Over the past several decades, researchers have been making rapid progress in harnessing light to enable all sorts of scientific and industrial applications. From creating stupendously accurate clocks to processing the petabytes of information zipping through data centers, the
There has been a lot of focus on the need to teach older children about consent. But parents should not wait until kids are teenagers to talk about appropriate touching or how everyone has the right to say what happens to their body.
Dark matter may be invisible, but scientists are getting closer to understanding whether it follows the same rules as everything we can see. By comparing how galaxies move through cosmic gravity wells to the depth of those wells, researchers found that dark matter appears to
Chimps may revise their beliefs in surprisingly human-like ways. Experiments showed they switched choices when presented with stronger clues, demonstrating flexible reasoning. Computational modeling confirmed these decisions weren’t just instinct. The findings could influence
Aalto University researchers have developed a method to execute AI tensor operations using just one pass of light. By encoding data directly into light waves, they enable calculations to occur naturally and simultaneously. The approach works passively, without electronics, and
Milestone results released by the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) on November 16 have solved a decades-old mystery about the cosmic ray energy spectrum—which shows a sharp decrease in cosmic rays above 3 PeV, giving it an unusual knee-like shape.
Researchers have sequenced the oldest RNA ever recovered, taken from a woolly mammoth frozen for nearly 40,000 years. The RNA reveals which genes were active in its tissues, offering a rare glimpse into its biology and final moments. Surprisingly, the team also identified
Scientists discovered that a week of full submergence is enough to kill most rice plants, making flooding a far greater threat than previously understood. Intensifying extreme rainfall events may amplify these losses unless vulnerable regions adopt more resilient rice varieties.
Rapid social and demographic change has reshaped how people live and connect in cities. In Tokyo, where urban density meets growing individualization, a new form of collective housing—shared houses—is redefining what home means. To understand how these spaces are marketed and
Scientists found that people who use both cannabis and tobacco show a distinct brain pattern tied to mood and stress regulation. Their scans revealed higher levels of an enzyme that reduces a natural feel-good molecule in the brain. This imbalance may help explain why co-users
From village dogs to toy poodles to mastiffs, dogs come in an astonishing array of shapes, colors and sizes. Today there are estimated to be about 700 million dogs living with or around humans.
Domestic dogs are among the most diverse mammals on the planet. From the tiny chihuahua to the towering great dane, the flat-faced pug to the long-muzzled borzoi, the sheer range of canine shapes and sizes is staggering.
An international team involving the Institute of Chemical Research, a joint center of the University of Seville and the Spanish National Research Council, has developed a new technique that will accelerate the design of drugs that target ion channels, a type of cell membrane
Professor Kotohiro Nomura's research group at Tokyo Metropolitan University has developed an efficient method for the exclusive depolymerization of PET (polyethylene terephthalate), PET bottles and textile wastes, using alcohols and an inexpensive, readily available and
Logs are a familiar sight on the beaches along the coast of Vancouver Island and Haida Gwaii and are often viewed positively, as they can stabilize the banks, be used for firewood or act as benches by beach-goers. However, new research from the University of Victoria (UVic)
Researchers found that tau proteins don’t jump straight into forming Alzheimer’s-associated fibrils—first they assemble into soft, reversible clusters. When the clusters were dissolved, fibril growth was almost entirely suppressed. This reveals a promising new strategy: stop
Across the United States, children spend more than 1,100 hours in school each year—time that shapes not only their academic success but also their emotional and social growth. Yet, for many students, the school environment can also be a source of anxiety and apprehension.
A new floating droplet electricity generator is redefining how rain can be harvested as a clean power source by using water itself as both structural support and an electrode. This nature-integrated design dramatically reduces weight and cost compared to traditional solid-based
Scientists identified a small molecule that interrupts a harmful protein pair linked to diabetic inflammation and tissue damage. The compound helped wounds heal faster and reduced organ stress in both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes models. Unlike typical treatments, it works by
Over the past decades, quantum physicists and engineers have developed numerous technologies that harness the principles of quantum mechanics to push the boundaries of classical information science. Among these advances, quantum memories stand out as promising devices for
Last time I wrote about new data that overturns the standard cosmological model. Before anyone starts dusting off their fringe cosmological models, we should note what this new study doesn't overturn. It doesn't say the Big Bang model is wrong, nor does it say that the universe
It's the third of a generous five Saturdays in the month of November. What did we do to deserve such a bounty of days off? In the last week, we reported on hundreds of developments in science. Here is a more or less arbitrary sampling of them: Researchers reported on
Speaking more than one language can slow down the brain's aging and lower risks linked to accelerated aging.
