climate change. … More

Archaeologists have a new way to unlock the secrets of ancient burned bones

Ancient bones, burned beyond repair, have been given new life to tell their stories, thanks to beams of neutrons. Using … More

Marathon runners get a boost from the bacteria in their guts

The secret to a healthier life may lie in the guts of elite athletes. Scientists who studied marathon runners discovered … More

Experiment with ‘lost’ wallets reveals that people are surprisingly honest

They say honesty is the best policy — and now there’s scientific evidence to prove it. An unconventional study that … More