A learner stands in a room with a bottle, a cup and a book. The task is to figure out, step by step, where each object belongs in the room. Under the table? Or perhaps on the chair? A humanoid robot gives the instructions—but in Swahili, a language the learner does not know. To
Hallucination may have more to do with our shared brain chemistry with snails, insects, and sea urchins The post Psychedelics Might Not Have Evolved to Get Humans High appeared first on Nautilus .
For more than a century, scientists have sought to reconstruct human evolution using diverse lines of evidence, including fossils, genetic variation across populations and ancient DNA. Building on these approaches, researchers are increasingly using large population biobanks to
Anticancer prodrugs have attracted significant attention from the medical and scientific communities in recent years because of their potential to improve treatment precision while reducing side effects. These drugs are engineered to remain inactive until they are activated at
Nitrate contamination of drinking water poses a major health concern, particularly in agricultural communities where fertilizers, livestock manure and septic systems can leach nitrates into groundwater. Many rural households rely on private water wells, which may not be
Biodegradable textile is alive and can host engineered microbes that can change its color or add UV protection
Photographs can reveal things that are otherwise impossible for the naked eye to see, be they distant galaxies or microscopic cells. Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University have developed a practical and versatile imaging technique that makes another usually invisible
Hidden genetic diversity may have given it an advantage The post How an Inbred Snake Invader Took Over an Island Paradise appeared first on Nautilus .
After fatal crashes in which occupants or rescuers could not open Tesla doors, federal regulators are considering rules requiring obvious mechanical releases—but any new standard could take years.
Imagine searching for a gemstone in a dark cave: You use a flashlight, looking for a rainbow-colored glint in the darkness. Now, imagine 10 other people in the cave with you, using different-colored flashlights at the same time. Suddenly, you can no longer tell which light is
A study carried out on smallholder farms in northern Peru shows that Blanco de Piura, a native fine-flavor cacao variety, can achieve productivity levels comparable to those of commercial varieties widely grown across Latin America. The research, led by the Alliance of
Thousands of people have gotten sick from cyclospora. Experts can’t agree whether the end is in sight
If you look up invasive species in a textbook, there's a good chance you'll find a picture of a brown tree snake. Native to Australia and the South Pacific, the brown tree snake arrived on Guam sometime after World War II, possibly by stowing away aboard cargo planes.
The most severe droughts in the ancient Eastern Mediterranean arose when multiple natural climate cycles coincided, according to a new study from Stockholm University published in Science Advances. The findings shed new light on the climate conditions surrounding the Late
Drones are increasingly being used for disaster response, infrastructure inspection and environmental monitoring. However, most drone systems rely primarily on cameras and other visual sensors, which can become ineffective in smoke, dust, darkness or collapsed structures. Odor
Photonic microchips can process data at extremely high speeds and are embedded in a wide variety of today's technologies. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) and Harvard University have now succeeded in developing three functional components
The pearly razorfish (Xyrichtys novacula) is a small marine animal that lives in sandy coastal waters and feeds on creatures like shrimp. Known locally in Spain's Balearic Islands as raors, it is a popular dish in many homes and restaurants across the region.
Researchers at NYU Abu Dhabi have discovered that the malaria parasite relies on a specific type of fat to survive and multiply within the human host, uncovering a previously unknown vulnerability that could help guide future treatments.
A new review led by the University of East London (UEL) has uncovered a major blind spot in air pollution research. Despite domestic gardens covering vast areas of Britain's towns and cities, researchers found no direct evidence showing whether they reduce pollution levels or
Ancient samples from the moon's far side are helping scientists uncover how asteroid impacts shaped the early solar system. The findings challenge decades of thinking about when those impacts occurred and offer new insights into the conditions that influenced Earth's evolution.
As the climate becomes increasingly variable and extreme events become more frequent, accelerating the use of innovations that can strengthen agricultural resilience has become a priority for agrifood systems. Science has made progress in developing solutions with the potential
La Trobe University scientists have uncovered the critical role fatty cell structures play in our body's early detection and defense against viruses. Published in Nature Communications, the discovery could open the door to a new type of antiviral strategy that harnesses the
A dark history that is in danger of returning as support for people with disabilities withers The post When Stupid Was a Diagnosis appeared first on Nautilus .
The inferno that sent toxic smoke billowing toward the United States won't be the last. Officials are now battling both the wildfires and misinformation.
Birdsong carries meaning across open space, helping birds attract mates, defend territory and communicate with rivals. While there has been much research into the use of birdsong across species, researchers have lacked a single global framework that explains birdsong complexity
Europe's wildfire crisis forced more than 80,000 people to flee for safety Friday, as vacationers boarded boats to escape fires on a French peninsula and Spanish officials ordered mass evacuations in towns near Madrid.
The promise of quantum computing is to solve complex problems faster and more energy-efficiently than today's supercomputers—from optimizing logistics to simulating molecules. This goal is coming within reach as the number of qubits—the computational units of quantum
Punch, a plush-clutching Japanese baby monkey that has become a global online sensation, will celebrate his first birthday on Sunday as his zoo is flooded with fan letters from around the world.
A scientific team led by Facility for Rare Isotope Beams, or FRIB, has identified the origin of a mysterious excess of low-energy gamma rays emitted by the nucleus zinc-70. They found that the excess is caused by magnetic transitions within the nucleus. The study, "Magnetic
The European continent is facing a dual reckoning this summer—extreme heat is killing thousands and draining its rivers, soils and reservoirs at a record pace
Sand ripples preserved for billions of years The post Does This Photo from the Curiosity Rover Prove an Intense Sandstorm on Mars? appeared first on Nautilus .
When violence takes place during street protests, how do corporate leaders respond? According to new research by Forrest Briscoe, professor of organizational behavior at the ILR School, the answer depends on other community characteristics that people can use to help interpret
Europa, one of Jupiter's icy moons, has long fascinated scientists because of what may lie beneath its frozen shell: a global ocean of liquid water. That hidden ocean has made Europa one of the most compelling places in the solar system to study the conditions that might
A careful statistical comparison of observations recorded by NASA's Juno mission and the Planetary Science Institute's Io Input Output observatory (IoIO) shows that IoIO observations reliably predict the density of Jupiter's plasma disk, an important part of Jupiter's
Haonan Chen, a CSU associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, and his team have published research that could improve the accuracy of precipitation forecasts up to two weeks in advance.
New World screwworm, a concerning pest that mainly affects livestock and wildlife, was detected in South Texas in June 2026. It has since expanded northward in Texas, and there was one case in New Mexico as of July 23, 2026.
Evolution is all about trade-offs. Traits that may be beneficial in one situation may backfire in another. Over millions of years, species can become specialized for one way of living rather than being equally good at everything. This explains why mammal teeth look the way they
UK astronomers are a step closer to playing a leading role in NASA's search for alien life in the coming decades as they continue developing one of the core instruments of the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO). The exciting mission—the U.S. space agency's next flagship space
Wildfires are becoming a feature of the UK's hotter, drier climate. In July 2026, major fires swept through parts of the UK in a matter of days—notably setting Arthur's Seat, the extinct volcano in the center of Edinburgh, alight. The Scottish Greens labeled wildfires a
Researchers, including those from the University of Tokyo, found a way to optimize how cells bind to small packages they release called extracellular vesicles. By coating the vesicles with metal ions, they made cells and their corresponding vesicles stick together more strongly
A chat with aged avatars of future selves can guide people paralyzed by tough decisions. The question is what information to feed the bots.
The previously unpublished short story reveals the playful and erotic side of the father of modern computing The post A Forgotten Literary Window Into the Personal Life of Alan Turing appeared first on Nautilus .
Imagine you're driving down a winding road when you spot an injured possum. Your instincts might tell you to hit the brakes, check what's wrong and bundle it into your car. Research shows many of us want to help wild animals in distress. This may be out of empathy, obligation
When scientists want to create a protein that can potentially treat disease, one approach is to begin with a different protein and evolve it in the lab, selecting over many generations for versions with a new, desired function.
If you've been anywhere near the internet in recent days, you will likely have seen the viral footage of "Jimothy": an unusually round raccoon in Seattle that hops and skips along in a video filmed by local resident Kiana Hall.
All four main LHC experiments have found new signs that oxygen and neon collisions may create the extreme state of matter that existed during the first microseconds after the Big Bang.
Many people are familiar with fossilized wood as a decorative item from a museum shop. However, the fact that it can preserve the geological history of entire regions spanning millions of years is a new discovery. A research team led by geologist Dr. Steffen Trümper from the
As the planet warms, countries around the world are racing to meet their net-zero targets set out in the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Stanford Medicine researchers have discovered a naturally occurring molecule that may suppress appetite and reduce body weight much like Ozempic, but without several of its common side effects. The molecule, called BRP, acts on a more targeted region of the brain involved in
Birds can inhabit various environments with different climates and temperatures, ranging from cold polar regions to scorching hot deserts. To survive and thrive in these very different environments, they need to effectively regulate their body temperature.
