- Feed Preview New Scientist - Home
Why hairy animals shake themselves dry
The brain pathway that causes hairy mammals like mice and dogs to shake themselves dry appears to have more to do with pressure than temperature
Slick trick separates oil and water with 99.9 per cent purity
Oil and water can be separated efficiently by pumping the mixture through thin channels between two semipermeable membranes
Bird flu antibodies found in dairy workers in Michigan and Colorado
Blood tests have shown that about 7 per cent of workers on dairy farms that had H5N1 outbreaks had antibodies against the disease
Marmots could have the solution to a long-running debate in evolution
When it comes to the survival of animals living in the wild, the characteristics of the group can matter as much as the traits of the individual, according to a study in marmots
The real reason VAR infuriates football fans and how to fix it
The controversies surrounding football’s video assistant referee (VAR) system highlight our troubled relationship with uncertainty – and point to potential solutions
Carbon emissions from private jets have exploded in recent years
The climate impact of flights taken by the super-rich rose sharply from 2019 to 2023, fuelling calls for a carbon tax on private aviation
Chinese rover finds further evidence for an ancient ocean on Mars
Data collected by the Zhurong rover and orbiting satellites suggests the existence of an ancient shoreline in the Utopia Planitia region of Mars
DNA analysis rewrites the stories of people buried in Pompeii
Genetic analysis of five individuals preserved as plaster casts in the ruins of Pompeii contradicts established beliefs about the people and their relationships
Ancient Egyptians shaped sheep's horns – and we don't know why
The earliest evidence of livestock with modified horns has been discovered in ancient Egypt – sheep skulls with horns that point in unnatural directions suggest humans forced them to grow that ...
Knots made in a weird quantum fluid can last forever
Shapes created by vortices in water often fall apart, but an odd quantum fluid made from ultracold atoms could support vortex knots that never lose their knottiness
What is the price of genius, asks biography of Roger Penrose
The Impossible Man by Patchen Barss salutes Roger Penrose's groundbreaking work in physics and mathematics while challenging the idea that a genius should be exempt from ordinary obligations
Conspiracy theorists are turning their attention back to HPV vaccines
We are living in a vaccine-hesitant moment, with conspiracy theories thriving on social media. We need to push back, says Simon Williams
Could seaweed be the ultimate carbon capture solution?
Our Future Chronicles column explores an imagined history of inventions and developments yet to come. In our latest glimpse into the near future, Rowan Hooper tells how seaweed was a game changer...
What preparing for an asteroid strike teaches us about climate change
Averting an asteroid strike will need many of the same skills we must hone to tackle climate change and future pandemics
More people are living with pain today than before covid emerged
Chronic pain has increased among adults in the US since 2019, which could be due to a rise in sedentary lifestyles or reduced access to healthcare amid covid-19 restrictions
If an asteroid were heading towards Earth, could you avert disaster?
From nuclear strikes to giant spikes, discover the systems in place to prevent a collision and test your decision-making to see if you could avoid a catastrophic impact
2024 is set to be the first year that breaches the 1.5°C warming limit
This year’s average global temperature is almost certain to exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial times – a milestone that should spur urgent action, say climate scientists
Vampire bats run on a treadmill to reveal their strange metabolism
Experiments where vampire bats were made to run on a treadmill have revealed how they extract energy from protein in their latest blood meal
Distant dwarf planet Makemake might have a surprising ice volcano
A small world in the outer solar system appears to have volcanic activity possibly spurred by liquid water
Cancer deaths expected to nearly double worldwide by 2050
Experts predict that the number of cancer cases around the world will skyrocket, resulting in millions more fatalities by 2050
Before the Stone Age: Were the first tools made from plants not rocks?
Our ancestors probably used a wide range of plant-based tools that have since been lost to history. Now we're finally getting a glimpse of this Botanic Age
Dazzling images illuminate research on cardiovascular disease
The British Heart Foundation’s Reflections of Research competition showcases beautiful images captured by researchers studying heart and circulatory disease
3D printing with light and sound could let us copy human organs
One day, doctors might be able to 3D print copies of your organs in order to test a variety of drugs, thanks to a new technique that uses light and sound for rapid printing
Natural fibres in wet wipes may actually be worse for soil and animals
Fibres in wet wipes and clothes often make their way into soil - and natural versions could be more damaging than synthetic ones
Ancient Mesopotamian clay seals offer clues to the origin of writing
Before Mesopotamian people invented writing, they used cylinder seals to press patterns into wet clay – and some of the symbols used were carried over into proto-writing
Spraying rice with sunscreen particles during heatwaves boosts growth
Zinc nanoparticles, a common sunscreen ingredient, can make plants more resilient to climate change – in a surprising way
Heat can flow backwards in a gas so thin its particles never touch
A surprising reversal of our usual understanding of the second law of thermodynamics shows that it may be possible for heat to move in the “wrong” direction, flowing from a cold area to a war...
The COP16 biodiversity summit was a big flop for protecting nature
Although the COP16 summit in Colombia ended with some important agreements, countries still aren’t moving fast enough to stem biodiversity loss
The complete guide to cooking oils and how they affect your health
From seed oils to olive oil, we now have an overwhelming choice of what to cook with. Here’s how they all stack up, according to the scientific evidence
COP29: Clashes over cash are set to dominate the climate conference
The focus is on finance at the UN climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, this month, but countries are a long way from any kind of consensus
Bird flu was found in a US pig – does that raise the risk for humans?
A bird flu virus that has been circulating in dairy cattle for months has now been found in a pig in the US for the first time, raising the risk of the virus evolving to become more dangerous to ...
We've seen particles that are massless only when moving one direction
Inside a hunk of a material called a semimetal, scientists have uncovered signatures of bizarre particles that sometimes move like they have no mass, but at other times move just like a very mass...
Viruses may help store vast amounts of carbon in soil
Soil is full of an uncountable number of viruses, and scientists are only beginning to understand just how substantial their role in the carbon cycle may be
There may be a cosmic speed limit on how fast anything can grow
Alan Turing's theories about computation seem to have a startling consequence, placing hard limits on how fast or slow any physical process in the universe can grow
World's largest tree is also among the oldest living organisms
DNA analysis suggests Pando, a quaking aspen in Utah with thousands of stems connected by their roots, is between 16,000 and 81,000 years old
One in 20 new Wikipedia pages seem to be written with the help of AI
Just under 5 per cent of the Wikipedia pages in English that have been published since ChatGPT's release seem to include AI-written content
Cloud-inspired material can bend light around corners
Light can be directed and steered around bends using a method similar to the way clouds scatter photons, which could lead to advances in medical imaging, cooling systems and even nuclear reactors
The best new science fiction books of November 2024
From Harlan Ellison to Haruki Murakami, via an intergalactic cooking competition, this month has plenty of science fictional treats on offer
Data centres may soon burn as much extra gas as California uses daily
In support of their AI ambitions, tech companies are rapidly expanding US data centres, and this growth is on track to significantly increase US gas demand by 2030
War-era sugar rationing boosted health of UK people conceived in 1940s
People conceived during the UK's 1940s and 50s sugar rationing have a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure than those conceived after rationing ended
Lakes are losing winter ice cover at an astonishing rate
Fewer lakes are freezing over each winter compared with past years, posing environmental and economic consequences around the world
A bizarre skeleton from a Roman grave has bones from eight people
Radiocarbon dating and DNA analysis have revealed that a complete skeleton found in a 2nd-century cemetery is made up of bones from many people spanning thousands of years – but we don’t know...
Spies can eavesdrop on phone calls by sensing vibrations with radar
An off-the-shelf millimetre wave sensor can pick out the tiny vibrations made by a smartphone's speaker, enabling an AI model to transcribe the conversation, even at a distance in a noisy room
Chimpanzees will never randomly type the complete works of Shakespeare
The infinite monkey theorem states that illiterate primates could write great literature with enough time, but the amount of time needed is much longer than the lifespan of the universe
Simple fix could make US census more accurate but just as private
The US Census Bureau processes data before publishing it in order to keep personal information private – but a new approach could maintain the same privacy while improving accuracy
Michelangelo's 'The Flood' seems to depict a woman with breast cancer
The Renaissance artist Michelangelo had carried out human dissections, which may have led him to include women with breast cancer in some of his pieces
Is personalised nutrition better than one-size-fits-all diet advice?
Our metabolism's response to food is highly idiosyncratic and there are hints that tailoring our diet to these personal differences can deliver health benefits
AI can use tourist photos to help track Antarctica’s penguins
Scientists used AI to transform tourist photos into a 3D digital map of Antarctic penguin colonies – even as researchers debate whether to harness or discourage tourism in this remote region
Mountaineering astronauts and bad spelling? It's advertising's future
Feedback digs into a baffling ad for a mobile game and identifies a new and devilish way to advertise a product online: make it as confusing as possible to encourage people to click (it worked on...
The science of exercise: Which activity burns the most calories?
Running, swimming, HIIT or walking – what is the best way to work out? The answer is complicated, and depends on the person, finds Grace Wade
Chilling news adds fresh meaning to 2018 Arctic horror drama
A new study amplifies the horror of an excellent series about the doomed Franklin expedition. The Terror is a worthy tribute to the lost sailors, says Bethan Ackerley
Striking image shows well-preserved wreck of Shackleton’s doomed ship
Endurance sank beneath the ice during Ernest Shackleton’s legendary Antarctic expedition. More than a hundred years later, researchers document their own saga of how they found the vessel
Forget Hollywood, science has real plans to defend us from asteroids
Forget Armageddon-sized rocks, just one of 25,000 smaller asteroids could destroy a city on Earth. How to Kill an Asteroid by Robin George Andrew shows how science plans to save the planet
Are we really ready for genuine communication with animals through AI?
Thanks to artificial intelligence, understanding animals may be closer than we think. But we may not like what they are going to tell us, says RSPCA chief executive Chris Sherwood
Tense docu-thriller exposes the cruelties of commercial whale trade
Orca – Black & White Gold digs deep into the dirty waters surrounding the killer whale trade and captures a daring rescue mission
How a ride in a friendly Waymo saw me fall for robotaxis
I have a confession to make. After taking a handful of autonomous taxi rides, I have gone from a hater to a friend of robot cars in just a few weeks, says Annalee Newitz
How to cut through the latest nutritional fads
From the benefits of fermented foods to diets that promise a better hormone balance, there is a confusing array of dietary advice out there
The surprisingly simple supernutrient with far-reaching health impacts
Most ingredients touted as the key to better health fail to live up to the hype but fibre bucks this trend, with benefits for the whole body, not just the gut
Oldest tadpole fossil known to science dates back 161 million years
A fossil of a tadpole from Argentina is 161 million years old - and isn't that different from some modern species
Cancer atlas reveals how tumours evolve inside the body
A massive undertaking to map cancer tumours is providing new insights into how the disease forms, evolves and develops resistance to treatments
Are fermented foods like kimchi really that good for your gut?
The health benefits of fermented food and drink have long been touted, but firm evidence in favour of kombucha, sauerkraut and kefir is surprisingly elusive
Can we really balance our hormones by eating certain foods?
Diets that claim to control excess oestrogen or stress hormones are all the rage on Instagram and TikTok. They could be good for us, just not for the reasons claimed
Quantum batteries could give off more energy than they store
Simulations suggest that when a quantum battery shares a quantum state with the device it is powering, the device can gain more charge than was stored in the battery to begin with
The Amazon is teetering on the edge of a climate tipping point
In some recent years, the Amazon biome released more carbon than it absorbed, and further degradation could make it a permanent shift
Astronauts could hitch a ride on asteroids to get to Venus or Mars
Asteroids that regularly fly between Earth, Venus and Mars could provide radiation shielding for human missions to explore neighbouring planets
The surprising truth about the health benefits of snacking
We get about a quarter of our calories from snacks and new research shows that this isn't necessarily bad for us. Done right, snacking can boost our health
One course of antibiotics can change your gut microbiome for years
Antibiotics can reduce diversity in the gut microbiome, raising the risk of infections that cause diarrhoea - and the effects may last years
Do certain foods suppress inflammation and help you live longer?
Recent research shows that anti-inflammatory diets are not as faddish as they might sound, with the power to reduce the risk of heart attacks and some cancers
AI helps driverless cars predict how unseen pedestrians may move
A specialised algorithm could help autonomous vehicles track hidden objects, such as a pedestrian, a bicycle or another vehicle concealed behind a parked car
Could when you eat be as important as what you eat?
Peaks in appetite and metabolism driven by our body's inbuilt clocks mean that eating at the wrong time can have consequences for our health and waistline
Clean energy rollout means China’s emissions may have peaked
China's carbon emissions may have peaked in 2023, as figures suggest its output has plateaued so far in 2024
Quantum 'Schrödinger's cat' survives for a stunning 23 minutes
A typically fragile quantum superposition has been made to last exceptionally long, and could eventually be used as a probe for discovering new physics
Flu viruses have evolved proteins that let them break through mucus
Computer simulations of how influenza A moves through human mucus found it is ideally configured to slide through the sticky stuff on its way to infecting cells
The world is falling far short of its goal to halt biodiversity loss
In 2022, countries pledged to halt biodiversity loss by protecting 30 per cent of the planet by 2030, but progress has been too slow thus far
How psychedelics and VR could reveal how we become immersed in reality
An outlandish experiment searching for a brain network that tunes up and down the feeling of immersion is hoping to unlock the therapeutic effects of psychedelics
Meditation seems to improve our empathy for strangers
In a small study, women experienced more empathy for strangers who were experiencing pain after an eight-week meditation training programme
Weird microbes could help rewrite the origin of multicellular life
Single-celled organisms called archaea can become multicellular when compressed, highlighting the role of physical forces in evolution
Stone Age network reveals ancient Paris was an artisanal trading hub
Ancient stone goods found across France may have been made by skilled craftspeople in what is now Paris, who traded along vast networks
AI models fall for the same scams that we do
Large language models can be used to scam humans, but AI is also susceptible to being scammed – and some models are more gullible than others
NASA is developing a Mars helicopter that could land itself from orbit
The largest and most ambitious Martian drone yet could carry kilograms of scientific equipment over great distances and set itself down on the Red Planet unassisted
DNA helps match 'Well Man' skeleton to 800-year-old Norwegian saga
The Sverris saga describes how castle invaders “took a dead man and cast him unto the well, and then filled it up with stones”, in what may have been an early act of biological warfare - and ...
This surprisingly creative trick helps children eat more fruit and veg
Weaving tales of magical fruit and vegetables into your children's stories may encourage them to eat healthy snacks
Earth is now gaining less heat than it has for several years
The recent surge in warming led to fears that climate change may be accelerating beyond model projections, but a fall in how much heat Earth is gaining makes this less likely
Tiny battery made from silk hydrogel can run a mouse pacemaker
A lithium-ion battery made from three droplets of hydrogel is the smallest soft battery of its kind – and it could be used in biocompatible and biodegradable implants
Complex form of carbon spotted outside solar system for first time
Complex carbon-based molecules crucial to life on Earth originated somewhere in space, but we didn't know where. Now, huge amounts of them have been spotted in a huge, cold cloud of gas
Your gut bacteria are at war - and force their enemies to switch sides
Rival tribes of bacteria armed with poison darts are fighting it out in your gut, with armies of traitors often winning the day
Some wildfires are growing twice as fast as they did two decades ago
In the western US, the average maximum growth rate of fires has more than doubled over the past two decades
Battery-like device made from water and clay could be used on Mars
A new supercapacitor design that uses only water, clay and graphene could source material on Mars and be more sustainable and accessible than traditional batteries
Electric skin patch could keep wounds free of infection
Zapping the skin with electricity could stop bacteria that live there harmlessly from entering the body and causing blood poisoning
Carbon emissions are now growing faster than before the pandemic
Despite talk of a green recovery, global greenhouse gas emissions continued to rise as the world emerged from coronavirus lockdowns
Tim Winton's post-apocalyptic new novel is terrifying and brilliant
A man and young girl drive across a scorched Australian outback in Juice, an extraordinary new sci-fi novel where nothing is what it first seems, says Emily H. Wilson
Why a potted plant isn't the easiest option for would-be gardeners
For nervous newbie gardeners, starting out with a single plant in a small pot is pitched as an easy win by the horticultural industry. James Wong explains why it isn't
Missed out on seeing the northern lights? Meta has you covered
Feedback was feeling left out after failing to see the recent aurora borealis, but was delighted to find Meta providing an AI-generated version. Definitely absolutely just as good as the real thi...
Why we may be getting urban tree planting all wrong
Greening our cities is a good thing, but it has to be done with an eye to the unfolding climate crisis of our times
Rich biography of Marie Curie shows how she helped women into science
Marie Curie redefined the role of women in science by training a generation of “lab daughters” to have stellar careers, shows Dava Sobel's detailed and intimate new biography, The Elements of...
Energy expert Vaclav Smil on how to feed the world without trashing it
The systems we use to produce food have many problems, from horrifying waste to their dependence on fossil fuels. Vaclav Smil explains how to fix them
10 stunning James Webb Space Telescope images show the beauty of space
Maggie Aderin-Pocock, who has worked on the JWST, catalogues the science behind its most stunning images in her new book, Webb's Universe. Here's her pick of the telescope’s best shots
Neuroscientist finds her brain shrinks while taking birth control
A researcher who underwent dozens of brain scans discovered that the volume of her cerebral cortex was 1 per cent lower when she took hormonal contraceptives
Fresh insights into how we doze off may help tackle sleep conditions
New research into the moments between wakefulness and sleep could bring hope for insomniacs and even make us more creative problem-solvers
Solving Stephen Hawking’s black hole paradox has raised new mysteries
Physicists finally know whether black holes destroy the information contained in infalling matter. The problem is that the answer hasn’t lit the way to a new understanding of space-time