Scientists at MIT discovered that chaotic laser light can spontaneously form a highly focused beam instead of scattering—if the conditions are just right. This “pencil beam” enabled them to image the blood-brain barrier in 3D at speeds 25 times faster than existing techniques.
Dreams are more structured than they seem, shaped by both personal traits and real-world experiences. Researchers found that the brain doesn’t just replay daily life—it reshapes it into imaginative, sometimes surreal scenarios. People who mind-wander more tend to have
A condition that affects 10 to 15 percent of women may affect men, too. But many doctors don’t know about it
The ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz has seen energy prices soar, but thanks to solar panels and a home battery, Alice Klein pays just A$25 (£13) a month for her electricity, even when charging an electric car or running an air conditioner
A revolutionary cancer treatment is now being applied to a wide range of autoimmune disorders. Columnist Michael Le Page finds it is proving to be even more effective than expected
Direct attacks, oil spills and the threat of nuclear waste are putting the Gulf region’s desalination plants at risk—here’s why that matters
A new study suggests Neanderthals didn’t go extinct simply because of climate change or competition with Homo sapiens. Instead, the key difference may have been social connectivity—Homo sapiens formed stronger, more flexible networks that helped them survive environmental
A massive cosmic milestone has just been reached: scientists have completed the largest high-resolution 3D map of the universe ever created. Built using data from over 47 million galaxies and quasars, this map could unlock new clues about dark energy—the mysterious force
A daily vitamin D supplement may quietly supercharge chemotherapy. In a small study, women who took low doses alongside treatment were far more likely to see their cancer vanish than those who didn’t. Since vitamin D also supports immune function—and many patients are
Researchers have, for the first time, directly visualized how electronic patterns known as charge density waves evolve across a phase transition. Using cutting-edge microscopy, they found these patterns form unevenly, breaking into patches influenced by tiny structural
Researchers have found an enzyme that can turn fragile drug molecules into durable ring shapes. This could help medications like Ozempic last longer and work more effectively. The process is simpler and more precise than traditional methods, even for complex drugs. It may open
A paper in Genome Biology and Evolution discovers that the endangered Mediterranean fin whale is not completely isolated from Atlantic groups. Both Atlantic and Mediterranean populations have declined for the past 200,000 years. Considering more recent threats to the whales,
“What dreams may come” depends on your personality The post The Things That Fuel Our Dreams appeared first on Nautilus .
The mysterious collapse of the Maya civilization may not have been driven solely by drought after all. New evidence from lake sediments in Guatemala reveals that one key city, Itzan, enjoyed a stable climate even as its population abruptly vanished. Instead of environmental
Researchers from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), in collaboration with international experts, have published a scientific study on how to ensure that the selection of committees and expert groups is mathematically fair and proportional, preventing significant
You may have seen black garlic appear more frequently in grocery stores, restaurants, and online recipes over the past few years. Many chefs and food writers describe it as a unique and deeply flavored ingredient. So what is black garlic, and how is it made?
The rapidly declining marriage and fertility rates across developed East Asian societies strain pension and health care systems, threaten economic growth, and reshape entire societies. To tackle this issue, governments in Japan and across East Asia have invested heavily in
The moon has played a huge role in the development of Earth. It stabilizes the planet, tempers dramatic climate swings, and possibly even provides the tidal heating that might have led to the first life forms. So it's natural we would want to find a similar Earth/Luna system
In the middle of the Antarctic winter, during months of darkness when temperatures often dip below −30°C, the continent warmed dramatically. In July and August 2024, temperatures in parts of East Antarctica rose by up to 28°C above average and stayed high for more than two
Graphic warning: This story contains images of realistic-looking fake open-heart surgery.
Researchers have demonstrated a new technique for creating 2D materials that runs at room temperature and increases production rates tenfold over current methods, without using toxic solvents. Scientists led by Dr. Jason Stafford from the Department of Mechanical Engineering
Researchers at McGill University have developed a novel device that generates sound-like particles known as phonons at extremely cold temperatures. The technology could be used to create phonon lasers, with possible applications in communications and medical diagnostics.
Methane is the second-largest greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. According to the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, anthropogenic methane emissions account for nearly 45% of current net warming, making it an important factor in global warming. An international research team
Amid a rapid, AI-driven technology boom and all the changes it's entailed, mental health issues due to social isolation have been on the rise. Researchers in social and clinical psychology have documented this shift and coined it the "loneliness epidemic."
The Hayward fault, part of the larger San Andreas fault system, runs 74 miles through the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. The fault is overdue for an earthquake that could cause extensive damage to such a dense population zone.
As sacked National Science Board members and lawmakers speak out, US research preeminence further dims on the international stage The post Trump’s War on Science Continues appeared first on Nautilus .
Our cells adjust to ever-changing conditions while preserving internal states necessary for survival, but exactly how they achieve both adaptability and stability remains unclear. For the first time, researchers have used a light-based technique called Raman spectroscopy to
Discovered in 2019, the material known as nickelates has intrigued researchers for its potential to become a superconductor at elevated temperatures—a property that could significantly advance such fields as quantum science and energy transmission. However, it's a very unstable
Interpersonal tensions between colleagues can be costly for businesses. Even the specter of a threat can sap concentration, undermine collaboration, and divert huge amounts of mental energy away from work and toward self-defense.
Rivers worldwide are under severe stress: they are warming, losing oxygen, and as a result emitting increasing amounts of greenhouse gases. Researchers at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have now quantified these global trends over a period of more than two decades.
Understanding how wounds heal after injury could be a step closer thanks to a new mathematical model developed by researchers at the University of Bristol. The study, published in Physical Review Letters, builds on previous work in fruit flies, where the researchers observed
A Florida International University student has exposed a hidden driver of coastal flooding, and it could help improve warning systems for entire communities. Earth and Environment Ph.D. student Dafrosa Kataraihya's latest research, published in Natural Hazards, shows that winds
A sub-two-hour marathon has long been seen as a tantalizing benchmark for elite runners—and shoemakers have been in a race to design footwear that can help them get there
Music streaming platforms such as Spotify hold tremendous power over whether fans listen to a musical artist, while social media boycotts have less impact, according to a new Cornell study. Jura Liaukonyte, professor at the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and
Researchers in the University of Minnesota Twin Cities have discovered a powerful new way to control the electronic behavior of a metal—by manipulating the atomic properties of materials where they meet. The study, published in Nature Communications, demonstrates that
Sticking with the same people might feel safe and comfortable. But a new Northwestern University study suggests it can actually trap new ideas and behaviors inside tight echo chambers. By contrast, the research, published in Communications Physics, shows that when interactions
As cities sprawl into suburbs and exurbs, the distinction between urban areas and the countryside has become increasingly blurry. A new paper published in npj Urban Sustainability proposes that many modern landscapes can be managed more holistically when they are understood as
The search for next-generation electronic materials often starts with studying the Fermi surface, which serves as a map of a material's electronic structure. Its shape varies with crystal structure, composition, and electronic band arrangement, directly impacting properties
Researchers at Clarkson University have reported a breakthrough in tackling per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of widely used "forever chemicals" that are difficult to remove from water and have raised growing environmental and public health concerns. The
It’s a question of motivation The post Why Cooperation Falls Apart Over Time appeared first on Nautilus .
From birth to death, stars generally slow by 100 to 1,000 times their initial rotation rates; in other words, they "spin down." The sun's total angular momentum has declined as material is gradually blown off at the surface as solar wind. By observing this, astronomers have
After Sweden removed inheritance and gift taxes in 2005, private firms with potential family successors grew faster, invested more, and paid higher corporate taxes than firms without natural heirs, according to a new white paper from the Stockholm School of Economics. The study
Scientists have captured the most detailed structural images to date of a specific type of protein's DNA repair process, a finding that could reveal ways to inhibit the effects of BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations that heighten the risk for breast, ovarian and other cancers.
Few elements of our culture are as firmly established in the 21st-century Western zeitgeist as the fact that teachers are underappreciated and poorly paid. That goes double for informal educators—those who work outside the confines of diploma- or degree-granting institutions.
A research team from the School of Biomedical Sciences at the LKS Faculty of Medicine, the University of Hong Kong (HKUMed), has uncovered the mechanism underlying how cancer patients respond to a widely used cancer drug, known as paclitaxel, offering insights that may help
Oil spills and fires are two very different hazards, but both can cause major damage before people have time to react. Oil contamination can spread quickly across water and harm marine ecosystems, while undetected heat buildup can lead to destructive fires in high-risk
A rainbow reveals with colors what otherwise remains hidden: light is "refracted" by transparent matter, in this case water droplets. This same physical effect underlies many everyday technologies, like LCD screens and broadband connections based on fiber-optic cables. Light
Big animals leave big holes in the food web The post What Happens When Giants Disappear from Ecosystems? appeared first on Nautilus .
When Mauna Loa erupted in 2022, the largest lava flow headed on a path headed directly toward Daniel K. Inouye State Highway 200, also known as Saddle Road, a critical route that carries many residents from their homes on one side to their jobs on the other.
The frequently cited claim that 60% to 90% of transgender and gender-diverse children and young adults ultimately identify as cisgender—or their gender assigned at birth—is not supported by statistical analyses of published scientific research, according to a new study from
