Headlines

Is 'gender gating' the secret to success in online dating?

Digital matching platforms—from professional networking to ride-sharing and accommodation services—add value by bringing supply and demand into balance. But deep-seated asymmetries can prove difficult to expunge, causing platforms' functionality and productivity to suffer. This

Millipedes beat vertebrates to land by 80 million years

Millipedes may have been crawling across Earth's landscapes nearly 460 million years ago, long before vertebrates ventured onto land. A new study finally completes their evolutionary family tree, revealing surprising clues about these ancient ecosystem engineers and their early

Scientists found a surprising problem with sugar-free diets

A surprising new study suggests that completely eliminating sugar may backfire. Mice on a sucrose-free low-fat diet showed worse blood sugar control, increased inflammation, disrupted gut bacteria, and signs of fatty liver compared with mice that consumed some sucrose.

Scientists discover parrots may actually use names

Parrots may be doing more than just repeating words—they may actually use names. By analyzing hundreds of recordings from pet parrots, researchers found evidence that many birds use specific names to identify particular people, animals, and even individual companions. Some

Why middle age is becoming a breaking point in the U.S.

A new international study finds that middle-aged Americans are lonelier, more depressed, and experiencing worse memory and health than earlier generations. Researchers say growing financial strain, weaker social supports, and chronic stress may explain why the U.S. is falling

Ancient Denisovan DNA still shapes human immunity today

Ancient encounters between humans and the mysterious Denisovans are still shaping people today. By analyzing genomes from populations across the Pacific, researchers uncovered evidence that the ancestors of Near Oceanians interbred with at least three different Denisovan

Could leaves help feed humanity after disaster?

UC researchers are investigating whether leaf protein and sugar extracted from plant fiber could help sustain people if major global shocks disrupt food production. Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury (UC) Associate Professor David Denkenberger, who has spent

When motion prevents order in active matter systems

Pack enough string-like objects together, and they will begin to align with one another. But replace the strings with worms or bacteria living in your gut, and this self-organization becomes much more difficult. A team of University of Amsterdam (UvA) researchers has

Q&A: Tracing the origins of supermassive black holes

Sarah Pappert is a Ph.D. candidate in astrophysics at the TUM School of Natural Sciences and conducts research at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics. She is supervised by Prof. Dr. Reinhard Genzel and Prof. Dr. Frank Eisenhauer, who holds a TUM Distinguished

CDC sleuthing helps decipher drug-resistant infection rise

Previous research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that a dangerous variety of bacteria that cause drug-resistant infections, called NDM-producing carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (NDM-CRE), has become much more common in the United States,

Your brain can keep improving into your 90s, study finds

A three-year study of nearly 4,000 adults ranging from age 19 to 94 found that brain health can improve at any age, challenging the common belief that mental sharpness must decline as we get older. Participants spent just a few minutes a day on brain-training activities, and

Alien planet spins revealed a hidden clue to how worlds form

Using the Keck Observatory, astronomers measured the spins of dozens of giant planets and brown dwarfs orbiting distant stars. They found that giant planets can spin faster than much more massive brown dwarfs, challenging simple assumptions about mass and rotation. The results