Scientists are rethinking what cattle are capable of after an Austrian cow named Veronika was found to use tools with impressive skill. The discovery, reported by researchers in Vienna, suggests cows may have far greater cognitive abilities than previously assumed.

A pet cow named Veronika uses a tool in a surprisingly sophisticated way—possibly because she has been allowed to live her best life

Her owner, Witgar Wiegele, is an organic farmer and baker who keeps the cow as a pet. With Wiegele’s permission, they conducted a series of randomized trials with a deck scrub broom, chosen for its asymmetrical shape,

A pet cow named Veronika can scratch her own back with a broom — the first scientifically documented case of tool use in cows, researchers say.

For more than a century, brain imaging has been a story of trade-offs: sharp pictures but slow timing, or fast signals with blurry detail. A new generation of tools is starting to break that compromise, letting scientists watch the brain’s activity ...