Science News

US government wants to have a useful quantum computer by 2028

The US government is trying to speed up the development of quantum computers so it can have one sooner

Dogs, drones and sound detectors: How rescuers search for quake survivors

Rescuers armed with a range of techniques continue to search through the rubble in Venezuela.

The Radiation Exposure Lie

# Summary Chernobyl, while the worst nuclear disaster in history, caused relatively few deaths—only about 47 among…

Childbirth for many primate species is even harder than for humans

For decades, we’ve thought that childbirth is uniquely challenging for humans, but it turns out that many other primates…

Humans sleep the least of all apes – is it the secret to our success?

Sleep is essential, yet humans have evolved to need so little of it.

Think tank games out how to respond to disaster scenarios in space warfare

"Where does the threshold live that an action necessitates some proportional reaction?"

Your menstrual cycle may affect how well vaccines work

Women who were vaccinated against covid-19 in the luteal phase of their menstrual cycle reported having a breakthrough…

Cryptographers Move Closer to Practical Code Obfuscation Despite Major Efficiency Barriers

Cryptographic obfuscation has long been regarded as one of the field’s challenging goals because it aims to hide how…

Caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee lower stress, depression and impulsivity

# Summary Research from UCC's APC Microbiome Ireland found that both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee reduce…

NASA's X-59 "frankenjet" tests supersonic flight without the sonic boom

NASA’s quiet supersonic flight tests could eventually go on a national tour.

Remote-controlled cockroach swarm can now breathe underwater

Tiny 3D-printed diving suits allow cockroaches to walk underwater for up to 3 hours with no ill effects, which could…

First dinosaur bone from Antarctica found in a drawer

The fossil, collected in Antarctica in 1985, is part of the tail of a beast called a Titanosaur.

Is sunscreen the new margarine? (2021)

# Summary A controversial group of researchers, led by dermatologist Richard Weller, challenges the conventional wisdom…

Cigarettes

The author acknowledges that while cigarettes are harmful and deadly—having lost his father to lung cancer from…

Why did this journal retract two 1940s papers by Max Planck?

Clicking on the links now reveals blank pages and empty PDFs. "Intellectually, it’s not acceptable.”

Who are the fire-tamers?

# Summary In Brittany, France, thousands of traditional healers known as "fire-tamers" practice an unregulated,…

Europe's heatwave linked to 1,300 deaths, WHO says, as Germany hits record 41.7C

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that Europe is not prepared for high temperatures.

Daisugi the Japanese Technique of Trees Out of Trees, Making Exact Straight Wood

Daisugi is a 600-year-old Japanese forestry technique that grows multiple trees from a single parent tree, similar to…

Examining circuit boards from the Space Shuttle's I/O Processor

# Summary The Space Shuttle's I/O Processor was a sophisticated multi-threaded computer that managed input/output…

The origins of the school system aimed to produce independent, critical thinkers

The curious case of the disappearing Polish S

# Summary A Medium user reported being unable to type the Polish letter "Ś" on the platform, despite being able to type…

More evidence of life on Mars but still no life (2025)

GLP-1 drugs led to weight loss and reversed depression-like behavior in mice

# Summary Recent research shows that GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic not only promote weight loss but also reverse…

Heatwave breaks more records in northern and central Europe

Germany, Denmark and the Czech republic are among the countries recording new all-time high temperatures.

Screen time can damage under-twos' development, landmark study suggests

A landmark study examining global research concludes that screen time for babies and toddlers under two should be…

The fittest founder in the room got cancer. Here’s how he used AI to fight back.

When confronted with cancer, Connor Christou fed everything tied tied to his regime — blood results, scan data, wearable…

How Many Elementary Particles Are There, Really?

# Summary The number of elementary particles in nature is ambiguous and depends on how physicists choose to count them.

Researchers have developed pixels that can emit and analyse light together

Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed "Fourier pixels" that can both emit and analyze light, enabling them to control…

Decline in IQ linked to frequent or dependent use of cannabis use in youth

A meta-analysis of seven longitudinal studies involving over 5,000 participants found that frequent or dependent…