Scientists have long tried to uncover the perilous journey humans took to reach the ancient land mass that now makes up Australia. Now, a genetic study has edged us closer to understanding how and when they achieved this
A new study published in Science Advances overturns a long-standing paradigm in climate science that stronger Northern Hemisphere summer insolation produces stronger tropical rainfall. Instead, a precisely dated 129,000-year rainfall reconstruction from a Cuban cave shows that
Feline DNA findings have switched up the timing and birthplace of our furry friends The post The Story of Cat Domestication Just Got a Major Twist appeared first on Nautilus .
The mega genus Begonia (Begoniaceae) is widely distributed in tropical and subtropical areas. It is one of the largest plant genera in the world with over 2,100 species. In China, the number of Begonia species has increased to 304 (including subspecies, varieties and natural
Researchers at the Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) and the University of Bremen have studied the nutritional value of five edible seaweed species, including some lesser-known algae, and examined their potential for sustainable nutrition. The study, published
A strong geomagnetic storm in spring 2024 brought the northern lights unusually far south, as the auroral oval expanded well beyond its typical position. "I am surprised at how sparse the measurement network is, even though we know that the impacts of space weather can vary
A cosmological simulation study by researchers from the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has systematically revealed, for the first time, how the interaction between dark matter and dark energy significantly influences the rotation and shape
What if a surface could instantly switch from sticky to slippery at the push of a button? By using electricity to control how ions and water structure at the solid liquid interface of self-assembled monolayers of aromatic molecules, researchers at National Taiwan University
When describing collective properties of macroscopic physical systems, microscopic fluctuations are typically averaged out, leaving a description of the typical behavior of the systems. While this simplification has its advantages, it fails to capture the important role of
Researchers from the Institute of Applied Ecology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the University of California, Riverside, have investigated how the loss of forest soil gaseous nitrogen (NO, N2O, and N2) is affected by climate warming, highlighting the critical role of
A new study led by the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has detected quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) signals in an unusual gamma-ray burst (GRB) event. The findings are published in The Astrophysical Journal.
Scientists have captured an exceptionally rare, high-resolution view of an active region that produced two powerful X-class solar flares—an achievement rarely possible from Earth. Using the GREGOR solar telescope in Tenerife, researchers recorded the explosive activity of the
This fall, when Adam Leontowich headed to southeast Saskatchewan to hunt whitetailed deer and ruffed grouse, he once again opted for lead-free ammunition—cartridges with copper bullets for his .308 rifle and shells with steel pellets for his 12-gauge shotgun. It's the fourth
A new paper published in Nature Communications could put scientists on the path to understanding one of the wildest, hottest, and most densely packed places in the universe: a neutron star.
It is that time of the year again—Black Friday is almost upon us. What used to be just an American event has now taken over the calendar in many other countries as one of the key shopping events of the year.
In the animal kingdom, penises can be spiked, split, corkscrewed—even detachable. They're one of the most diverse structures in biology. The human penis is so uniform, it's an anatomical outlier. Understanding why penises evolved, and why they differ so widely, also helps
Love and gene disruption in a Vermont aging cave The post What Cheese Mold Can Teach Us About Evolution appeared first on Nautilus .
Flapper skate (Dipturus intermedius), the world's largest skate species measuring over two meters in length, live hidden on the rugged seabed around Scotland. Their life in the darkness, deep underwater, makes it extremely difficult to find out more about their whereabouts and
Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, is often portrayed in popular culture as an enigma. The rationale is clear: The tiny, remote island in the Pacific features nearly 1,000 enormous statues—the moai. The magnitude and number of these monuments defy easy explanation.
A team of researchers at IOCB Prague headed by Dr. Tomáš Slanina has developed a new method for labeling molecules with fluorescent dyes that surpasses existing approaches in both precision and stability. The new fluorescent label remains covalently bonded to its target
Despite the ubiquity of cats in modern homes, we still don't know many details about the timing and routes of early cat domestication and dispersal into Europe and beyond, aside from the common association of cats with ancient Egyptian culture.
In the early 1970s, a quiet revolution began in American factories. Lathes, drill presses and milling machines—once guided by the steady hands of skilled machinists—started thinking for themselves.
A large-scale Brazilian study found dangerous levels of toxic metals in popular children’s toys, with barium and lead topping the list. Researchers used sophisticated lab methods to identify 21 hazardous elements and test how easily they could be released when toys are mouthed.
The death toll from flash floods and landslides on Indonesia's Sumatra island rose to 164 on Friday with 79 people missing, authorities said, as rescue workers found their efforts hampered by damaged bridges and roads and a lack of heavy equipment.
Stars usually form in clusters, which can also form in pairs or groups. Binary clusters (BCs) are defined as pairs of open clusters closely associated both in position and kinematics. They provide insight into how stars form within giant molecular clouds, making them important
It's a problem that's made its way through pig farms around the world for decades, with no clear cause or solution. But new research from the University of Saskatchewan (USask) has identified the cause of pig ear necrosis, a painful and troublesome affliction that causes the
There are fewer ice nuclei in the air above the large ice surfaces of Antarctica than anywhere else in the world. This is the conclusion reached by an international research team led by the Leibniz Institute for Tropospheric Research (TROPOS) based on filter measurements of
A group of researchers has analyzed 1,240 wastewater samples from 351 cities in 111 different countries and found that bacterial latent antimicrobial resistance is widespread on all the world's continents. The research was coordinated by the DTU National Food Institute in
Mistreating a dog may come back to bite you. Scientists have long known that childhood abuse, neglect, and trauma can have lifelong consequences in humans. Now, a study by Harvard scientists links early adversity to similar effects in our oldest domesticated species.
Acoustic frequency filters, which convert electrical signals into miniaturized sound waves, separate the different frequency bands for mobile communications, Wi-Fi, and GPS in smartphones. Physicists at RPTU have now shown that such miniaturized sound waves can couple strongly
A major review across 73 countries finds that access to antiseizure medications is rising, but safe prescribing isn’t keeping pace. Valproate—linked to serious birth defects—remains widely used in many regions despite WHO warnings. Limited access to newer drugs means millions
Bacteria that multiply on surfaces are a major headache in health care when they gain a foothold on, for example, implants or in catheters. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden have found a new weapon to fight these hotbeds of bacterial growth—one that
Google is reportedly in talks to sell its tensor processing units – a type of computer chip specially designed for AI – to other tech companies, a move that could unsettle the dominant chip-maker Nvidia
Inside cells, RNAs and proteins form tiny, liquid-like droplets called biomolecular condensates. These droplets are essential for organizing cellular life, yet why some RNAs cluster more readily than others has remained unclear. Disruptions in condensate formation are linked to
About 170 years ago, a large bundle of stone tools was deliberately buried close to a waterhole in the remote Australian outback. Who buried them and for what purpose? Why were they never retrieved?
As global attention turns to rumors that FIFA may award a new "Peace Prize" to US President Donald Trump later next month, new research has argued that public debates about politics and sport need far more nuance than the familiar narratives of "sportswashing" allow.
A new study describes a key molecular mechanism that explains how cells exchange information through extracellular vesicles (EVs), small particles with great therapeutic potential. The results, published in the Journal of Extracellular Vesicles, reveal that the Commander
Curiosity might have killed the cat, but it could prove to be one of the keys to dogs' cognitive abilities, according to a study by the University of Portsmouth's Dog Cognition Center in England and the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena's DogStudies Unit in Germany.
Widely circulated claims of out-of-control mass immigration in Australia are false and misleading and stem from the incorrect reporting of tourism and travel data that has nothing to do with migration, according to a major new report from The Australian National University (ANU).
An international research team led by PD Dr. Florian Peissker at the University of Cologne has used the new observation instrument ERIS (Enhanced Resolution Imager and Spectrograph) at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) facility in Chile to show that several so-called "dusty
Research from the University of Bath exposes the overlooked burdens of remote working in the Global South, revealing how it transfers economic, physiological and emotional strain to Indian IT workers supporting global firms.
Dr. Monika Badura and her colleagues have published a study analyzing an isolated burial found in the Bayuda Desert in the journal Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa. The discovery, made at site BP937 in Sudan, has provided valuable information about funerary practices,
Freshwater lakes are critical ecosystems that regulate regional climates, support biodiversity, and provide essential resources for human societies. However, as global warming accelerates, extreme heat waves are increasingly impacting these aquatic systems.
Canada has had more than a year of continuous measles transmission. The United States has until January to limit cases before losing status.
As Donald Trump's White House places huge pressure on Ukraine to sign a peace deal, a team of experts has published a new study examining what they describe as a worldwide shift toward "authoritarian peacemaking"—a model of conflict resolution shaped not by international
Researchers have directly observed Floquet effects in graphene for the first time, settling a long-running scientific debate. Their ultrafast light-based technique demonstrates that graphene’s electronic properties can be tuned almost instantaneously. This paves the way for
A new study published in Nature on November 26 has shed light on the origins, population structures, and kinship systems of the people of Shimao—one of China's most significant late Neolithic settlements. Analyses of ancient DNA from individuals who inhabited the site reveal
Yuwei Gu was hiking through Bear Mountain State Park in New York when inspiration struck. Plastic bottles littered the trail and more floated on a nearby lake. The jarring sight in such a pristine environment made the Rutgers chemist stop in his tracks. Nature makes plenty of
Using catalytic chemistry, researchers at Institute of Science Tokyo have achieved dynamic control of artificial membranes, enabling life-like membrane behavior. The work is published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
Researchers have finally assigned a strange 3.4-million-year-old foot to Australopithecus deyiremeda, confirming that Lucy’s species wasn’t alone in ancient Ethiopia. This hominin had an opposable big toe for climbing but still walked upright in a distinct style. Isotope tests