Is the Mistletoe That inspires Holiday Smooching A Menace to Trees?
Study shows that parasitic mistletoe doesn’t hurt host trees in Oregon The post Is the Mistletoe That inspires Holiday Smooching A Menace to Trees? appeared first on Nautilus .
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The stealthy, persistent hazard of thirdhand smoke
While the dangers of secondhand smoke are widely recognized, a new study led by Prof. Sun Yele at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has uncovered a more persistent and stealthy hazard lurking in indoor environments: thirdhand smoke. This
Lily-like plants reveal centromere type evolution paths
The centromere is necessary for the transport of chromosomes during cell division and, therefore, for the correct transmission of genetic information. Most plants and animals have chromosomes with a single centromere, known as a monocentromere.
Structural findings reveal how distinct GPCR ligands create different levels of activation
G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) are proteins triggered by ligands (protein-binding chemicals) from outside cells to transmit signals inside the cell. These signals are transmitted primarily through the activation of G proteins, which produce various physiological effects.
What Does Evolutionary Age Have to Do with a Species’ Extinction?
Younger species of sharks and rays were more likely to die out The post What Does Evolutionary Age Have to Do with a Species’ Extinction? appeared first on Nautilus .
Predictive 'mismatch' leads to novel carbon capture method
When experimental results don't match scientists' predictions, it's usually assumed that the predictions were wrong. But new research into materials that pull carbon dioxide directly from the air shows how such mismatches can instead be powerful clues, leading to discoveries
New technique lights up where drugs go in the body, cell by cell
When you take a drug, where in your body does it actually go? For most medications, scientists can make only educated guesses about the answer to this question. Traditional methods can measure the concentration of a drug in an organ like the liver, but they can't pinpoint
Smile and the world will trust you: How mimicry shapes first impressions
How does mimicry affect the way we judge other people? Whose behavior do we imitate, and in what situations? It turns out that we are more likely to mimic people who express joy, and we perceive those people as more attractive and more trustworthy. Scientists, including
Atmospheric rivers explained: What to know about the weather phenomenon
Atmospheric rivers are massive plumes of moisture carried across the sky that can dump heavy rains or snow over land.
How does Santa do it all? Quantum physics, that's how, says scientist
Every year, Santa Claus races around the globe in a matter of hours to bring presents to children all over the world.
Male bees' food begging behavior traced to a single genetic factor
Is complex social behavior genetically determined? Yes, as a team of biologists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) together with colleagues from Bochum and Paris discovered while studying bees.
New species of beetle named in honor of Gerald Durrell
A museum scientist has paid homage to the renowned British naturalist and author Gerald Durrell, whose stories inspired him to become a researcher when he was growing up in what was then the Soviet Union.
More eyes on the skies can help planes reduce climate-warming contrails
Aviation's climate impact is partly due to contrails—condensation that a plane streaks across the sky when it flies through icy and humid layers of the atmosphere. Contrails trap heat that radiates from the planet's surface, and while the magnitude of this impact is uncertain,
What contributed to the success of termites? Their genomes provide the answer
The most comprehensive dataset of termite genomes to date was created by an international team of scientists, led by researchers from the Biology Center of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The team sequenced 45 termite genomes and two cockroach genomes, increasing the total
Fishing fleet tracking can reveal shifts in marine ecosystems
Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have already leveraged the vast troves of geolocation data from vessel-tracking systems to pinpoint where whales and other large marine species are endangered by ship traffic and industrial fishing.
Supermassive black holes show selective feeding habits during galaxy mergers
Black holes are notorious for gobbling up everything that comes their way, but astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have discovered that even supermassive black holes can be picky eaters, and this can have a significant impact on their growth.
Fossil-fuel propaganda is stalling climate action; here's what we can do about it
2025 has been a year of setbacks for Canada's climate policy. In November, the federal and Alberta governments signed a memorandum of understanding to remove strict climate policies in the province and to support the construction of a new pipeline from Alberta to northern
Tracing the quick synthesis of an industrially important catalyst
Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have successfully traced the mechanism behind how an industrially important "superbase" catalyst is synthesized in a faster, microwave-assisted reaction. They took measurements using X-rays while the reaction occurred, uncovering
Why Does My Lettuce Go Bad so Fast?
What happens when nature has a leaky raincoat The post Why Does My Lettuce Go Bad so Fast? appeared first on Nautilus .
The way our cells respond to estrogen depends on how DNA is 'supercoiled'
Although it also performs some functions in men, estrogen, the main female sex hormone, is involved in a myriad of processes, which is why the body changes so much during menopause. This is because estrogens regulate hundreds of genes.
Reversible spin splitting effect achieved in altermagnetic RuO₂ thin films
A research team affiliated with UNIST has made a advancement in controlling spin-based signals within a new magnetic material, paving the way for next-generation electronic devices. Their work demonstrates a method to reversibly switch the direction of spin-to-charge
Engineering the first reusable launchpads on the moon
Engineers need good data to build lasting things. Even the designers of the Great Pyramids knew the limestone they used to build these massive structures would be steady when stacked on top of one another, even if they didn't have tables of the compressive strength of those
Providing AI training leads to more critical and ethical use by university students
No longer a technological novelty, generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has become a common tool for everyday academic tasks among the university community. In view of this, the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) has carried out a research project to establish the
Working in groups can help Republicans and Democrats agree on controversial content moderation online
Over half of Americans believe tech companies should take action to restrict extremely violent content on their platforms, according to Pew data, yet even trained content moderators consistently disagree in their decisions about how to classify hate speech and offensive images.
How soil and human antibiotic resistance are connected
A study led by researchers at the Department of Civil Engineering at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) has uncovered alarming evidence that soil worldwide is emerging as a significant reservoir and amplifier of high-risk antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), which enable bacteria
Scientists chart over 140,000 DNA loops to map human chromosomes in the nucleus
One of the most detailed 3D maps of how the human chromosomes are organized and folded within a cell's nucleus is published in Nature.
Anything-goes 'anyons' may be at the root of surprising quantum experiments
In the past year, two separate experiments in two different materials captured the same confounding scenario: the coexistence of superconductivity and magnetism. Scientists had assumed that these two quantum states are mutually exclusive; the presence of one should inherently
Leaves' pores explain longstanding mystery of uneven tree growth in a carbon-enriched world
The basics of photosynthesis are something that every student learns in school: carbon dioxide, water and light in; oxygen and sugar for growth out. In a world where atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are rising, it is plausible to think that trees and other plant life growth
A third path to explain consciousness: Biological computationalism
Right now, the debate about consciousness often feels frozen between two entrenched positions. On one side sits computational functionalism, which treats cognition as something you can fully explain in terms of abstract information processing: get the right functional
Two ancient human species came out of Africa together, not one, suggests new study
The textbook version of the "Out of Africa" hypothesis holds that the first human species to leave the continent around 1.8 million years ago was Homo erectus. But in recent years, a debate has emerged suggesting it wasn't a single species, but several. New research published
How greener bus stops can help people beat the heat
A new University of British Columbia study published in Urban Climate finds that people waiting at bus stops they find visually pleasant are more likely to feel thermally comfortable during hot weather, even when physical heat levels are high.
An ecosystem never forgets: Extreme heat and drought responses linked to hydrological memory
The low-latitude highlands region of southwestern China experienced two major climate events in recent years: a severe drought in 2009–2010 and an extreme heat wave in 2019. Though both sprang from similar large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns, the events produced
Trump Administration Targets Offshore Wind Farms, Citing National Security Concerns
The U.S. Department of the Interior announced it would “pause” leases for five large offshore wind farms, imperiling the fast-growing clean energy industry
Ancient Romans Guarding Hadrian’s Wall Were Riddled with Worms and Parasites
Romans living in ancient Britain were plagued by intestinal parasites, all of which are spread by fecal contamination
Hubble glimpses galactic gas making getaway
A sideways spiral galaxy shines in this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image. Located about 60 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo (the Maiden), NGC 4388 is a resident of the Virgo galaxy cluster. This enormous cluster of galaxies contains more than a thousand
The dual impact of stellar bars on star formation in galaxy pairs
Professor Woong-bae Zee of the College of Liberal Studies at Sejong University has revealed that a galaxy does not possess only a single evolutionary pathway; instead, depending on the nature of its neighboring galaxy, it can exhibit two entirely different "faces of evolution."
The simulation hypothesis: Mathematical framework redefines what it means for one universe to simulate another
The simulation hypothesis—the idea that our universe might be an artificial construct running on some advanced alien computer—has long captured the public imagination. Yet most arguments about it rest on intuition rather than clear definitions, and few attempts have been made
Whale, dolphin strandings show widespread disease, trauma
From land-borne pathogens to high-speed vessel strikes, Pacific whales and dolphins are caught in a "perfect storm" where human-caused trauma and infectious diseases were found in more than 65% of investigated strandings.
New Scientist changed the UK's freedom of information laws in 2025
By requesting copies of the then-UK technology secretary's ChatGPT logs, New Scientist set a precedent for how freedom of information laws apply to chatbot interactions, helping to hold governments to account
Did a Rogue Planet Bring Order to Our Solar System?
New models suggest a celestial bypasser left us with the current orbital lineup The post Did a Rogue Planet Bring Order to Our Solar System? appeared first on Nautilus .
Ant smuggling case highlights legal inconsistencies
Authors of a new study are calling for stronger protection of insects in wildlife law, after the conviction of four men in Kenya for smuggling rare ants out of the country highlighted the need for more effective deterrents for criminals.
Nanoplastics have diet-dependent impacts on digestive system health, study finds
Plastics are not inert: they gradually break into fragments over time, forming micro- and then nanoplastics (i.e., particles
Kolmogorov-Arnold networks bridge AI and scientific discovery by increasing interpretability
AI has successfully been applied in many areas of science, advancing technologies like weather prediction and protein folding. However, there have been limitations for the world of scientific discovery involving more curiosity-driven research. But that may soon change, thanks
Capturing the moment a cell shuts the door on free radicals
For the first time, researchers have been able to show how a cell closes the door to free radicals—small oxygen molecules that are sometimes needed, but that can also damage our cells. The study is published in Nature Communications and was led by Lund University.
Q&A: The science of snowflakes—how hexagonal symmetry and environmental changes create endless designs
In the iconic "Sound of Music" score, "My Favorite Things," a young Julie Andrews lists snowflakes as objects that bring her joy. While some people would rather avoid snowflakes and the slippery roads that accompany them, no one can deny the beauty and intricacy captured within
Cells reveal 'survival of the fittest' through ribosome competition
Ribosomes—the tiny factories that build proteins in our cells—don't all work with the same efficiency. Researchers from Japan have discovered that ribosomes actually compete with one another, and those that perform poorly are selectively broken down when more efficient ones are
East Antarctic Ice Sheet's history tells a relevant story for today and beyond
Though ice sheet melting is widely talked of and debated, there is limited knowledge about what happens after the period of melting. Researchers dig into this "after" period and see how it relates to previous patterns.
The essential guide to proving we’ve found alien life
From mudstones on Mars to strange gases in exoplanet atmospheres, tentative evidence for extraterrestrial life is starting to come thick and fast. But when we've found it, how will we know for sure?
I study rat nests—here's why rodents make great archivists
Rats and other rodents and pests can make great archivists.
These are our favorite animal stories of 2025
From clever cockatoos to vomiting spiders, these cool critters captivated us this year.
