Chronicle of Higher Education: The US government was forced to shut down last night after Congress failed to agree on a budget. How long the shutdown will last remains to be seen. While some government workers will be furloughed and some institutions will be closed, the impact on university researchers and students is expected to be minimal, at least in the short term. Student financial aid should continue to be paid and grant recipients should continue to receive their funding. However, federal institutions such as the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Archives will close—and researchers who depend on those facilities will feel the effects. It is not the first time the government has been forced to shut down; the last shutdown occurred in 1995 and lasted 21 days.
The finding that the Saturnian moon may host layers of icy slush instead of a global ocean could change how planetary scientists think about other icy moons as well.
Modeling the shapes of tree branches, neurons, and blood vessels is a thorny problem, but researchers have just discovered that much of the math has already been done.
January 29, 2026 12:52 PM
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