Europe: the world's fastest-warming continent
The latest heat wave sweeping across Europe is a stark reminder that it is the world's fastest-warming continent, stretching into an Arctic that is heating at an even greater pace.
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India monsoon sweeps north but brings less rain than usual
Long-awaited monsoon rains arrived in India's financial capital, Mumbai, on Tuesday, cooling weeks of blazing heat despite persistent fears of water shortages, with total rainfall so far staying below the long-term average.
Happy Asteroid Day! Prize-winning plan focuses on space infrastructure
For decades, astronomers and policymakers have been working on plans to protect our planet from killer asteroids. But now there's a new realm to protect: the thousands of satellites we're putting in orbit.
Sawdust, cellulose binders and beeswax combine into eco-friendly foam
Polystyrene—common in packing peanuts and box inserts—is manufactured from fossil fuels. To develop a sustainable alternative, researchers reporting in ACS Applied Polymer Materials tested an unconventional starting material: sawdust. Their prototype foams incorporated
How a heat dome is formed and why experts blame one for Europe's baking temperatures
Europe is sizzling under an early heat wave this week, with millions of people experiencing extremely high temperatures, and experts say a phenomenon known as a heat dome is to blame.
Yellow mealworms mapped anatomically for the first time
The dried larvae of the yellow mealworm beetle (Tenebrio molitor) are comparable to beef or poultry in nutritional value, but the mealworm has a far smaller ecological footprint. It was recently approved for human consumption by the European Food Safety Authority.
Pathway to high-fidelity quantum computing identified
Researchers from the University of Sydney, working with IBM, have identified and quantified important factors limiting the performance of quantum computers and demonstrated ways to overcome their impact.
Attitudes, not personality, may drive deepfake pornography creation
New research from Edith Cowan University (ECU) suggests attitudes, particularly those that excuse harmful behavior, may be a stronger predictor of willingness to create deepfake pornography than personality traits. The findings are published in the Journal of Sexual Aggression.
Although woodland salamanders have looked the same for millions of years, their physiology has evolved rapidly
For her doctoral dissertation, Yale's Nathalie Alomar decided to study a small amphibian that appeared to have eluded the forces of evolution. She found that there is more to its evolution than meets the eye.
These Ancient Baby Predators Challenge Our Understanding of Evolution
The first animals onto terra firma weren’t amphibians as previously suspected The post These Ancient Baby Predators Challenge Our Understanding of Evolution appeared first on Nautilus .
The ‘little brain’ may give the aging mind a big boost
Most known for its role in movement, the cerebellum could compensate for flagging mental functions elsewhere in the brain.
500-million-year fossil record reveals corals' symbiotic advantage shifted with changing environments
Coral reef ecosystems, widely seen as a climate change bellwether, are more complex than previously understood. A new international study by the universities of Bristol, Wuhan in China, and Erlangen-Nuremberg in Germany reveals that the evolutionary advantage of coral-algae
Workplace structure impacts gender pay gap, study finds
New Adelaide University research has identified which industries, workplace structures and employment policies are most strongly linked to gender pay gaps in Australian workplaces, with flexible work arrangements being a key indicator.
SpaceX's secretive plans to deliver cargo to Earth from space
Not much is known about Starfall, SpaceX's new delivery system, but an assessment published in May revealed its intended purpose
Stop asking whether Pride is a protest or a party, say researchers
Research examining Pride events across the U.K. has found that modern Pride celebrations have evolved into year-round community hubs that act simultaneously as protests, safe spaces and cultural festivals for local LGBTQIA+ communities.
Lavatory shaft reveals the cost of 17th‑century vanity in Germany
Four goose skulls were pulled from a former toilet shaft in Brandenburg, Germany, each of them riddled with strange holes. As it turns out, these holes were the telltale signs of fancy feathered crests, making them the first crested geese ever identified in the archaeological
Liquid ripples rewrite 130-year-old biological classic: New reflections on the lock-and-key model
This April, when the spring breeze carried the formal acceptance notice of our paper by the Journal of the American Chemical Society to my desk, my thoughts instantly drifted back to the late Phil Geissler. A legendary physical chemist and the original spark for this research,
A new strategy can improve safety in poultry processing
Salmonella is a common source of food poisoning that leads to potentially life-threatening illnesses, widespread food recalls and a consistent challenge for poultry producers. UConn Department of Animal Science associate professor Mary Anne Amalaradjou and her research team
Natural symbiosis: How plants and microbes share vital nutrients in fragile ecosystems
Nitrogen is essential for all living organisms, but in many ecosystems it is in short supply. Plants and soil microbes both rely on nitrogen to grow, leading to intense competition below ground. Researchers at The University of Manchester have uncovered how plants and soil
Looking at AI startups to predict which jobs AI will affect
A study of funded AI startups provides a glimpse of which jobs may be most affected by AI. As AI tools are embraced by industry after industry, the impacts of these tools on jobs remain unclear. Previous analyses have focused on the theoretical capabilities of LLMs, but social
Contact lenses can repair themselves with just one hour of UV light exposure
Contact lenses are a great vision correction option for many, but if one of them gets damaged, there is little to do other than throw it away. A team reporting in ACS Applied Polymer Materials has a solution: special polymer hydrogels and UV light. Scratches on lenses made from
New method helps online ads reach overlooked groups
Online advertisers and government agencies use algorithmic tools to tailor and target their campaigns to reach as many people as possible.
The tea in your kombucha changes more than just the taste
Scientists discovered that kombucha’s flavor, chemistry, and antioxidant activity vary dramatically depending on the tea used to make it. Green and oolong tea kombuchas emerged as the most biologically active, while fermentation transformed each tea into a distinctly different
Espresso 'pucks' stop behaving predictably above certain pressures
When a physics student asked baristas at the Warsaw Coffee Conference what their biggest question for scientists was, the baristas said they wanted to know how to stop channeling during brewing.
Airflow mystery solved: Heavy rain reshaped airflow through miles of underground tunnels
Successfully operating in a deep underground space requires mitigating two factors: air and water.
Even ‘safe’ air pollution levels may affect heart health
An imaging study found early signs of coronary artery disease in people in Canada breathing air that regulators consider clean.
A rare interstellar visitor triggered a SETI search for alien technology
SETI scientists searched the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS for radio signals that could indicate extraterrestrial technology but found nothing beyond human-made interference. Even so, the rapid-response observations helped confirm the object's natural origin and showcased how
Amazon fish reveal a synchronized survival tactic that could transfer to drone swarms
Some fish swim in synchrony. Others, it turns out, breathe in synchrony. This is true for arapaimas, an obligate air-breathing species living in the Amazon. A new study in Communications Biology, led by the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) in
Study shows the good state of Garraf's fishery resources
A scientific project launched by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) in direct collaboration with fishermen in the region has evaluated the state of fishery resources and ecological quality in the Garraf and Plana de Foix Marine Area. The species were found to be in
Scientists finally solved how H5N1 bird flu hid in dairy cows
Researchers uncovered why H5N1 bird flu attacks cows’ udders instead of their lungs: the virus’s preferred receptors are concentrated in mammary tissue. The breakthrough could help scientists predict future bird flu jumps and spot unusual infections before they spread widely.
White barn owls may use moonlight to startle prey
White barn owls are effective killing machines. They fly silently through the night air and swoop down on unsuspecting prey with their sharp talons. But they have something you would think goes against being a stealth predator: their white feathers. And perhaps this visual
Australia's echidnas reveal a prickly scientific puzzle
An echidna in Tasmania looks very different from one in Western Australia. But the differences run much deeper than appearance. A new review published in Australian Zoologist by University of Tasmania zoologist Stewart Nicol, an associate professor from the School of Natural
Honeybee metamorphosis map uncovers 842 active DNA switches that drive worker bee development
Researchers have identified "DNA switches" that become active as honeybee larvae grow into worker bees, offering new insight into the development of these important pollinators and the ecosystems they support.
Hidden bird species discovered in Japan after DNA reveals a stunning secret
A bird long thought to be a single rare species in Japan has turned out to be two. Scientists discovered that the elusive Ijima’s Leaf Warbler and a newly identified Tokara Leaf Warbler look almost identical, but their DNA and songs reveal they are distinct species. The finding
How some people's brains make an extraordinary recovery from stroke
Around a third of people are able to almost fully rebuild their brains after a stroke and uncovering why is pointing the way to better treatments for everyone
How long can plants survive on Earth? New model suggests up to 2 billion more years
Vegetarians need not worry yet—plants will be on Earth for a long time to come. But not forever. The sun will ultimately determine the long-term existence of life on Earth. Its total energy output, called luminosity, has been increasing over epochs and eons by about 10% every
Restoring African landscapes with indigenous food-bearing trees
Deforestation is a major problem across Africa. It is widely recognized that deforestation harms biodiversity, but tree loss also harms dietary quality, as nutritious fruits, nuts, seeds and leaves disappear from the landscape. More than $1 billion has been pledged for
Advances in materials science are helping unlock secrets of nanomaterials
New instruments on the horizon promise the most precise tools yet to study and experiment on the smallest and most complex materials ever manufactured. In a paper published in the journal Nature Materials, University of Cincinnati assistant professor Hanxun Jin highlighted
Scientists create optical skyrmions using a two-century-old light phenomenon
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) scientists have used a classic optical phenomenon known as the Poisson spot to create stable patterns of light called optical skyrmions, which are tiny, swirling configurations in the properties of light—akin to the
Hidden dark force may slow cosmic structure growth, not speed it up
Dark matter is often portrayed as a cosmic loner, interacting with itself and the rest of the universe only through gravity. But what if dark matter particles also exert a hidden force on one another?
The first ticking ‘nuclear clocks’ are here
These radical new devices keep time using fluctuations in the energy states of an atom’s nucleus, rather than those of its electrons, which atomic clocks currently use to define the length of a second
'Super fungi' offer greener path to recovery of critical minerals
A "superpowered" fungus engineered at The University of Queensland could be used to extract critical minerals from toxic mining waste while also helping to remediate sites. Environmental engineers at UQ's new Biosustainability Hub are growing the unique fungal strains that can
Hidden seismicity patterns before large earthquakes uncovered
When and where the next large earthquake will strike remains one of the most difficult questions in geoscience. Researchers from the GFZ Helmholtz Center for Geosciences led by Dr. Sadegh Karimpouli and Prof. Dr. Patricia Martínez-Garzón have now—together with international
A new dino fossil may solve an ancient murder mystery
A newly-described dinosaur, Jian changmaensis , may have glided through northwestern China about 120 million years ago, wreaking havoc on birds.
This four-winged dinosaur may have terrorized Earth's earliest birds
A newly discovered feathered dinosaur called Jian changmaensis may be the missing predator responsible for mysterious piles of crushed prehistoric bird bones in China. The four-winged glider, a close cousin of Velociraptor, helps reveal how early birds and their dinosaur
A tiny diamond defect could reveal a mysterious new kind of magnetism
A newly proposed quantum sensing technique could make it much easier to identify one of physics’ newest and most intriguing classes of magnets: altermagnets. These unusual materials, discovered only a few years ago, appear to combine the speed and efficiency of antiferromagnets
Horizon edge states gain finite description in string theory calculation
Modern physics theories highlight the key role of horizons—boundaries beyond which information cannot reach an observer—in a variety of cosmological and gravitational phenomena. Two renowned examples of these boundaries are event horizons in black holes and the cosmological
Unapproved gene therapy for boosting longevity is set to go on sale
A gene therapy that instructs cells to produce more of an anti-ageing protein called klotho is about to be offered by a US company at overseas clinics to bypass FDA rules
New brain study reveals speech learning works differently than we thought
A new study suggests that learning and remembering speech relies more on how the brain processes sounds and sensations than on the areas that control mouth and face movements. The discovery could reshape speech therapy and help improve future brain-based communication
Are quarterly earnings pressures hurting companies' long-term innovation prospects?
If public companies are increasingly focused on meeting quarterly earnings expectations, what happens to the innovations that require years of investment and patience to develop?
