LA Post: Top Science stories and news headlines

Economy|Science|Technology

Trading Day: Tech melt

US stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq clocking its biggest fall in three months, on surprisingly strong inflation data and

October 15, 2026

Flavio Bolsonaro slightly leads Lula in Brazil runoff, Quaest poll shows

Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro was seen slightly ahead of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva heading into the October 25 presidential runoff, a Quaest poll showed on

October 15, 2026

Business|Political|Science|Technology|World

Trump says oil, gas and mineral exploration in Greenland is set to begin. It's not that simple

U.S. President Donald Trump says “massive” oil, gas and mineral exploration is set to begin in Greenland

October 14, 2026

Arts|Economy|MidEast|Science|Technology

Oil prices gain on attacks in Saudi Arabia, Iran's new tactics to target tankers

Oil prices rose on Wednesday after the Houthis attacked Saudi Aramco's headquarters and Iran said it was deploying new tactics to target ships and keep oil

October 14, 2026

Europe|Political|Science|Technology|World

Ukraine says Starlink restriction disrupting military as Musk claims US controls those systems

October 14, 2026

Judge extends order blocking Trump from banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters from White House

A federal judge has extended an order blocking the Trump administration from banning reporters from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House

October 14, 2026

Political|Science|Technology|World

Putin convenes top Russian officials to discuss cybersecurity

Russian President Vladimir Putin will discuss cybersecurity with top officials on Wednesday, the Kremlin said, describing it as an increasingly pressing issue but denying

October 14, 2026

Science|Technology

Google Deepmind's Hassabis calls AI hacks 'early warning shots'

Recent hacking incidents perpetrated by AI agents are "early warning shots", and the world could soon face major incidents if systems are

October 14, 2026

Asia|Environment|Science|World

Singapore pollution spikes, East Timor shuts schools as Indonesia wildfire haze intensifies

Pollution readings in Singapore reached their highest level this year on Wednesday while East Timor shut its schools for three days in response to

October 14, 2026

Business|Economy|Europe|Science|Technology

Europe leads the world on AI rules. So why is it missing from the AI safety debate?

October 14, 2026

Space startups secure record $20.8 billion funding as infrastructure bets surge, report shows

Space startups attracted a record $20.8 billion in funding in the third quarter, as investors poured money into launch providers, manufacturing and other

October 14, 2026

China buys 8-10 US soybean cargoes in first deals since Trump-Xi summit, sources say

Chinese state buyers purchased 8-10 Panamax cargoes of US soybeans this week, the first such deals since the September summit between Presidents Donald

October 14, 2026

Business|Economy|Political|Science|Technology

ASML CFO says US Match Act limiting DUV sales to China would be counterproductive

The chief financial officer of top computer chip equipment manufacturer ASML said on Wednesday the company opposes a proposal by US Congress to limit the

October 14, 2026

Europe|Science|Technology|World

Poland's Sikorski asks 'big man' Musk if he is playing politics with Starlink in Ukraine

Poland's foreign minister asked Elon Musk if he was "playing politics" with Starlink in Ukraine on Wednesday, after Kyiv said Space X had introduced a limit on some services

October 14, 2026

Barbados joins push for global panel to tackle inequality

Barbados is joining a group of countries calling for the establishment of an international panel to address inequality, at a time when heightened geopolitical

October 14, 2026

Science|Technology

Google DeepMind, Google Cloud to allow European researchers access to frontier models

Google DeepMind and Alphabet's cloud service Google Cloud will provide up to 200 European scientific researchers with direct access to their frontier models, together with

October 14, 2026

Political|Science|Technology|World

Denmark says US resource exploration in Greenland must respect local laws

Denmark's foreign ministry said on Wednesday if the US wished to explore Greenland's resources, it would have to do so within the framework of the

October 14, 2026

Business|Science|Technology

Nvidia pledges $250 million to UK AI safety research

US chipmaker Nvidia has pledged $250 million worth of computing resources to Britain over five years, to fund AI security research, bolstering the country's ambitions to

October 14, 2026

Political|Science|Technology

Ukraine says SpaceX limits Starlink operations, disrupting military

SpaceX has introduced a limit on some Starlink services in Ukraine, disrupting combat drone missions for which the technology is crucial, officials said on

October 14, 2026

Economy|Science|Technology

Kamala Harris warns window closing for AI safeguards, urges US-China cooperation

Former US Vice President Kamala Harris urged governments and technology companies on Wednesday to urgently put safeguards in place for artificial

October 14, 2026

Business|Economy|Environment|Science|Technology

China September rare earth exports rise 6.7% from a year earlier

China's exports of rare earths in September rose 6.7% from the prior year, customs data showed on Wednesday, as overseas buying improved after a summer lull.

October 14, 2026

Iowa faces a reckoning over water quality and cancer rates in midterm campaigns

Iowa is grappling with water quality and cancer rates, bringing these issues to the forefront of state politics

October 14, 2026

Environment|Science

Indonesia relocates 8 orangutans into protected forest after rescue from wildfires

Eight endangered orangutans rescued from areas of Indonesia’s Borneo ravaged by wildfires have been released into a protected forest

October 13, 2026

Iran shifting tactics to step up attacks on shipping before US vote, officials say

Iran is deploying new tactics to target ships sailing through the Strait of Hormuz as it seeks to keep oil

October 14, 2026

Environment|Science|Technology

From climate-driven disasters to Rohingya refugee camps, solar kits help keep the lights on

Mohammed Saber and his family rely on a solar kit for electricity at the bamboo-and-tarpaulin shack they call home at a camp for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh

October 14, 2026

Rep. Collins and Sen. Ossoff clash over Epstein files in Georgia debate

Republican Rep. Mike Collins attacked Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff over campaign donations from LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, who has acknowledged meeting Jeffrey Epstein, while Ossoff countered accusing Collins of voting against releasing Epstein-related records, and helping to "cover up" evidence.

October 14, 2026

Business|Political|Science|Technology

Anthropic seeks rehearing of case over Pentagon's security risk branding

Anthropic asked a US appeals court on Tuesday to reconsider a ruling that upheld the Pentagon's decision to label the AI company as a national security supply chain risk over a

October 14, 2026

Health|Science

Pope Leo XIV’s lung cancer highlights growing number of nonsmokers diagnosed with the disease – and younger people too

While lung cancer rates have decreased by 43% in men, they have risen by 79% in women. Broader screening guidelines and recognizing early symptoms can help address the changing face of lung cancer.

October 14, 2026

Trump says US still sharing intel, even as Ukraine reports attacks with no warnings

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Washington was still sharing intelligence with Ukraine, even as Kyiv reported new Russian

October 13, 2026

Business|Science|Technology

Apple's HomeView brings personalized Siri to smart home, takes on Amazon and Google

Apple on Tuesday unveiled a smart-home hub that taps iPhone user data to make Siri more personal, but promised privacy safeguards designed to keep that

October 14, 2026

Science|Technology

The leap second is on the chopping block — and timekeeping could change forever

October 13, 2026

Economy|Health|Science|Technology

Social Security benefits will rise 3.6% in 2027, but that may not be enough to offset healthcare costs

Some advocates for older Americans want the government to change the index used for this adjustment to one more tailored to their spending patterns.

October 14, 2026

Arts|Economy|Science|Technology

US stocks edge back from their record following the first big batch of profit reports for the summer

The first big batch of summertime profit reports from U.S. companies made waves on Wall Street after topping analysts’ expectations, but many canceled each other out

October 13, 2026

Tencent raises $5.7 billion in debt sale as demand defies AI scrutiny

Tencent Holdings has raised about $5.7 billion through US dollar and offshore yuan debt offerings on Tuesday, drawing combined

October 13, 2026

Business|Science|Technology

Nvidia buys stakes in French tech startups Doctolib, Genesis AI

US chipmaker Nvidia has agreed to buy stakes in French technology startups Doctolib and Genesis AI, the two French companies said on Tuesday.

October 13, 2026

World stocks dip on AI spending concerns; Brent settles lower

World stocks edged lower on Tuesday as concerns about AI spending weighed on chipmakers and investors looked ahead to more US corporate

October 13, 2026

MI5 chief says Iran is targeting military sites and suspected plot at RAF Fairford is 'not unique’

The head of MI5 says Iran is trying to hit military sites in the U.K. and the suspected plot to attack a U.S.-run military air base in September is not unique

October 13, 2026

Business|Economy|Finance|Science|Technology

Brutal session for chip stocks shows AI trade is turning

A selloff in AI supplier shares on Tuesday is the strongest sign to date that the mood on the trade of the decade is shifting, with growing worries that

October 13, 2026

Arts|Europe|Science|Technology|World

Cyberattacks hit European supermarket chains and disrupt refrigeration systems

Cyberattacks have disrupted European supermarket chains, causing refrigeration systems to overheat at hundreds of stores in France

October 13, 2026

Oil prices settle mixed, focus on US-Russia diesel deal, Saudi Yemen attacks

Oil prices were mixed on Tuesday as hopes the US-Russia diesel deal could free up more supplies from Moscow offset attacks in Saudi Arabia and Yemen that could

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

Investigators hunt French supermarket fridge hackers, no claim of responsibility

French investigators on Tuesday were hunting the hackers who seized control of cooling units at hundreds of supermarkets in a

October 13, 2026

CVS agrees to pay $315 million to settle Justice Department case over opioid prescriptions

CVS Pharmacy Inc. and various subsidiaries have agreed to pay $315 million to resolve a Justice Department case alleging it unlawfully dispensed medically unnecessary prescriptions of highly addictive opioids

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

No black-footed ferrets found in Meeteetse, 40 years after a rescue saved the species

Wyoming wildlife managers report no black-footed ferrets are being detected in the Absaroka Range foothills near Meeteetse, a key conservation area for the species

October 13, 2026

Dollar retreats from 18-month high as oil prices fall, inflation data in focus

The dollar slipped from an 18-month high on Tuesday as oil prices retreated and investors reassessed the AI-fueled rally that has supported demand for US

October 13, 2026

Business|Election|Finance|Science|Technology

Goldman CEO watching for election-driven volatility around data centers

Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said on Tuesday it would be interesting to watch for political volatility around AI centers ahead of

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

Anthropic warns AI models may soon self-replicate and could wreak havoc on the web

A new warning about artificial intelligence from Anthropic caused a stir in cybersecurity circles on Tuesday, a day after the company

October 13, 2026

Trump says US still sharing intel with Ukraine, defends Russian diesel deal

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States continues to share intelligence with Ukraine and is working with both Kyiv

October 13, 2026

Why billions spent on defense haven’t shielded Saudi Arabia from Houthi attacks

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

A big cooldown will drop temperatures to their lowest levels in months

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

Influential Hindu group urges India to block Starlink amid Musk-Ambani feud

An influential Hindu nationalist group close to India's ruling party urged the government on Tuesday to block Elon Musk's Starlink from launching

October 13, 2026

Iran and Russia are stepping up hybrid campaigns in Britain, UK spy chief says

Iran is stepping up attempts to hit harder targets such as military sites in Britain and Russia is increasing its hybrid warfare against Ukraine's allies,

October 13, 2026

Business|Health|Science|Travel

Qantas plane grounded after reported bedbug outbreak

October 13, 2026

Business|Finance|Science|Technology

Apple just announced a new gadget that could be key to its AI push

October 13, 2026

Economy|Environment|Food|Science

Americans are stressed about grocery prices, so why do they toss or overlook so much ‘misfit’ food?

Quality, rather than discounts or environmental benefits, is what’s needed to encourage shoppers to consider odd-shaped produce.

October 13, 2026

Health|Science|Technology

That brightly packaged sexual enhancement pill at the gas station might be laced with dangerous drugs

Sexual enhancement supplements often contain unlisted prescription drugs that pose serious health risks.

October 13, 2026

Crime|Science|Technology

UK in ‘new era of national security’ as AI supercharges rising threats, security chief warns

October 13, 2026

Trump says he does not believe China and Russia help Iran, contradicting US intelligence

President Donald Trump said on Monday he did not believe that China and Russia were helping Iran "at all," even as US

October 13, 2026

Arts|Environment|Opinion|Science|Technology

Across the US, people don’t want data centers coming to their communities

Opposition to data centers is widespread across the US, uniting people despite other differences on political and environmental issues.

October 13, 2026

Arts|Environment|Science|Technology|World

Environmentalists picket African Energy Week, urging an end to new oil and gas exploration

Climate activists in South Africa have picketed outside the African Energy Week conference, demanding an end to new oil and gas exploration across the continent

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

Indian police detain 'cockroach' movement leaders demanding election chief stand down

India's "cockroach" youth movement leaders were detained on Tuesday after they jumped barricades to enter a historic Delhi site popular for protests, demanding that the

October 13, 2026

Health|Science|Technology

Could GLP-1 drugs be anti-aging medications?

October 13, 2026

BlackRock cools on US stocks, turns bullish on short-dated Treasuries

The BlackRock Investment Institute said it had downgraded its view on US stocks to neutral, citing volatility around AI, and upgraded Treasuries, preferring short-term

October 13, 2026

Europe|Science|Technology|World

NATO fund targets drone defence technologies as Ukraine reshapes priorities

Russia's invasion of Ukraine is reshaping NATO's defence technology priorities, with counter-drone systems and space-based surveillance emerging as

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

NASA's Perseverance rover breaks record for off-planet driving on Mars

While no person has ever set foot on Mars, humankind has managed to conduct extensive explorations of the surface of Earth's planetary neighbor using

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

Banking watchdogs ramp up AI scrutiny as stability fears mount, sources say

Banking regulators are stepping up efforts to contain growing AI risks, six people familiar with the matter

October 13, 2026

Business|Economy|Science|Technology

Nvidia's China AI-chip share falls as Huawei closes gap, report finds

Nvidia's share of China's market for data-centre AI chips fell to 34% in the first half of 2026, as US export controls restricted supplies of its products and domestic

October 13, 2026

US says it opposes Chinese 'coercion', after Belize, Paraguay ministers sanctioned

The Trump administration opposes "coercion and aggression" by China against countries for exercising their sovereign rights, the US State Department said,

October 13, 2026

Business|Science|Technology

NTT Data in final talks to build Anthropic's first data centre in Japan, Nikkei reports

Japan's NTT Data Group, a unit of telecommunications giant NTT, is in the final stages of talks to build a data centre in Osaka, western Japan, for US AI company Anthropic,

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

Storms cause 5 deaths in Mexico as flood risk eases in southwestern US

Hurricane Simon is still pounding Mexico's Pacific coast as it remains offshore

October 13, 2026

Science|Technology

Anthropic says new safeguards sharply reduce AI distillation attacks

Anthropic said on Monday new measures designed to prevent rivals from copying the capabilities of its Claude AI models have reduced data harvested in so-called distillation attacks

October 13, 2026

IMF cuts Latin America, Caribbean growth forecasts on energy shock, little AI boost

The International Monetary Fund trimmed its growth forecasts for Latin America and the Caribbean for this year and next and said most of the region was getting little lift

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

Pacific hurricane region sets record for big, long-lasting storms thanks to El Niño

El Niño and other factors have combined to turbocharge the central and eastern Pacific hurricane region to record activity

October 13, 2026

Arts|Science|Technology|World

North Korea fires missiles days after South Korea's hypersonic test

North Korea fired multiple ballistic missiles toward the sea off its east coast on Monday, South Korea's military said, marking Pyongyang's fourth

October 12, 2026

Business|Political|Science|Technology

US AI testing agency officials to move to White House, The Information reports

President Donald Trump's administration is planning to move three senior officials from the Center for Advancing Innovation and Standards for Super Intelligence (CAISSI) to the

October 13, 2026

Arts|Food|Science

Hooked on tuna: People have been harvesting these ocean predators for 44,000 years

Bones in archaeological sites, ancient rock art, paintings on frescos and vases, written historical records and ethnographic accounts all helped researchers recreate a deep history of people and tuna.

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

300 glaciers have disappeared from the American West since the mid-20th century – the survivors have a few things in common

A new study compared the glaciers in the Lower 48 states today against historical data from the mid-20th century. The results show the region’s vulnerabilities as temperatures rise.

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

California is taking a beating from an unusually destructive 2026 Pacific hurricane season

Tropical storms rarely survive in the cool water off California, but waves from storms far to the south can still damaged coastal areas. And flooding rain can sweep in.

October 13, 2026

UK PM Burnham says Iran's IRGC likely behind RAF Fairford incident

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said on Monday that a suspected plot targeting the RAF Fairford air base in Britain was "highly likely" to have been

October 12, 2026

Arts|Europe|Finance|Science|Technology

Model blitz at Paris motor show as Europe-China rivalry heats up

Europe's car industry fought back against rising Chinese competition at the Paris car show on Monday with a wave of new model launches and

October 12, 2026

Business|Science|Technology

Meta releases Muse Wonder AI models to challenge Anthropic and OpenAI

Meta on Monday launched Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full, calling them its most capable AI models yet, as the social media firm looks to compete more forcefully with OpenAI and

October 13, 2026

Arts|Opinion|Science|Technology

Marijuana on the ballot for the final time in Idaho? Voters to decide if lawmakers have sole power to legalize

October 13, 2026

Environment|Science

Black bear cub with head stuck in jar for days rescued by N.C. wildlife officials

October 13, 2026

Environment|Health|Science

"Massive shellfish die-offs continue" along Maine coast due to red tide

October 12, 2026

Business|Science

2 American economists win Nobel for work on managing economic shocks

American-born economists Robert E

October 12, 2026

Arts|Economy|Finance|Science|Technology

US yield surge triggers mortgage hedging, adds to bond market pressure

The sharp rise in long-term US Treasury yields has spurred mortgage-related hedging that adds selling pressure to an already

October 12, 2026

Sudan's famine risk worsened by conflict, drought and funding shortages, report says

Conflict and drought are worsening food insecurity in Sudan’s Darfur and Kordofan regions, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification

October 12, 2026

Crime|Science

Video of California man convicted of poisoning co-worker released as he seeks to dismiss ruling

October 12, 2026

Economy|Science

A list of this year’s Nobel Prize winners

This year’s Nobel Prize awards concluded Monday after two economists won the Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for their work on models that help manage economic shocks

October 12, 2026

Economy|Science|Technology

Hall, Woodford win Nobel prize for work on how to stabilise economies

US academics Robert Hall and Michael Woodford won the 2026 Nobel economics prize on Monday for decades of work developing ground-up

October 12, 2026

Business|Economy|Science|Technology

EnergyX signs binding $2 billion lithium supply deal with Trafigura

Lithium startup EnergyX said on Monday it has signed a $2 billion binding offtake to supply commodities trader Trafigura with the battery metal from Chile and the

October 12, 2026

Science|Technology

Microsoft plans huge deployment of its own AI chips, with an eye on saving costs

By Stephen Nellis and Max A.

October 12, 2026

Science|Technology

From ‘hands-free’ to ‘eyes-off’: how General Motors is simulating its way to autonomous driving

General Motors plans to launch an advanced iteration of its driver assist technology on the 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ electric vehicle

October 12, 2026

Education|Environment|Science|Technology

How much rain can a hurricane make, and does the storm size matter?

Storms big and small can produce a lot of rain. What matters most is how fast they’re moving, as an atmospheric scientist and educator explains.

October 12, 2026

Arts|Science|Travel

Americans can now see a famous portrait of the Pacific Islander who captivated 18th-century England for the first time

Joshua Reynolds’ 1776 ‘Portrait of Omai’ portrays a commoner from Tahiti as a nobleman, reflecting European fantasies and assumptions about Pacific cultures.

October 12, 2026

Economy|Science

Democrats distance themselves from trans rights – close midterm races may show whether that pays off

A scholar of LGBTQ+ politics looks at how Democratic campaigns in Texas and Ohio are shifting on trans issues and what that could mean for control of Congress.

October 12, 2026

Science|Technology

Physics Nobel highlights Antarctica’s role in exploring the cosmos

For more than a century, scientists have treated Antarctica’s environments as windows into worlds beyond Earth.

October 12, 2026

Food|Science|Technology

Ancient people relied on genetic variation already present in wild plants to domesticate crops like rice and corn

New genomic tools let scientists dig into the family trees of crops like rice, corn and adzuki beans to learn more about how they transitioned from wild plants to domesticated crops.

October 12, 2026

Health|Opinion|Science

I teach doctors how to interpret test results – and the labels ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’ often hide what matters most

Labeling medical test results as ‘normal’ or ‘abnormal’ helps clinicians make quick judgments when diagnosing patients. But this binary approach to interpreting tests can lead to fatal errors.

October 12, 2026

Health|Science|Sports|World

Pope Leo announces he will undergo surgery to remove lung nodule

October 11, 2026

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