Disaster Plan News

November 15, 2025

Top Headlines

This 14th Century Story Fooled the World About the Black Death

Nov. 11, 2025 Historians have traced myths about the Black Death’s rapid journey across Asia to one 14th-century poem by Ibn al-Wardi. His imaginative maqāma, never meant as fact, became the foundation for centuries of misinformation about how the plague ...

Ancient DNA Reveals the Deadly Diseases Behind Napoleon’s Defeat

Oct. 26, 2025 Researchers have uncovered microbial evidence in the remains of Napoleon’s soldiers from the 1812 Russian retreat. Genetic analysis revealed pathogens behind paratyphoid and relapsing fever, diseases likely contributing to the army’s massive ...

90% of Science Is Lost. This New AI Just Found It

Oct. 13, 2025 Vast amounts of valuable research data remain unused, trapped in labs or lost to time. Frontiers aims to change that with FAIR² Data Management, a groundbreaking AI-driven system that makes datasets reusable, verifiable, and citable. By uniting ...

Fentanyl Overdoses Among Seniors Surge 9,000% — A Hidden Crisis Few Saw Coming

Oct. 13, 2025 Overdose deaths from fentanyl mixed with stimulants have skyrocketed among seniors, increasing 9,000% in just eight years. Once thought to affect mainly the young, the opioid epidemic’s fourth wave ...

Ancient DNA Finally Solves the Mystery of the World’s First Pandemic

Aug. 30, 2025 Scientists have finally uncovered direct genetic evidence of Yersinia pestis — the bacterium behind the Plague of Justinian — in a mass grave in Jerash, Jordan. This long-sought discovery resolves a centuries-old debate, confirming that the ...

The Surprising Reason X-rays Can Push Arthritis Patients Toward Surgery

Aug. 26, 2025 Knee osteoarthritis is a major cause of pain and disability, but routine X-rays often do more harm than good. New research shows that being shown an X-ray can increase anxiety, make people fear exercise, and lead them to believe surgery is the only ...

Maui’s Fires Drove a 67% Jump in Deaths. Most Went Uncounted

Aug. 25, 2025 Researchers uncovered that the Maui wildfires caused a spike in deaths far higher than reported, with hidden fatalities linked to fire, smoke, and lack of medical access. They warn that prevention rooted in Native Hawaiian ecological knowledge is ...

Why Listening May Be the Most Powerful Medicine

Aug. 20, 2025 In a health system where speed often replaces empathy, researchers highlight the life-changing power of listening. Beyond simple questions, values-driven listening—marked by presence, curiosity, and compassion—can transform both patients and ...

Could This New Earthquake System Give Alaska 50 Seconds to Prepare?

Aug. 16, 2025 A new study reveals that an earthquake early warning system, similar to the USGS ShakeAlert used in California, Oregon, and Washington, could give Alaskan communities precious seconds to prepare before strong shaking hits. Modeling shows that towns ...

Scientists Warn Ocean Could Soon Reach Rapa Nui’s Sacred Moai

Aug. 13, 2025 Advanced computer modeling suggests that by 2080, waves driven by sea level rise could flood Ahu Tongariki and up to 51 cultural treasures on Rapa Nui. The findings emphasize the urgent need for protective measures to preserve the island’s ...

Researchers Discover Key Social Factors That Triple Long COVID Risk

Aug. 4, 2025 New research led by Mass General Brigham reveals that people facing social challenges—like food insecurity, financial strain, and limited healthcare access—are two to three times more likely to develop long ...

Even Without Catching COVID, the Pandemic May Have Quietly Aged Your Brain

July 24, 2025 Even people who never caught Covid-19 may have aged mentally faster during the pandemic, according to new brain scan research. This large UK study shows how the stress, isolation, and upheaval of lockdowns may have aged our brains, especially in ...

Latest Headlines

updated 1:02am EST

After 250 Years, an 18th-Century Mechanical Volcano Erupts to Life

Nov. 7, 2025 An 18th-century mechanical artwork depicting Mount Vesuvius’ eruption has finally erupted — 250 years later. University of Melbourne students reconstructed Sir William Hamilton’s imaginative ...

Ancient Tides May Have Sparked Humanity’s First Urban Civilization

Oct. 27, 2025 New research shows that the rise of Sumer was deeply tied to the tidal and sedimentary dynamics of ancient Mesopotamia. Early communities harnessed predictable tides for irrigation, but when deltas ...

Life Expectancy Gains Have Slowed Sharply, Study Finds

Oct. 26, 2025 Researchers found that life expectancy growth in wealthy nations has dramatically slowed since 1939. Once driven by major reductions in child mortality, longevity gains are now limited by slower ...

For 170 Years, U.S. Cities Have Followed a Hidden Law of Growth and Decline

Oct. 6, 2025 Despite massive technological and industrial changes, American cities have stayed remarkably coherent in how their economies fit together. This hidden order governs how cities diversify, grow, and ...

10 People Who Beat 8,000 Others to Become NASA Astronaut Candidates

Sep. 23, 2025 NASA has chosen 10 new astronaut candidates who will train for missions to the Moon and Mars. Their selection represents a powerful blend of talent and ambition, fueling humanity’s next great leaps ...

Who Are the Papua New Guineans? New DNA Study Reveals Stunning Origins

Sep. 15, 2025 On remote islands of Papua New Guinea, people carry a story that ties us all back to our deepest roots. Although their striking appearance once puzzled scientists, new genetic evidence shows they ...

Scientists Modeled Nuclear Winter—the Global Food Collapse Was Worse Than Expected

July 26, 2025 What would happen if a nuclear war triggered a climate-altering catastrophe? Researchers have modeled how such a scenario could devastate global corn ...

Three-Person DNA IVF Stops Inherited Disease—eight Healthy Babies Born in UK First

July 18, 2025 In a groundbreaking UK first, eight healthy babies have been born using an IVF technique that includes DNA from three people—two parents and a ...

It’s Not That You Look—it’s When: The Hidden Power of Eye Contact

July 17, 2025 A groundbreaking study from Flinders University reveals that it's not just making eye contact that matters, but precisely when and how you do it. By studying interactions between humans and virtual ...

Scientists’ Top 10 Bee-Magnet Blooms—turn Any Lawn Into a Pollinator Paradise

July 7, 2025 Danish and Welsh botanists sifted through 400 studies, field-tested seed mixes, and uncovered a lineup of native and exotic blooms that both thrill ...

Multisensory VR Forest Reboots Your Brain and Lifts Mood—study Confirms

July 6, 2025 Immersing stressed volunteers in a 360° virtual Douglas-fir forest complete with sights, sounds and scents boosted their mood, sharpened short-term memory and deepened their feeling of ...

Scientists Just Found a Major Flaw in a Key COVID Drug Study

July 4, 2025 A promising path to fighting COVID and other coronaviruses may have been based on a serious mistake. Scientists had zeroed in on a part of the virus called the NiRAN domain, believed to be a powerful ...

Scientists Just Reconstructed Half the Neanderthal Genome—thanks to Indian DNA

June 29, 2025 India’s complex ancestry—intertwined with Iranian farmers, Steppe herders, and local hunter-gatherers—has now been decoded through genomic data from 2,762 people. The study uncovers surprising ...

Artificial Intelligence Isn’t Hurting workers—It Might Be Helping

June 23, 2025 Despite widespread fears, early research suggests AI might actually be improving some aspects of work life. A major new study examining 20 years of worker data in Germany found no signs that AI ...

Half of Today’s Jobs Could vanish—Here’s How Smart Countries Are Future-Proofing Workers

June 22, 2025 AI is revolutionizing the job landscape, prompting nations worldwide to prepare their workforces for dramatic changes. A University of Georgia study evaluated 50 countries’ national AI strategies ...

Cluck Once, and the River Shakes: Inside the Amazon’s Giant Snake Saga

June 16, 2025 A lifelong fascination with nature and fieldwork led this researcher to the world of ethnobiology a field where ecology, culture, and community come together. Investigating how local people relate to ...

Africa's Pangolin Crisis: The Delicacy That's Driving a Species to the Brink

June 14, 2025 Study suggests that appetite for bushmeat -- rather than black market for scales to use in traditional Chinese medicine -- is driving West Africa's illegal hunting of one of the world's ...

Clean Energy, Dirty Secrets: Inside the Corruption Plaguing California’s Solar Market

June 11, 2025 California s solar energy boom is often hailed as a green success story but a new study reveals a murkier reality beneath the sunlit panels. Researchers uncover seven distinct forms of corruption ...

Coastal Flooding More Frequent Than Previously Thought

June 2, 2025 Flooding in coastal communities is happening far more often than previously thought, according to a new study. The study also found major flaws with the widely used approach of using marine water ...

Researchers Use Deep Learning to Predict Flooding This Hurricane Season

June 2, 2025 Researchers have developed a deep learning model called LSTM-SAM that predicts extreme water levels from tropical cyclones more efficiently and accurately, especially in data-scarce coastal regions, ...

Earlier Measles Vaccine Could Help Curb Global Outbreak

May 29, 2025 The global measles outbreak must trigger an urgent debate into whether a vaccine should be recommended earlier to better protect against the highly contagious disease during infancy, a new review ...

A Cheap and Easy Potential Solution for Lowering Carbon Emissions in Maritime Shipping

May 29, 2025 Reducing travel speeds and using an intelligent queuing system at busy ports can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from oceangoing container vessels by 16-24%, according to researchers. Not only ...

Trees Vs. Disease: Tree Cover Reduces Mosquito-Borne Health Risk

May 28, 2025 A study finds small-scale tree cover in Costa Rica boosts biodiversity while limiting dangerous mosquito ...

Involving Communities in Nature-Based Solutions to Climate Challenges Leads to Greater Innovation, Study Shows

May 28, 2025 Involving communities in nature-based solutions to tackle urban climate and environmental challenges leads to innovation and multiple benefits, a study ...

Breakthrough AI Model Could Transform How We Prepare for Natural Disasters

May 22, 2025 From deadly floods in Europe to intensifying tropical cyclones around the world, the climate crisis has made timely and precise forecasting more essential than ever. Yet traditional forecasting ...

How to Use AI to Listen to the 'Heartbeat' of a City

May 21, 2025 AI-driven “sentiment maps” built from geotagged Instagram posts reveal how city dwellers actually feel in specific locations. By pairing emotional signals with Google Street View imagery, ...

May 21, 2025 Hurricane winds are a major contributor to storm-related losses for people living in the southeastern coastal states. As the global temperature continues to rise, scientists predict that hurricanes ...

Southeast Asia Could Prevent Up to 36,000 Ozone-Related Early Deaths a Year by 2050 With Stricter Air Pollution Controls

May 21, 2025 A study has found that implementing robust air pollution control measures could mean Southeast Asian countries prevent as many as 36,000 ozone-related premature deaths each year by ...

Landmark Report Reveals Key Challenges Facing Adolescents

May 20, 2025 Poor mental health, rising obesity rates, exposure to violence and climate change are among the key challenges facing our adolescents today, according to a global ...

Coastal Squeeze Is Bad for Biodiversity, and for Us, Experts Say

May 20, 2025 Worldwide, coastal areas are squeezed between a rising sea level on one end and human structures on the other. The distance between a sandy coastline and the first human structures averages less than ...