Stay informed about scientific discoveries, research developments and new findings from around the world.
Heat waves over land worldwide are beginning earlier, ending later and occurring over longer seasons, while the first heat wave of the season has recently shifted toward faster onset, according to a new study published in Nature Climate Change.
A study conducted by the University of Liège and Rockefeller University reveals, with near-atomic precision, the three-dimensional structure and function of a gigantic molecular machine essential to the survival of trypanosomatid parasites, which cause serious diseases in humans, animals and plants. The work has been published in Nature Communications.
New York University researchers have trained an AI model to learn chemical patterns associated with stability in drug-like molecules and accurately predict where their hydrogen atoms should be positioned.
The hunt for extraterrestrial life on distant planets may be operating with a big blind spot. That's because we aren't accounting for the nature of the light coming from the host star itself when we interpret the chemical signatures of life, or biosignatures, on some of the most promising candidate planets beyond the solar system. If we don't consider that crucial factor, we could be led on a wild-goose chase across the cosmos.Despite having discovered thousands of exoplanets, we have not detected convincing evidence of alien life on any of them. But astronomy is reaching a point where powerful telescopes can zoom in on many more potentially habitable worlds. Planets that orbit M dwarfs, whi...
The most powerful venture capital firm in Silicon Valley is starting a two-year private school intended to replace college, as some members of the U.S. tech elite question the benefits of a traditional university education.
A display of flowers has bloomed across Chile's Atacama Desert, one of the driest places on Earth, after the El Niño climate phenomenon brought heavy rain to the region.
A reptile believed to be struggling in sand at a Southern California beach was simply making history: a sea turtle laying eggs on the U.S. West Coast.
Grassland plants transfer large amounts of carbon to soil through their roots, and most of that carbon is stored underground. Therefore, promoting soil carbon storage can help combat climate change. Grazers feed on grassland plants, and conventional wisdom often assumes that removing grazers benefits carbon storage, but a new study in Global Change Biology Communications reveals that the opposite may be the case.
New research in Plants, People, Planet demonstrates how precision agriculture techniques involving drones and sensor-based irrigation can save water needed to produce tomatoes and grapes while also improving the quality of these crops.
A study in Contemporary Economic Policy examined whether racial and ethnic differences in U.S. disability insurance approval rates reflect disparities in the determination process or broader differences in applicants' circumstances.
Scientists have found strong observational evidence that a key part of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation has been weakening across a wide stretch of ocean for nearly two decades. The slowdown could eventually reshape weather patterns, rainfall, storms, winters, and coastal sea levels around the Atlantic.
Repeatability in engineering product design ensures that a manufacturing process performs the same way every time and allows for a working prototype to be transformed into a reliable, safe, consistent, and cost-effective mass-market product. For students in class 2.70 (Fundamentals of Precision Product Design), precision and repeatability are the name of the game. “[As an engineer], you have an extra responsibility to overlook nothing,” says course instructor Alex Slocum, the Walter M. and A. Hazel May Professor of Mechanical Engineering. “If you miss something, someone could be hurt or die.”Slocum’s message is serious, but his approach to teaching the material is famously fun — in fact, he ...
How can regions better adapt their water and soil resources to the impacts of climate change? After four years of research, the European collaborative project Blue Transition, led by the LIAG Institute for Applied Geophysics in Hanover, takes stock. The final report brings together the findings from 16 pilot regions in six countries and identifies three key levers to strengthen climate resilience: changing land use, improving soil health and diversifying water resources and optimizing their use.
Physicists searching through Large Hadron Collider data found no evidence that the machine has been producing microscopic quantum black holes, but the result sharply narrows where such exotic physics could still be hiding. These hypothetical black holes could form if extra spatial dimensions make gravity much stronger at extremely tiny scales, potentially offering clues toward the long-sought theory of quantum gravity.
Ancient iron meteorites reveal that some of the Solar System’s first solid bodies were built mostly from tiny heat-forged rock beads called chondrules, while water-rich dust was largely excluded. The finding pushes this selective planet-building process back to within the Solar System’s first million years.
Denmark and its Scandinavian neighbors often appear at the top of many of the world's "best of" lists, from happiest and least corrupt to the best place to raise a family.
Lake Powell has fallen to its lowest level on record after an exceptionally dry and warm winter left the Colorado River Basin with little mountain snow to melt. Lake Mead also reached record lows, raising concerns for a river system that supplies water and power to more than 40 million people. Federal officials have taken emergency steps to stabilize Lake Powell, including sending in water from another reservoir and reducing releases downstream.
Workers in sales might roll their eyes when they deal with a micromanaging boss. But many customers actually appreciate it if a store manager offers to help when they're mulling over a purchase, whether it's a dishwasher, a tablet or a lawn mower.
A new experimental drug called CS18 may help break through cancer drug resistance by disabling several of the defenses tumors use to survive treatment. It strengthened existing therapies, restored drug sensitivity in resistant lung cancer cells, and slowed tumor growth in animal models.
School vacations inevitably mean more squabbles. Longer days together, less structure and more sharing (of toys, screens, space and parental attention) all lead to children demanding that you referee fights and arguments.
An ironic development emerging alongside the "Make America Healthy Again" movement is the portrayal of nicotine as a wellness and performance-enhancing product. Across social media, podcasts, wellness communities and tech startups, prominent wellness personalities and other influencers are portraying nicotine as a misunderstood compound whose potential benefits have been overshadowed by its negative association with cigarette smoking.
Creating a perfect crystal sounds straightforward: Arrange identical building blocks into a repeating, orderly structure. At the microscopic scale, though, even subtle biases in how particles interact can push them in preferred directions, making it harder to form uniform crystalline materials.
Plesiosaurs swam into river deltas to vomit up shells and other indigestible elements of their marine meals, suggests new research published by Cambridge University Press. The behavior resembles that of today's fur seals and marine crocodiles.
An international research team has developed microscopic particles that can make blind retinas respond to light. The particles act as tiny light receptors. Researchers inject them into the eye, where they settle close to nerve cells in the retina. When light hits the particles, it triggers electrical and chemical processes that can activate the nerve cells and prompt them to send signals toward the brain.