Science Times: What the Indigenous people of Alaska and Canada know about the stars

Plus: Tiny proteins, bedbugs and the sun's south pole —

View in browser|nytimes.com June 17, 2025 Michaela Goade A Traveler Waits in the Stars for Those Willing to Learn How to Look A new book shows that the Northern Dene people of Alaska and Canada have known far more about the stars than an earlier generation of scientists were willing to acknowledge. By Joshua Sokol Andres Kudacki for The New York Times Traveling the Cosmos With Carter Emmart, One Last Time For nearly three decades he has created mesmerizing planetarium shows at the American Museum of Natural History. But other galaxies await. By Dennis Overbye Science Source Origins Shining a Light on the World of Tiny Proteins From viruses to humans, life makes microproteins that have evaded discovery until now. By Carl Zimmer Jens Mortensen for The New York Times What the Golden Ratio Says About Your Bellybutton The secret beauty in apples, stars and the center of you. By Steven Strogatz and Jens Mortensen Gulshan Khan for The New York Times South Africa Built a Medical Research Powerhouse. Trump Cuts Have Demolished It. The budget cuts threaten global progress on everything from heart disease to H.I.V. — and could affect American drug companies, too. By Stephanie Nolen Email us Let us know how we're doing at sciencenewsletter@nytimes.com. Hannah Beier for The New York Times To Protest Budget Cuts, Young Scientists Try Letters to the Editor Hundreds of graduate students are writing to their hometown newspapers to defend their research, as the Trump administration drastically reduces science funding. By Jacey Fortin Alexander Braczkowski Trilobites Bat Cave Footage Offers Clues to How Viruses Leap Between Species Video from a national park in Uganda depicted a parade of predatory species feeding on and dispersing fruit bats that are known natural reservoirs of infectious diseases. By Anthony Ham Science Source Origins Shining a Light on the World of Tiny Proteins From viruses to humans, life makes microproteins that have evaded discovery until now. By Carl Zimmer The Picture Art Collection/Alamy Trilobites Early Humans Settled in Cities. Bedbugs Followed Them. A new study suggests that bedbugs were the first urban pest, and their population thrived in that environment. For the bloodsucking insects, it's been the perfect 13,000-year-long marriage. By Andrew Jacobs Sasha Arutyunova for The New York Times Trilobites Each Person Has a Unique 'Breath Print,' Scientists Find Every breath you take, they really may be watching you. By Veronique Greenwood Google and U.S. Experts Join on A.I. Hurricane Forecasts The National Hurricane Center will experiment with the company's DeepMind program to enhance the work of its expert meteorologists. By William J. Broad First-Ever Images of Sun's South Pole Released by European Mission Visuals from the European Space Agency's Solar Orbiter reveal chaotic solar magnetism in the solar polar region. Even better images are expected in the years ahead. By Jonathan O'Callaghan This Elusive Antarctic Squid Was Seen for the First Time An expedition in the Southern Ocean captured video of a rare species of deep-sea cephalopod. Until now, it had been found only in fishing nets and in the bellies of seabirds. By Alexa Robles-Gil Russian Scientist Released After Four Months in Federal Custody Kseniia Petrova, a Harvard researcher, still faces criminal charges for failing to declare scientific samples she was carrying in her suitcase. By Ellen Barry and Maya Shwayder Niede Guidon, 92, Archaeologist Who Preserved Prehistoric Rock Art, Dies Her work in Brazil challenged the prevailing theory of when humans first arrived in the Americas and led to the development of a forgotten corner of the country. By Seth Kugel CLIMATE CHANGE Thomas Lohnes/Getty Images Soaring Temperatures Threaten Crops, So Scientists Are Looking to Alter the Plants Genetically altering crops may be key to helping them adapt to extreme temperatures. But shrinking funds and social acceptance stand in the way. By Rebecca Dzombak Kenny Holston/The New York Times Submarines Are Hard to Detect. Climate Change Might Make It Even Harder. Sound is the primary means of tracking subs in vast ocean expanses, and research shows that it's behaving differently as the seas warm. By Jacob Judah HEALTH Taarika John the new old age Many Older People Embrace Vaccines. Research Is Proving Them Right. Newer formulations are even more effective at preventing illnesses that commonly afflict seniors — perhaps even dementia. By Paula Span Desiree Rios for The New York Times News Analysis How Kennedy's Purge of Advisers Could Disrupt U.S. Vaccinations Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, dismissed 17 scientific advisers to the C.D.C. Critics fear newly appointed members will roll back vaccine recommendations. By Apoorva Mandavilli Alex Welsh for The New York Times The Real-Life Dating Boot Camp That Inspired 'Love on the Spectrum' When U.C.L.A. psychologists first proposed teaching adults with autism how to date, funders wouldn't go near it. Now we are in a new world. By Ellen Barry Sasha Arutyunova for The New York Times The F.D.A. Is Reviewing Infant Formula for the First Time in Decades The agency's commissioner has implied that some of their ingredients may be harmful. Is that true? By Alice Callahan and Teddy Rosenbluth Trump's Cuts to N.I.H. Grants Focused on Minority Groups Are Illegal, Judge Rules The judge accused the Trump administration of discriminating against racial minorities and L.G.B.T.Q. people and ordered the government to restore much of the funding. By Zach Montague Texas OK's $50 Million for Ibogaine Research The state's governor signed legislation to allow clinical trials of a psychedelic drug that shows promise for veterans in treating addiction and post-traumatic stress disorder. By Andrew Jacobs Democrats Grill N.I.H. Leader on Cuts: Who Is Calling the Shots? Senators criticized the head of the National Institutes of Health for not taking responsibility for Trump administration cuts to research funding. By Benjamin Mueller F.D.A. to Use A.I. in Drug Approvals to 'Radically Increase Efficiency' With a Trump-driven reduction of nearly 2,000 employees, agency officials view artificial intelligence as a way to speed drugs to the market. By Christina Jewett The Tick Situation Is Getting Worse. Here's How to Protect Yourself. As temperatures rise, ticks of several kinds are flourishing in ways that threaten people's health. By Maggie Astor Make a friend's day: Forward this email. Got this from a friend? 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