Science News drew over 21 million visitors to our website this year. Here’s a look back at the most-read and most-watched stories of 2023.
Ötzi the Iceman’s ancestors may have been Neolithic farmers, a new genetic analysis indicates. Previous studies suggested that the roughly 5,300-year-old frozen mummy had ancestors from the Pontic-Caspian steppe. Ötzi also had male-pattern baldness and darker skin than previously thought (SN: 9/23/23, p. 5).
A newfound 13-sided shape dubbed the hat is the first true “einstein,” a tile that forms a pattern that can cover an infinite plane but does not repeat (SN 4/22/23, p. 7). Mathematicians had been searching for an einstein for half a century.
Earth’s heart may have temporarily stopped spinning relative to the mantle and crust in 2009 (SN: 2/25/23, p. 7). Now, the inner core may be reversing its spin as part of a cycle that happens every few decades.
2023-12-21 07:00:00
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