Our Ancient Ancestors’ Lost Habitat Revealed by 700,000-Year-Old Elephant’s Tooth
An elephant’s tooth never forgets The post Our Ancient Ancestors’ Lost Habitat Revealed by 700,000-Year-Old Elephant’s Tooth appeared first on Nautilus .
Headlines
- All
- Africa
- Asia
- Business
- Culture
- Environment
- Europe
- Gaming
- Markets
- Middle East
- Movies & TV
- Music
- Politics
- Science
- South America
- Tech
- World News
Lensless imaging method enables long-term monitoring of living cells without staining
In a study led by Tampere University, researchers have developed a new lensless imaging method that produces precise quantitative data on living cells from a single image. The compact system can be placed inside a standard cell-culture incubator, allowing living cells to be
Atlantic weather pattern shaped southern Greenland's rain and snow for millennia, sediments reveal
In high-latitude coastal areas, Arctic amplification means that temperatures are rising faster than the global average. This combination of rising temperatures and changing precipitation patterns driven by the North Atlantic Oscillation has major impacts on regions with a
Do we all see anger the same way?
Happiness, sadness, disgust, surprise, fear, contempt and anger. These are the basic emotions traditionally associated with facial expressions described as universal. As important social signals, facial expressions help us rapidly interpret the emotions and intentions of
Real-time oxygen measurements expose hidden losses in solar water splitting
A new technique developed at Imperial College London measures oxygen production in real time, revealing hidden losses in solar water splitting. The researchers found that electrical current did not always correspond to oxygen generation in hematite, one of the most widely
Nitrogen fixation 'off switch' discovery could one day help crops make their own fertilizer
Nitrogen is essential for life. It's needed to build proteins, DNA and many other components of cells. Although nitrogen gas makes up almost 80% of Earth's atmosphere, most organisms cannot use it directly. Certain microbes solve this problem through a process called nitrogen
How enzyme activity can accelerate molecular movement inside cells
A cell sitting in fluid looks like one of the most passive things in biology. Nutrients drift toward it on the aimless currents of molecular motion, and now and then one bumps into the right spot on the cell's surface and gets pulled inside. This impression of the cell as a
Health-promoting imprisonment is being deprioritized, researcher claims
For several decades, Norwegian prison research has focused on the pains of imprisonment, isolation and the harm that prison does. But what is needed for a prison to actually promote health, personal growth and hope? Research shows that what is needed is something quite
Nonchaotic model reveals how predictability can emerge from seemingly unpredictable dynamics
Predicting a system's final outcome from its initial state is the ultimate goal for many physicists. In certain complex systems, however, this goal is thwarted by chaos, where even the subtlest tweaks to the initial state can lead to completely different fates, making the
How researchers tell different quantum excitations apart in individual molecules
Molecules can be placed in a wide variety of quantum states. How can these states be distinguished in measurements when theoretical models are unreliable? Which excitation process lies behind which measurement signal?
How companies drift into unethical behavior
Unethical behavior inside organizations is often less sudden than companies assume. New research from ESMT Berlin shows how employees can collectively drift into misconduct as groups gradually reshape what they perceive as ethical or acceptable.
How information is written in ferroelectric memory at the nanoscale
What happens at the nanoscale when information is written to memory? Researchers at KAIST have shown how tiny regions with a new polarization direction form while previously formed regions continue to expand in a promising ferroelectric material. By linking these nanoscale
Losing plant diversity could reduce grassland CO₂ absorption 15% by 2050, model projects
A substantial loss of plant diversity could mean that grasslands worldwide, including meadows and pastures, would absorb around 15% less CO₂ through photosynthesis by midcentury compared with a scenario in which diversity is maintained.
Study shows how children learn to talk about characters' thoughts and feelings in stories
An international research effort has examined how children develop the ability to express what story characters think, feel and perceive. Research groups from around the world collected 5,507 picture-based stories from 2,763 typically developing monolingual and bilingual
Tracking down cellular gene functions with AI and microscopy
A new technology promises to enable more comprehensive investigations into how individual genes determine the appearance and behavior of cells. Researchers led by professor Veit Hornung at LMU's Gene Center and professor Matthias Mann at the Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry
Rule gives every generation same share of its best attainable welfare
Sharing a finite resource across generations requires a balance between today's needs and the claims of those yet to be born. Research by Prof. Thomas A. Weber, presented at the 2026 European Control Conference in Reykjavík, proposes a fair allocation rule that gives every
Layered semiconductor unlocks magnetic control of light emitted by quantum condensates
Quantum technologies are considered key technologies of the future. However, research in this field requires not only scientific expertise but sometimes also highly specialized laboratory conditions. Bose–Einstein condensates are a remarkable example, in which atoms move in
Single Orangutan Moms Set up Playdates for Their Kids
And they go to considerable lengths to do it The post Single Orangutan Moms Set up Playdates for Their Kids appeared first on Nautilus .
Gravity and light reveal how liquids turn into thin fibers
From spiders spinning their webs to the manufacturing of textiles, the formation of fibers from liquids plays an important role in both nature and industry. Yet accurately predicting the properties of such fibers remains a challenge. The fiber is often much thinner than the
3D-printed inserts bring single-objective light sheet microscopy to commercial sample chambers
Light sheet microscopy allows biologists to selectively light up a thin slice of a sample. This method can improve image contrast by reducing background light while remaining gentle on the sample, reducing photodamage and photobleaching. Rice University's Anna-Karin Gustavsson
Our research found a new reason to keep teachers happy—it's linked to how well students do
The OECD reports schools worldwide are under growing strain from teacher shortages. "It is getting harder to recruit, retain and deploy qualified teachers where they are most needed," it has found.
Hearing tests reveal how sea lions and fur seals hear human-made noise
Curtin University and Taronga Conservation Society Australia researchers have conducted the first hearing tests on Australian sea lions and long-nosed fur seals, revealing what sounds these marine mammals can hear and helping assess how human-made noise could affect them.
Liquid-crystal-like magnetism explains puzzling properties in a rare-earth compound
In some materials, physical properties don't emerge from their individual particles, but from the collective behavior of their quantum spins. Now, researchers led by Pengcheng Dai at Rice University in the U.S. have discovered that in one compound containing the rare-earth
Why 'vertical farming' is not a fix for our food system
The Canadian government launched its first National Food Security Strategy in June 2026. The strategy aims to invest $750 million to increase year-round Canadian production of fruits and vegetables, including on so-called vertical farms.
Light-driven method puts notoriously reactive hydrogen atoms to work for chemical synthesis
Hydrogen is the simplest element in the periodic table, consisting of just one proton and one electron. In chemistry, however, the smallest of atoms is anything but simple. First produced by Nobel laureate Irving Langmuir over a century ago, single hydrogen atoms (H•) are so
Are insects really 'poor people's food'?
Do people eat insects when there is nothing else to eat? Are insects really "food for the poor" or famine food?
Mathematicians marvel, and grumble, at OpenAI’s trove of new results
The “slop drop” contains a number of groundbreaking results, but how it was generated remains unclear and contentious
A Recipe for Stopping AI from Going Rogue
This formula aims to prevent LLMs from doing things that endanger humans The post A Recipe for Stopping AI from Going Rogue appeared first on Nautilus .
A trick from tardigrades could help human blood withstand freezing
Tardigrades survive conditions that would destroy most other living things: freezing, dehydration and the vacuum of space. Researchers even put tiny tattoos on them, and the animals don't seem to mind. By learning how these critters carry on, researchers hope to find ways to
Nickel catalyst unlocks hard-to-make β-amino alcohols
Many molecules in living organisms and pharmaceuticals share a structure called a β-amino alcohol, in which an amino group and a hydroxyl group sit on neighboring carbon atoms. These groups, important building blocks in biology and medicine, are found in compounds such as
Astronomers discover record-breaking ancient cosmic outburst
Detected by the MeerKAT array, this “fast radio burst” comes from 3 billion years after the Big Bang, and could help map the universe’s otherwise-invisible intergalactic matter
Almost 300,000 people now live in flood‑prone areas in the Nepalese Himalayas—new research
On Aug. 26, a rock and ice avalanche triggered a huge flood that swept through a steep valley in Nepal, leaving thousands dead and missing. It was an extreme example of a growing problem across the Himalayas. As glaciers melt, glacial lakes expand and mountain permafrost thaws,
Scientists turn handheld car gadget into wildfire early-warning tool
Researchers at King's College London have converted an off-the-shelf product, usually used to determine whether car window tint is legal, into a scientific instrument that can measure leaf water content in seconds.
Kilauea’s display is revealing why volcanoes spew like a fountain show
Scientists are using a variety of methods to study why Kilauea has repeatedly spewed lava fountains since late 2024. They may have ruled out one theory.
Fading control over 'jumping genes' may explain why big dogs age faster
Across mammals, larger species typically have longer lifespans, ranging from only a couple of years for mice to almost 200 years for some whales.
Astronomers pinpoint the most distant fast radio burst ever detected
Astronomers have detected and traced the most distant fast radio burst ever recorded, a powerful flash of radio waves that traveled for more than 10 billion years across the cosmos before reaching Earth.
Mapping how a single cell becomes an entire mouse
Growing inside each of us is a cellular family tree. Every one of the 37 trillion cells in our body is generated from another cell, going all the way back to a single fertilized egg. Much like we can draw a family tree tracking generations of our ancestors, scientists can also
What's your apocalypse skill? Finding a future‑proof hobby can bring fulfillment today
In online "prepper" communities—where people discuss ways to prepare for potential emergencies and disruptions—members often jokingly refer to their "zombie apocalypse" skills.
In 1960, Mathematicians Predicted that Earth’s Population Would Reach Infinity on a Friday Next Month
It will not The post In 1960, Mathematicians Predicted that Earth’s Population Would Reach Infinity on a Friday Next Month appeared first on Nautilus .
'Move away' and 'stop that!' Wild elephants use a rich gestural repertoire intentionally to 'mean business'
Wild African savanna elephants use a wide range of gestures when competing with other elephants, according to research from an international group of scientists, including researchers from the University of Portsmouth, University of Vienna and University of St Andrews.
AI tool makes culturally appropriate lessons for teachers in India
Overworked teachers in southern India have a new tool for educating their students: Shiksha Copilot, an AI system that generates culturally relevant lesson plans for schools with few resources.
Rare traces of wooden tools reveal Neanderthals were skilled woodworkers
There is even more evidence that Neanderthals were far from the simple cave dwellers we once thought them to be. The discovery of a clublike artifact and other wooden tools from an archaeological site near Barcelona, Spain, suggests they may have been skilled woodworkers.
All-electrical imaging offers innovative alternative for tracking cell movement
Engineers from Brown University have developed a new way of imaging cell migration dynamics that are important in understanding critical processes like cancer metastasis, wound healing and immune response.
Patience is a lucrative virtue for entrepreneurs, new research finds
People with higher levels of patience are more likely to become entrepreneurs and earn more once they do, according to a new study from the University of Bath's School of Management. The researchers analyzed data from more than 21,000 U.K. employees between 2009 and 2023 and
This September was the hottest ever on record for the U.S.
It’s been a blistering year. A record-hot September doesn’t bode well for the rest of it
One ancient swimming mammal fossil and two evolutionary surprises, including a third set of teeth
What may have looked like a cross between a platypus and a beaverlike rodent and lived around 120 million years ago? Dongoconodon platycauda, a newly discovered fossil mammal from northeastern China. Beyond its unusual features, such as evidence of webbed paddling feet and a
What happens to language when machines start talking back?
A few months ago, a friend posted something that caught my eye on social media. She struggled to listen to what she termed "(literally) breathless AI voices for audiobooks."
A biologist queries whether AI 'borrowed' his work to make major discovery—an expert explains the rules
AI company Anthropic recently announced that its popular system Claude had identified an unusual family of biological molecules. These molecules were enzymes, a type of protein that speeds up chemical reactions in living organisms.
Puerto Rico specimen reveals new giant isopod species that went unrecognized for decades
A giant isopod from Puerto Rico, rediscovered in the depository of the University of Tübingen's Paleontological Collection, has turned out to be a previously unknown species.
AI is changing pilgrims' journeys, but sacred journeys have always adapted to new technology
In 2025, two scholars of religion decided to make a multiday pilgrimage along the Kumano Kodō trail—an ancient route in Japan connecting Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples—guided by an artificial intelligence assistant.
