homehome Home chatchat Notifications


Human outposts on Mars could be sheltered by a thin layer of 'frozen smoke'

Scientists envision using a very thin material to build a huge greenhouse on Mars.

This is what quantum entanglement looks like

The first images of spooky action at a distance.

By 2050, many cities will have hot weather like they've never seen

How hot will your area be in 2050?

Study reveals true scale of one of the world's deadliest plagues

"We now have a pathogen whose molecular history we can follow for thousands of years," says paper co-author McCormick. "The jury's out, evidence is accumulating, and we're all going to learn as we go forward."

Grasshoppers, silkworms, giant cicadas are a good source of antioxidants -- if you eat them

"In the future, we might also adapt dietary regimens for insect rearing in order to increase their antioxidant content for animal or human consumption," say the authors.

NASA prepares to grow peppers on the International Space Station

A group of researchers at NASA is preparing for the final steps to launch the Española chile pepper into space in November.

Alan Turing to feature on new £50 note

A worthy recognition for one of the world's greatest scientists.

Healthy lifestyles can offset the genetic risk of dementia by 32%

Healthy body, healthy mind.

Over 1 million people join Facebook event to 'storm area 51' and 'see them aliens'

No one: The internet: Let's storm Area 51!

Music can be used to estimate political ideology to an "accuracy of 70%", researchers say

"Happy"

Research is getting to the root of climate change with bigger, deeper plant roots

"We are incredibly excited about this first discovery on the road to realizing the goals of the Harnessing Plants Initiative," the authors say.

Iron-breathing bacteria might have delayed Earth's oxygenation for almost one billion years

Inhale iron, exhale rust.

Fossil Friday: bird encased in amber has an unique, "extreme" toe

The bird's hyper-elongated third toe is longer than its whole lower leg, the authors report.

Japan just landed a shuttle on an asteroid

It's a remarkable achievement.

Oldest known velociraptor relative was a chicken-sized feather-covered predator

It could teach us a thing or two about how flying emerged, too.

Zebrafish help scientists unravel the origins of sleep

Tiny sleepy fish sleep remarkably similar to humans.

Oldest human skull out of Africa forces us to rethink migration timeline

Was this an isolated individual, or part of an earlier wave of human migration?

The hunger hormone is involved in episodic memory in rats, new research finds

Rats with artificially-reduced ghrelin signaling showed impaired performance in an episodic memory task.

Plant-based meat is about to get cheaper than animal meat

Veggie burgers -- yay or nay?

New nanodevice converts wasted heat into more battery life

A clever device runs at the fringe of physics to solve our wasted energy problems.

Corals are moving away from the sweltering tropics -- and establishing new reefs

Everybody seems to be running from the heat this summer.

Climate change denial might soon be abhorred as slavery, says David Attenborough

"I am sorry that there are people who are in power … notably, of course, [in] the United States but also in Australia [who are climate change deniers], which is extraordinary because Australia is already facing having to deal with some of the most extreme manifestations of climate change."

Shocking images of a python devouring a crocodile whole in Australia

Nature is lit!

Sri Lanka has eliminated measles

Sri Lanka is the fourth country in the WHO South-East Asia Region, after Bhutan, Maldives, and Timor-Leste, to eliminate measles and control rubella.

French scientists develop new class of promising antibiotics (so far, only in mice)

It's still early days, but the results are exciting.

France to stop reimbursing homeopathic treatments

The reason is pretty simple: there's no evidence that it works.

Snowball the cockatoo invents his own groovy dancing, showing that it is not a unique human construct

An adorable cockatoo that stole our hearts is revealing new insights about the origin and role of dancing.

Satellite imaging used to spot the largest seaweed bloom in the world

The record-breaking belt of brown algae stretches from West Africa to the Gulf of Mexico.

HPV vaccine will also be administered to boys in the UK, preventing thousands of cancers

It's an important step towards eliminating some types of cancer.

The Earth has room for a trillion more trees -- which might be our best bet against climate change

A new study shows that there's still plenty of room for almost a billion hectares of forest.

X-Rays and lensing tricks help researchers spot black hole spin

A black hole was spinning as fast as is theoretically possible.

Antarctic instability could raise sea levels by half a meter in 150 years

Currently, sea levels are 20 cm (almost 8 inches) above pre-industrial levels.

Ancient life is waking up from melting ice and permafrost

The permafrost is like a graveyard. Some of that graveyard is waking up.

Tamu Massif is an intriguing new type of hybrid volcano

Tamu Massif is forcing geologists to re-think a classic volcano formation theory.

Space station mold can survive 200 times more radiation than you or me

Researchers plan to employ them as producers of food, antibiotics, other materials for astronauts on deep space missions.

Ignoring distractions or temptation is harder when you're tired, stressed, or trying to remember something

The best course of action in such situations is simply to avoid places that could make you 'sin'.

Scientists modify plant mitochondrial DNA for the first time

This is huge news for the biotech industry.

Grazing animals drove the domestication of grain crops

This might solve a long-standing puzzle about plant domestication.

Deforestation in Brazil continues to soar as current administration shows lack of interest

The all-too-familiar story about the rainforest versus economic development.

'Smart' glass recognizes numbers without the need for sensors or even electrical power

Scientists have devised a novel system that can recognize visual objects by bending light.

NASA wants the future of spaceflight to be commercial -- including the ISS

Could this be the key to ensuring that the ISS lives long and prosper?

They live in the octillions, in scorching heat beneath the ground -- and we're just finding out about them

There's a stunning biodiversity underground -- and we're just now learning about it.

The biggest science meeting you've (probably) never heard about just kicked off in Germany

Here's why this matters.

What makes a good excuse: a philosopher's take

We all make excuses, so might as well learn how to do them properly.

Scientists explore the origin of metabolism to reveal secrets of primordial life

To become successful, life had to find a way to turn food from the environment into energy.

NASA plans to send a helicopter drone to Titan in search of life

Titan is of interest because it is the only body in our solar system (besides Earth) that has liquid rivers, lakes, and seas on its surface.

8 bird species have disappeared this decade or are on the brink of extinction

This includes the Spix’s Macaw, the lovely birds which inspired the main characters in Rio.

Toddlers prefer high-status winners -- but avoid bullies who win by force

This may be a core property of human nature.

Contrails' warming effect on the climate could triple by 2050

Contrail cirrus clouds have warmed the atmosphere more than all the carbon dioxide from planes since the dawn of aviation and will do so even more in the future.

How the world’s most famous codebreaker unlocked the secrets of nature’s beauty

The beauty that surrounds us has order – and one of the world’s best codebreakers was the key to unlocking it.