'Potentially hazardous asteroid' will make its closest-ever approach to Earth on April Fools' Day (yes, really)

Invasive crazy ants are being annihilated by murder fungus. Good. | Why do we have different blood types? | This brain structure may grow too fast in babies who develop autism Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version]( March 29, 2022 CONNECT WITH LIVESCIENCE  [Facebook]( [Twitter](  [LIVESCIENCE]( Amazing science every day [SIGN UP]( ⋅ [WEBSITE](  [] Top Science News [] [Invasive crazy ants are being annihilated by murder fungus. Good.]( [Invasive crazy ants are being annihilated by murder fungus. Good.]( (Alex Wild/University of Texas at Austin) The days of invasive crazy ants — whose supercolonies can support millions upon millions of the fierce insects — may be numbered. That's because a deadly fungus that uses spring-loaded harpoonlike barbs to pierce the ants' gut cells is wiping out their colonies across the Southeastern United States. That's not a bad thing. Tawny crazy ants (Nylanderia fulva), which are originally from South America, have over the past two decades become an increasingly problematic pest species and a threat to local wildlife in the U.S., by creating vast supercolonies. Full Story: [Live Science]( (3/29) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [Never Stop Learning]( From big space discoveries to ancient mysteries and future tech, our Knowledge magazines are packed with engaging, authoritative content for all ages. With expert editorial teams across history, science and technology, we have everything you need to feed your curiosity. [Subscribe today!]( ADVERTISEMENT [] Life’s Little Mysteries [] [Why do we have different blood types?]( [Why do we have different blood types?]( (matejmo via Getty Images) The type of blood coursing through your veins is likely different from the blood in your friends and maybe even your family. Knowing your blood type is important for blood transfusions and other medical purposes, which raises a question: Why do humans have different blood types? There are four main blood groups: A, B, AB and O. Each is defined by which antigens are present on the surface of red blood cells. Type A blood has the A antigen on red blood cells, B has the B antigen, AB has both and O has neither. Full Story: [Live Science]( (3/28) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Your Health [] [This brain structure may grow too fast in babies who develop autism]( [This brain structure may grow too fast in babies who develop autism]( (Kateryna Kon via Getty Images) A brain structure called the amygdala grows too fast in babies who are diagnosed with autism by age 2, a new study suggests. The study researchers found that this overgrowth occurs between 6 and 12 months of age, before children are typically diagnosed with autism. The findings, published Friday (March 25) in The American Journal of Psychiatry, suggest that therapies for children at high risk of autism may have the best chance of working if they start in infancy. Full Story: [Live Science]( (3/28) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Father's use of diabetes drug could raise his kids' risk of birth defects]( [Father's use of diabetes drug could raise his kids' risk of birth defects]( (Francis Dean / Contributor via Getty Images) If men take metformin, a common type 2 diabetes drug, during a critical period of sperm development, their offspring may be more likely to develop birth defects, a large study suggests. In particular, the study found that male babies born to fathers who took metformin during this critical period had a higher risk of genital birth defects than babies whose fathers took metformin outside of that key time window or had never taken the drug. The new research was published Monday (March 28) in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine. Full Story: [Live Science]( (3/28) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( Featured Content Sponsored Content from Gigabyte [Unleash your full potential with Gigabyte Aero laptops]( With an industry-leading display, 11th Gen Intel chips, and Nvidia RTX 3000 series graphics cards, the Gigabyte AERO 17 HDR laptops have all the power gamers and creative professionals need, and more. [Read more and enter to win a Aero 17 HDR laptop]( [] Astronomy & Astrophysics [] ['Potentially hazardous asteroid' will make its closest-ever approach to Earth on April Fools' Day (yes, really)]( ['Potentially hazardous asteroid' will make its closest-ever approach to Earth on April Fools' Day (yes, really)]( (Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library via Getty Images) Astronomers have confirmed that a "potentially hazardous" asteroid is set to make its closest-ever approach to Earth this Friday (April 1). However, there is no need to panic; astronomers say the massive space rock will miss us by around 4.6 million miles (7.4 million kilometers). The asteroid, known as 2007 FF1, is between 360 feet and 656 feet (110 and 260 meters) in diameter, according to SpaceReference.com, a database that compiles information from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California and the International Astronomical Union. The rock 2007 FF1 is known as an Apollo-class asteroid, of which there are around 15,000, meaning that its orbit around the sun (which takes 684 days) crosses with Earth's orbit. The asteroid is classified as potentially hazardous because of its size and relatively close orbit to Earth. Full Story: [Live Science]( (3/28) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Daily Quiz [] POLL QUESTION: True or false: Scientists are considering using an ant-infecting fungus as a kind of pest control to kill invasive tawny crazy ants. 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