The outbreak of a mysterious and deadly disease in finches in British gardens in 2005 set alarm bells ringing for conservationists. A decade later, the extent of that disease in greenfinches and chaffinches was reported. And now, bird scientists are beginning to understand how
For decades, the mathematician Frank Merle has been embracing the messy math behind lasers and fluids
When people consider what causes high blood pressure, they often think of lifestyle factors, such as eating salty foods, lack of exercise or smoking. However, an unexpected source of salt might also be raising blood pressure for millions of people: the water they drink.
Every 25 minutes in the United States, a baby is diagnosed with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), a condition that occurs in newborns who have been exposed to opioids in the womb and develop withdrawal after birth, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) has successfully completed the largest high-resolution 3D map of the universe ever made, a major milestone in understanding the force driving cosmic expansion. The milestone was reached when DESI's 5,000 fiber-optic sensors
Over the last several decades, the oceans have become more crowded. Aquaculture, wind and wave energy, and oil and gas exploration are taking up more space. This growth threatens the health of ocean ecosystems and coastal communities' access to food and livelihoods that they
Along the stark and shimmering coastline of the Dead Sea, where desert cliffs meet one of the world's most extreme environments, a quiet drama is unfolding in the skies above. Fan-tailed ravens, intelligent, adaptable, and ever-watchful, are making life-or-death decisions every
Predicting material properties remains a major challenge in materials science, as it often requires complex and computationally intensive calculations. In particular, understanding how materials respond to electric fields is essential for the development of next-generation
People often solve simple arithmetic problems, such as basic addition, subtraction, multiplication or division, in their minds. The precise mental processes they rely on to solve these problems, however, are not entirely clear. Researchers at Université de Bordeaux and
From flash mobs to line-dancing to the Nutbush, experiencing rhythm and movement in a group context is known to boost mental and physical health in people of all ages. Now a University of the Sunshine Coast study published in Behavioral Sciences of more than 200 4-year-olds
Can you tell if you're working with a narcissist or a psychopath? A new study suggests that people's job choices may offer some clues, especially in fields built on leadership and persuasion such as business, politics, and law, where such darker traits are more common. Those in
Researchers from National Taiwan University break traditional frameworks by unveiling a new symmetry-transition mechanism in ZrO2 thin films, achieving ultra-stable antiferroelectric behavior for up to 108 cycles.
Poison frogs are small and brightly colored amphibians that originate from Central and South America. As suggested by their name, these frogs can release highly toxic chemicals from their skin, which deter and neutralize predators.
Scientists have captured stunning new insights into one of the universe’s most powerful phenomena—black hole jets—by using a planet-sized network of radio telescopes. Focusing on Cygnus X-1, one of the first known black holes, they measured jets blasting out with the energy of
Nicholas J. Marantz, associate professor of urban planning and public policy at UC Irvine, is investigating how effectively current data sources track changes in residential housing stock. His aim is to understand how policy changes, such as new zoning laws and broader housing
Superconductivity is a state of matter characterized by an electrical resistance of zero, typically at very low temperatures. Past studies have found that in various materials, this unique state is accompanied by unusual electron arrangements.
Engineers love a good practical challenge, especially when it comes to spaceflight. But there's one particular challenge facing the crewed missions of the near future that scares mission planners above almost all others—fire. For decades, we've relied on a NASA test known as
Sitting all day might not be as damaging as once feared—if you’re willing to move more. A massive study tracking over 72,000 people found that simply increasing daily steps can significantly reduce the risk of death and heart disease, even for those who spend long hours
A new study published in Nature Communications has shown that in the asymptotic limit, extracting the maximum possible work from many copies of a quantum system does not require knowing exactly what state that system is in.
That “magic” sponge under your sink may be hiding an environmental downside. While melamine sponges are famous for effortlessly scrubbing away stubborn stains, they slowly break down as you use them—shedding tiny plastic fibers that wash into water systems. Researchers estimate
Microfiber pollution from large-scale laundry operations is emerging as a significant and largely unseen environmental issue. New research led by the University of Portsmouth is using Cleaner Seas Group's industrial filtration technology—already deployed in commercial settings
This week in science news: Researchers are calling to exploit sewage waste and manure to break U.S. synthetic fertilizer dependence. Wasps have begun disrupting the 10-million-year mutualism of ants and plants. And scientists have taken a step toward using CRISPR to silence the
A joint research team led by Professor Park Kyoung-Duck and Associate Director Suh Yung Doug of the Center for Multidimensional Carbon Materials within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) has succeeded in realizing a high-efficiency quantum light source that emits bright
Sexual misconduct—including sexual harassment, stalking, intimate partner violence and sexual assault—is a common problem on U.S. college campuses.
A collaborative research group has developed a fully automated roll-to-roll manufacturing platform capable of producing large-area visible metalenses at a rate of 300 units per second, marking a major breakthrough in translating metasurface technology from the laboratory to
The world of peptides has exploded in wellness circles, but the benefits of injecting these gray-market molecules rest on little clinical evidence
Caffeine doesn’t just perk up humans—it can sharpen ants’ minds too. Invasive Argentine ants given caffeinated sugar learned to find food much more efficiently, taking straighter paths and reducing travel time by up to 38%. They weren’t faster, just more focused, indicating
Quantum science and AI research are big winners just a year after the U.S. funding giant slashed its Graduate Research Fellowship Program awards in half
Researchers have found that a group of chemicals known as PFAS can be transferred from mother dolphins to their nursing calves, adding to the evidence that these persistent contaminants can be transferred from mothers to offspring during early development.
In subduction zones, the sites of the world's largest earthquakes, tectonic activity may generate a "pump" that transports long-buried subseafloor microbes back toward the seafloor, according to research presented at the 2026 SSA Annual Meeting.
Nitrogen (N) fertilizer supports global agriculture, but its use and overuse drive emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent and long-lived trace gas. Incomplete understanding of N2O flux drivers makes it difficult to make spatiotemporal emissions predictions and evaluate
Editor in chief Nancy Shute discusses the fascinating world of constructed languages, our behind-the-scenes look at a vast science museum collection, and how some mathematicians are embracing AI to check complex proofs.
Thawing permafrost buried underneath rivers may be accelerating permafrost degradation faster than previously estimated in these inundated regions, according to new research shared at the 2026 SSA Annual Meeting.
Placed within a borehole drilled deep through the layers of a landslide, a fiber optic cable captured tiny, periodic stick-slip events that offer a unique glimpse at the complex movements within the landslide's shear zone.
Burning time for North American wildfires is going into overtime. Flames are lasting later into the night and starting earlier in the morning because human-caused climate change is extending the hotter and drier conditions that feed fires, a new study found.
Why it’s good to be bored The post Defending Our Consciousness Against the Algorithms appeared first on Nautilus .
Scientists drilling deep beneath Greenland’s ice have uncovered a startling clue about its past—and future. Evidence shows that the Prudhoe Dome, a major high point of the ice sheet, completely melted around 7,000 years ago during a relatively mild natural warming period. That
Engineers at Northwestern University have taken a striking leap toward merging machines with the human brain by printing artificial neurons that can actually communicate with real ones. These flexible, low-cost devices generate lifelike electrical signals capable of activating
Some of the ocean’s fastest and most fearsome predators—like great white sharks and tuna—are running hotter than expected, and it’s costing them dearly. New research shows these warm-bodied fish burn nearly four times more energy than cold-blooded species, forcing them to eat
As the Moon swallowed the Sun during the April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse, something remarkable happened on the ground—cities went eerily quiet. Scientists analyzing seismic data found that human-generated vibrations, usually caused by traffic, construction, and daily
Researchers have shown that blending quantum computing with AI can dramatically improve predictions of complex, chaotic systems. By letting a quantum computer identify hidden patterns in data, the AI becomes more accurate and stable over time. The method outperformed standard
A surprising new study suggests that eating a very healthy diet—packed with fruits, vegetables, and whole grains—might be linked to a higher risk of lung cancer in younger non-smokers. Researchers found that patients under 50 diagnosed with lung cancer often had
Canadians swallow millions of pills every day to treat common health issues like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and Type II diabetes, but scientists are working at the molecular level to turn patients' cells into pharmacies.
Urban parks are often seen as natural refuges from summer heat, but new Concordia research shows that, depending on the time of day, the way trees are arranged within parks can influence whether those spaces cool people down or trap heat.
