Welcome to In the Spotlight, where each month we shine a light on something exciting, timely, or simply fascinating from the world of science.

This August, we're exploring the science behind the animals that share our planet. From the behaviors and adaptations that help species thrive to the conservation efforts protecting wildlife around the world, animal awareness days like World Lion Day, World Elephant Day, International Cat Day, and International Wolf Day are an opportunity to celebrate biodiversity and discover the research helping us better understand and protect the species that call our planet home.

Latest News Releases

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 22-Oct-2026 11:16 ET (22-Oct-2026 15:16 GMT/UTC)

10-Sep-2026

 

Project RattleCam reveals baby snakes during birthing season from three US states for the first time

California Polytechnic State University

Rattlesnake newborns have recently appeared on the Project RattleCam livestream at the camera locations in California, Colorado, and Pennsylvania. The babies offer glimpses into the life and behaviors of newborns and their mothers. The Pennsylvania camera, which was launched in May, is showing baby rattlesnakes on its feed for the first time this week. Project RattleCam is a community science collaboration between Cal Poly and Dickinson College.

10-Sep-2026

   

A new Stowers Institute brain atlas shows neurons don’t inherit their identity — they build it in their first hours of life

Stowers Institute for Medical Research
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A first-of-its-kind developmental brain atlas from the Stowers Institute maps both gene activity and the DNA switches controlling it across 232,251 cells, revealing that neuronal identity is rapidly established after birth rather than simply inherited from a parent stem cell.

Journal

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Funder

Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Fund, Stowers Institute for Medical Research

10-Sep-2026

 

Leveraging fine-grained occupancy estimation patterns for effective HVAC control

Research Foundation for the State University of New York
Business Announcement

This technology relies on predicted occupant counts and accounts for misprediction costs to minimize energy consumption. This will determine HVAC power for each zone to optimize occupant thermal comfort (weighted by predicted occupant counts) while minimizing total expected misprediction costs.

10-Sep-2026

 

Intermediate nitrification/denitrification bioreactor

Research Foundation for the State University of New York
Business Announcement

Researchers at Stony Brook University (SBU) present a method for nitrification and denitrification of septic effluent comprising an intermediate nitrification/denitrification bioreactor which builds on concepts currently used in the design of full‑scale wastewater treatment plants. However, this design takes an approach in which wood chips are used directly after a sand filter. 

10-Sep-2026

 

Highly efficient hydrogen storage and separation of hydrogen from blended methane-hydrogen mixtures in pipelines

Research Foundation for the State University of New York
Business Announcement

Researchers at Stony Brook University have proposed a method of extracting hydrogen from hydrogen‑methane blends that allows for fast and convenient separation and long‑term storage of hydrogen without any loss or degradation.

10-Sep-2026

 

Students land research internships at fisheries across New York

SUNY Cortland
Grant and Award Announcement

A United States Geological Survey (USGS) grant continues to give SUNY Cortland students access to fisheries across New York state for undergraduate research experience.