Watch grey reef sharks surfing currents to conserve energy New Scientist 2021-07-01 | Grey reef sharks use the updrafts of currents in order to conserve energy. During a diving trip, lead researcher Yannis Papastamatiou at Florida International University observed the sharks using a conveyor belt-like system to surf: the one at the front lets the current carry it to the back of the line and another shark takes its place.The study reveals what Papastamatiou calls energy seascapes: spatial representations of the energy it costs an animal to move through a marine environment. It might explain, says the researchers, why large groups of sharks gather in certain areas of ocean.Read more: newscientist.com/article/mg25033410-400-amazing-surfing-sharks-image-shows-how-currents-help-them-save-energy
Bee-tracking drone 🐝🚁 New Scientist 2024-10-18 | A drone equipped with a system developed by researchers at the University of Freiburg in Germany, called fast lock-on (FLO) tracking, can track a flying insect outdoors for several minutes, keeping its legs, wings, and antennae in focus. This technology could provide insights into wild insect behaviour that was previously difficult to study.Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
SpaceX makes history with Starship rocket | New Scientist Weekly 272 New Scientist 2024-10-18 | SpaceX has made history with its Starship rocket, the largest rocket ever built and one that’s hoped to eventually take us to Mars. In its fifth test, SpaceX successfully returned the rocket’s booster back to the launchpad and caught hold of it – an engineering feat of great finesse. But how close are we to putting crew on the rocket–- and when will it take humanity to the Red Planet? Leah-Nani Alconcel, spacecraft engineer at the University of Birmingham, joins the conversation.We might be closer than ever before to bringing Tasmanian tigers (thylacines) back from extinction. That’s if de-extinction company Colossal is right about their latest discovery, of a nearly complete genome of the thylacine. Is this the breakthrough it seems to be? And can we truly bring back thylacines as they once were? Brain scans have revealed that bullying has a physical effect on the structure of the brain. Young people who are bullied see changes in various brain regions and it seems to impact male and female brains differently. Are these changes permanent? And is this cause to take bullying more seriously?The “very fabric of life on Earth is imperilled.” That’s according to the latest annual State of the Climate report. Thirty-five “planetary vital signs” have been assessed by researchers and the outlook is bleak. But among all the worrying climate records we’ve broken there is hope. Hear from study author Tom Crowther of ETH Zurich. Hosts Rowan Hooper and Chelsea Whyte discuss with guests Leah Crane, Leah-Nani Alconcel, Michael Le Page, Alexandra Thompson, James Dinneen and Tom Crowther.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/podcasts Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
This drone can follow a bee’s movements using a robotic tracking system New Scientist 2024-10-18 | A drone equipped with a system called fast lock-on (FLO) tracking, developed by researchers at the University of Freiburg in Germany, can track a flying insect outdoors for several minutes, keeping its legs, wings, and antennae in focus. This technology could provide insights into wild insect behaviour that was previously difficult to study.–Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Could we bring back the extinct Dodo? 🦤 New Scientist 2024-10-17 | Colossal Biosciences has launched three different species de-extinction projects, the woolly mammoth, the thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian tiger, and the dodo. And with each of these, they're creating new versions of these species, resurrecting core phenotypes to put them back into their natural habitats to help those habitats by restoring the missing ecological interactions that were present when these species were still alive. –Learn more ➤newscientist.com/video/2451354-beth-shapiro-the-ancient-dna-pioneers-mission-to-bring-back-the-dodo Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human.
Meet NEO Surveyor, NASA’s near-Earth asteroid detector New Scientist 2024-10-15 | NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor space telescope is currently under construction at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Once launched and operational, it will identify potentially hazardous asteroids and comets that come within 48 million kilometres of Earth’s orbit.“We know from the geological record that asteroid and comet impacts really do happen,” says Amy Mainzer, principal investigator of NEO Surveyor. “To really advance what we know and find a lot more objects, we need to be able to detect them when they're further away from us.”The new telescope builds on the capabilities of its predecessor, NEOWISE, alongside a network of ground-based telescopes. Its 50-centimetre-diameter telescope can operate in two heat-sensing infrared wavelengths, identifying objects that might be very dark on their surfaces from their thermal emissions. “We know that some of the asteroids have very dark, carbon-rich surfaces. They're just really, really dark, like printer toner,” says Mainzer.Although the risks seem vanishingly rare, the consequences from even a relatively small object could be catastrophic. NASA and others are already developing ways to distort an asteroid’s trajectory and NEO Surveyor forms an important part of this defence. “The more time we have, the more options we have to actually do something about it,” says Mainzer.– Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Alice Roberts: How to eradicate leprosy New Scientist 2024-10-14 | Speaking at New Scientist Live in London, biological anthropologist Alice Roberts discusses leprosy in the Middle Ages, and how modern genetic PCR tests could finally help eradicate it by 2030.–Learn more ➤newscientist.com/article/mg26134800-400-crypt-review-alice-roberts-on-murder-and-mayhem-in-the-middle-ages Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
What is the evolutionary purpose of menopause? New Scientist 2024-10-12 | Speaking at New Scientist Live in London, Nobel Prize-winning biologist and former president of the Royal Society, Venki Ramakrishnan explores the evolutionary rational for menopause. Why is the ability to reproduce curtailed so relatively early in life, he asks?–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/video/2422871-venki-ramakrishnan-the-most-promising-ways-to-stop-ageing Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Does Battlestar Galactica accurately demonstrate flight physics in space? New Scientist 2024-10-12 | Often small craft in sci-fi will move similar to how planes move in the air banking sideways to turn. They're relying on the air underneath the wing to push them one way or the other as the wing turns. But in the absence of an atmosphere that just doesn't work. Enter Battlestar Galactica, the 2004 reimagining. They have a whole series of fighter craft known as Vipers, that have propellant jets that are placed in various places across the craft. Each jet fires in order to turn the craft forwards and backwards, or even flip it completely around. A more realistic way to fly in space.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/video/2444181-interstellar-to-doctor-who-sci-fi-dramas-getting-science-mostly-right Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Why do sharks and rays breach? New Scientist 2024-10-11 | The animals use large amounts of energy to propel at least four-tenths of their body above the water – the researchers’ definition of breaching – so the behaviour must be beneficial. Sharks and rays leap out of the water, or breach, for a wide variety of reasons, including courtship, birthing and hygiene, according to a review of scientific evidence, which finds that the behaviour is more common than previously thought.Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2446968-sharks-leap-out-of-the-water-more-often-than-you-might-think Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Climate overshoot - when we go past 1.5 degrees there is no going back | New Scientist Weekly 271 New Scientist 2024-10-11 | If we overshoot 1.5 degrees of global warming, there is no going back. The hope has long been that if - and when - we blow past our climate goals, we can later reverse the damage. But there’s no guarantee we can bring temperatures back down, according to a paper published in Nature this week. The report suggests it would take decades to get back to normal - and some of the more devastating consequences will be irreversible. Hear from a variety of experts on the problem of climate overshoot.Living bacteria have been discovered in 2-billion-year-old rocks, making them very, very old. Find out how these primitive microbes survived for so long - and why this discovery is exciting news for the quest to find life on other planets.Do you think you’ll make it to the ripe old age of 100? Human life expectancy has steadily been going up and up - but now it’s grinding to a halt, looking unlikely to exceed 84 for men and 90 for women. What’s going on? Is there a limit to human ageing, or is something else at play?Hurricane Milton has caused immense damage across Florida and the death toll is rising. As it draws power from the hot oceans, there’s good reason to believe climate change is to blame for its rapid intensification. Hot on the heels of Hurricane Helene, why are extreme weather conditions picking up again so quickly?Hosts Rowan Hooper and Chelsea Whyte discuss with guests Michael Le Page, Carl-Friedrich Schleussner, Joeri Rogelj, Wim Carton, Sam Wong, Carissa Wong and James Dinneen.Image Credit: Dennis MacDonald/Shutterstock–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/podcasts Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Beth Shapiro: The ancient DNA pioneer’s mission to bring back the dodo New Scientist 2024-10-11 | The extraction of genetic material from archaeological remains, known as ancient DNA, is helping scientists gain insights into our distant past. With advances in sequencing technology, these developments offer the potential to not only deepen our understanding of history, but also bring elements of it into the present, with the exciting prospect of de-extinction.Evolutionary molecular biologist Beth Shapiro is a leading expert in ancient DNA, having been first to recreate DNA data from a dodo.She specialises in the genetics of animals and plants that lived during the last glacial maximum, a cold climatic period around 20,000 years ago, and serves as the chief science officer for Colossal Biosciences, a company that aims to bring back extinct species, such as the woolly mammoth, using genetic engineering and cloning techniques."The goal of an ancient DNA scientist is to use the past as an evolutionary experiment," says Shapiro. She began her career in ancient DNA at the University of Oxford, working alongside fellow researcher Eske Willerslev, who is best known for retrieving 2-million-year-old DNA from ancient sediments, the oldest DNA ever recovered.Studying ancient DNA from fossil remains and environmental samples gives scientists the power to reconstruct the evolutionary history of our planet and understand the impact of human activities. Through her work, Shapiro aims to learn from the past to help protect ecosystems and conserve endangered species today.–Learn more ➤newscientist.com/article/mg26234952-400-documentary-explores-a-geneticists-motivation-to-understand-the-past Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Venki Ramakrishnan: Why we age and die 🎂 New Scientist 2024-10-11 | Anti-aging is big business. Nobel prizewinner Venki Ramakrishnan, a molecular biologist and former president of the UK’s Royal Society, is the latest to tackle questions about the most promising ways to stop aging. He has spent 25 years studying the ribosome, where our cells make proteins using the information encoded in our genes, at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK. But while efforts to extend our lifespan continue and many look promising, success will have unintended consequences, says Ramakrishnan.Venki Ramakrishnan will be speaking at New Scientist Live 2024 at ExCeL London on 12 October. Learn more ➤ live.newscientist.com/nsl-london-2024-talks-programme/exciting-talk-announced-soon-18 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
AI discovers hundreds of ancient Nazca drawings in Peruvian desert New Scientist 2024-10-10 | Hundreds of ancient drawings depicting decapitated human heads and domesticated llamas have been discovered in the Peruvian desert with the help of artificial intelligence. Archaeologists have previously linked these creations to the people of the Nazca culture, who started etching such images, called geoglyphs, into the ground around 2000 years ago.Learn more here: newscientist.com/article/2449076-ai-discovers-hundreds-of-ancient-nazca-drawings-in-peruvian-desert
Science of explosions 🧨 New Scientist 2024-10-10 | Science & food presenter Stefan Gates explores the science of Big Bangs, showing the explosive energy created when distilled sugar vapour, also known as alcohol, is converted from bioethanol into light and heat.Stefan Gates will present his new show called Ruder Science at New Scientist Live 2024 at ExCeL London on 14 October. Tap link in bio to learn more--Learn more ➤ live.newscientist.com/nsl-london-2024-schools-day/ruder-science-1Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Extreme botany: How Kew collects plants from remote desert oases 🏜️🪂 New Scientist 2024-10-09 | Scientists from Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, in the UK have worked with a team of Brazilian paramotorists in the Peruvian desert to recover and study endangered species from fragile and inaccessible ecosystems. “The idea was to use them to travel to areas that we could not get to, and collect samples and [cause] very little damage,” says Justin Moat, senior research leader at Kew and lead author of the study.– Watch the full film ➤newscientist.com/video/2451159-paramotorists-collect-rare-plant-species-from-peruvian-desert-oasesSubscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.comTap link in bio to learn more
in search of Rafflesia plant 🏵️☘️ New Scientist 2024-10-09 | Rafflesia is a parasitic plant that spends most of its life cycle within its host, a tropical vine, emerging only to bloom. Its flowers are the largest in the world, spanning up to a metre. Despite this, little is known about its life cycle, and it is almost impossible to grow. Chris Thorogood and colleagues went in search of the elusive flowering plant in the hope that what they learned, could help save this plant for the future. Chris Thorogood will be speaking at New Scientist Live 2024 in London. –Learn more ➤ live.newscientist.com/nsl-london-2024-talks-programme/pathless-forest-quest-save-worlds-largest-flowers Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Paramotorists collect rare plant species from Peruvian desert oases New Scientist 2024-10-09 | Scientists from Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew, in the UK have worked with a team of Brazilian paramotorists in the Peruvian desert to recover and study endangered species from fragile and inaccessible ecosystems. "The idea was to use them to travel to areas that we could not get to, and collect samples and [cause] very little damage," says Justin Moat, senior research leader at Kew and lead author of the study.The team focused on unique fog-fed oases known as lomas. These habitats are home to around 1700 plant species, including the poorly researched perennial Tillandsia. The researchers worked with paramotorists, who fly powered paragliders through the skies, in the largely unexplored regions of Lomas de Amara y Ullujaya, Lomas San Fernando and Lomas Morro Quemado. The paramotorists were trained in botanical sampling to identify, tag and collect samples from areas deep in the otherwise inaccessible desert. They returned with several Tillandsia plants – the aim is to collect, identify, map and carry out DNA analysis to gain insight into their historical isolation and potential gene flow between populations.The study demonstrates a faster and more environmentally friendly alternative to four-by-four off-road vehicles to reach outlying areas, reducing carbon dioxide emissions with negligible impact on the fragile lomas. "To actually send someone to an area that would take so long for us to travel to is incredibly exciting," says Moat. "To some degree, in the future, we will never know we were there, except for the specimens we now have at Kew."Journal reference: doi.org/10.1002/ppp3.10571– Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
These microscopic gears are carved out of silicon by a beam of electrons New Scientist 2024-10-08 | These gears are carved out of silicon by a beam of electrons using the same lithography techniques behind the creation of computer chips, and could be used to study human cells or power tiny, complex robots.–Learn more ➤ www.newscientist.com/article/2450923 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Comb jellies fuse to become one individual New Scientist 2024-10-08 | A pair of ctenophores, or comb jellies, can fuse their bodies together, merging their digestive and nervous systems, without any issues with immune rejection--Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2450693-two-injured-comb-jellies-can-merge-to-form-one-individual
Justinian plague in Britain 🦠 New Scientist 2024-10-08 | Renowned archeologist Alice Roberts discusses evidence for historical plague in Britain. At a dig site at Breamore in Hampshire, UK, she uncovered the skeletal remains of a young adult and a child. Further analysis uncovered Yersinia pestis DNA, a bacteria known to cause a bubonic plague epidemic that swept the Byzantine Empire in the sixth century. Until recently, there was little evidence that this plague had reached Britain. Alice Roberts will speak at New Scientist Live 2024 at Excel London about life, death, and disease in the Middle Ages and beyond.Tap link in bio to learn more
Comb jellies fuse together to make one individual New Scientist 2024-10-08 | A pair of ctenophores, or comb jellies, can fuse their bodies together, merging their digestive and nervous systems, without any issues with immune rejection--Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2450693-two-injured-comb-jellies-can-merge-to-form-one-individual Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
ESA prepares Hera mission to investigate aftermath of NASA DART impact New Scientist 2024-10-07 | In 2022, NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft collided with the asteroid Dimorphos at 6.6 kilometres per second as it orbited its parent asteroid Didymos.Now, the European Space Agency (ESA) is preparing to launch its Hera probe to get a closer look at exactly how it was affected. It will launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 7 October aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and do a flyby of Mars in March next year on the way to the asteroid – but it won’t reach its final destination until October 2026.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2406405-in-2024-the-hera-mission-will-revisit-the-asteroid-punched-by-nasa Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
The case for Arctic geoengineering | New Scientist Weekly 269 New Scientist 2024-10-07 | Could we re-freeze the Arctic… and should we? The Arctic is losing ice at an alarming rate and it’s too late to save it by cutting emissions alone. Geoengineering may be our only hope. A company called Real Ice has successfully tested a plan to artificially keep the region cold - but what are the consequences and will it work on the scale we need?Octopuses and fish have been found hunting together in packs in an unexpected display of cooperation. Not only do the fish scout out potential prey, they even signal to the octopuses to move in for the kill. And a fish doesn’t prove helpful? They get punched.The world’s oldest cheese has been found in China - and it’s 3,500 years old. As we get a fascinating look into the fermenting habits of ancient humans, find out how modern day fermentation is being repurposed to help us create biofuels, break down microplastics and more. We hear from Tom Ellis, professor of synthetic genome engineering at Imperial College London.Our bodies are littered with microplastics - they’re in our livers, kidneys, guts and even our olfactory bulb. How worried should we be? Microplastics have been linked to some pretty serious health consequences - but are they the cause?Hosts Rowan Hooper and Sophie Bushwick discuss with guests Madeleine Cuff, Michael Le Page and Grace Wade.Get your tickets for New Scientist Live: newscientist.com/nslivepod Image Credit: Real Ice/www.realice.eco–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/podcasts Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Electric Vs combustion: A hot lap in an electric rallycross car New Scientist 2024-10-04 | At the Montalegre circuit in Portugal, a 'Battle of Technologies' is underway, where electric vehicles and combustion engine cars race against each other over five laps of the rallycross track. To demonstrate the format, I was taken out for a hot lap in one of the electric cars. But while the EV has more power and faster acceleration, compared to the internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, it's also heavier. And at around 1000 metres above sea level, the thin air will impact the ICE engines, making for interesting racing as the different technologies go head to head.Scientists already knew that bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) are remarkably bright. These finger-sized coral reef fish are the first fish to pass the mirror test, a common assessment in which an animal recognises its reflection. Researchers have now found that these wrasses use their likeness to construct a mental image of their body size, which they can compare to others. Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/video/2447644-electric-vehicles-race-combustion-cars-in-battle-of-technologies Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Hope for the world’s coral | New Scientist Weekly 270 New Scientist 2024-10-04 | There may be hope for the survival of coral reefs, a vital part of the global underwater ecosystem that is under massive threat from climate change. At 1.5 C degrees of warming we’re at risk of losing 70-90 per cent of coral - and more than 99 per cent is estimated to die off at 2 degrees. But new research suggests corals may be more adaptable and resilient than we thought. Hear from two experts on the matter, Chris Jury of the University of Hawaii and Terry Hughes, director of the Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University in Australia.A new exoplanet has been discovered in orbit around Barnard’s star - Earth’s closest single stellar neighbour. But could it be home to extraterrestrial life? And in this, the golden age of exoplanet discovery, how close are we to finding one that looks like Earth?Remarkably preserved remains of a 16 month old toddler have been analysed, painting a detailed picture of life in ancient Italy. Despite being 17,000 years old, DNA samples have shown us the colour of the child’s skin, his eye colour, health conditions and even how closely his parents were related.Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been dubbed the “first drone war”. As the war rages on, drone combat has shifted from ad hoc, random encounters to highly strategic and coordinated assaults. With the increasing capabilities of drones and a ramp up in the expertise of operators, is this the future of the war - and is it a good thing?Hosts Rowan Hooper and Chelsea Whyte discuss with guests Terry Hughes, Chris Jury, Alex Wilkins, Sam Wong and Jacob Aron.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/podcasts Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Octopuses and fish hunt as a team to catch more prey 🐙🤝🏻🐟️ New Scientist 2024-10-03 | Octopuses are even more sophisticated than we thought. Despite generally being solitary animals, they can work with fish to find prey and recognise which team members aren’t helping.That is the conclusion of a study of “hunting packs” that consist of a single octopus and several kinds of fish. The fish scout out potential prey and then call the octopus to flush them out of crevices that they can’t reach.Learn more at newscientist.com/article/2448908-octopuses-and-fish-hunt-as-a-team-to-catch-more-prey
Inside the NASA lab exploring conditions for life on other worlds 🧬🪐 New Scientist 2024-10-01 | The Origins and Habitability Lab at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, is a testbed where geologists, biologists, chemists and engineers come together to understand how geological conditions might impact life in environments such as those on early Earth, Mars and the icy moons of the outer planets, as well as on exoplanets. "A lot of the work that we do is trying to understand how life gets started on Earth," says Laurie Barge, co-lead at the lab, "but also if any of that could apply to life getting started elsewhere, like on Mars or on Jupiter's moon Europa."–Learn more ➤ [Delete if there’s no relevant article] Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
In search of the true nature of gravity 🍏 New Scientist 2024-09-30 | Claudia de Rham has spent much of her life dedicated to exploring the limits and true nature of gravity, training to be a pilot and then an astronaut before pursuing a career in physics thinking deeply about the graviton, the hypothetical carrier particle of gravity.Claudia explores her fascinating career and much more at this year's New Scientist Live, our mind-blowing festival of ideas and discoveries in London, 12-13 October. –Learn more ➤live.newscientist.com Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Why laughter helps us bond with each other 🥳🤣 New Scientist 2024-09-27 | "Laughter is the bottom line of sociality," says Robin Dunbar, professor of evolutionary psychology at the University of Oxford. He's spent an entire career researching the mechanisms of human bonding, and sees laughter, singing and dancing as playing important roles in friendship and community building.Robin Dunbar will explore the social brain at this year's New Scientist Live, our mind-blowing festival of ideas and discoveries in London, 12-13 October. Learn more ➤ live.newscientist.com Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Octavia E. Butler’s fellow sci-fi author Nisi Shawl on her legacy New Scientist 2024-09-27 | The New Scientist Book Club has been reading the late Octavia E. Butler’s dystopian novel Parable of the Sower, which opens in Butler’s vision of 2024, a world ravaged by climate change and income inequality. This week, our reporter Grace Wade caught up with Butler’s friend and fellow sci-fi author Nisi Shawl to dig into the story behind the writing of Parable of the Sower, and its extraordinary prescience about today.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/2449550 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
How to make the perfect caramel sauce with Bake Off finalist Josh Smalley New Scientist 2024-09-27 | Salty, nutty and irresistibly sweet, caramel can be made in minutes from just a small mound of plain old sugar. To show us how, we turned to the professionals for advice, going to the University of Leicester in the UK to visit the newly opened Science Kitchen. This lab-cum-bakery is run by chemical biologist and Great British Bake Off finalist Josh Smalley, who is using his love of baking to enthuse people about chemistry. He shared his recipe for the perfect caramel sauce.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/mg26335103-500-the-chemistry-behind-making-a-perfect-caramel-sauce Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Why do emus run the way they do? New Scientist 2024-09-26 | It seems to be more energy efficient for emus to keep one foot on the ground when running at a moderate pace, and the same may have been true for dinosaurs.Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/2449446 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
AI discovers hundreds of ancient Nazca drawings in Peruvian desert New Scientist 2024-09-25 | Hundreds of ancient drawings have been discovered in the Peruvian desert with the help of artificial intelligence. Archaeologists have previously linked these creations to the people of the Nazca culture, who started etching such images, called geoglyphs, into the ground around 2000 years ago.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2449076 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Amazing astronomy images 🌌☄️ New Scientist 2024-09-24 | Astronomy Photographer of the Year, the annual photo competition showcasing all things space, is back. Ed Bloomer, senior astronomy manager at Royal Museums Greenwich, London, takes us on a tour of his favourite images. An exhibition of the winning entries and some of the shortlisted photos is on now at the Greenwich site's National Maritime Museum.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/mg26334990-500-these-stunning-images-made-the-shortlist-for-space-photo-competition Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Watch octopuses and fish hunt as a team to catch more prey New Scientist 2024-09-24 | Despite being solitary animals, octopuses can work together with fish to find prey and also recognise which fish are not helping. That's the conclusion of a study of "hunting packs" consisting of a single octopus and several kinds of fish.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/2448908 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Why do these lizards blow bubbles? New Scientist 2024-09-23 | Some lizards can stay underwater for longer by blowing out and then rebreathing bubbles of air. This has been suspected since the behaviour was first observed, and now Lindsey Swierk at Binghamton University in New York has confirmed it. Now Swierk has done a study in which she applied a kind of moisturiser known as an emollient to the heads of newly-caught lizards with a paint brush, to temporarily stop the skin repelling water.Learn more: newscientist.com/article/2448307-air-jacket-helps-scuba-diving-lizards-stay-underwater-for-longer
The supermassive mystery of early black holes | New Scientist Weekly 268 New Scientist 2024-09-20 | Research has long linked loneliness to surprising health conditions, including diabetes and some cancers. The assumption has been that loneliness in some way causes these issues, perhaps through increased stress or inflammation. But in a study of tens of thousands of people’s biomedical data, that link has gotten more complicated. Where does this leave the relationship between loneliness and health, and the public health programs that are trying to tackle both?Supermassive black holes are so big and existed so early in the universe’s history that astronomers are unsure how they formed. Dark matter to the rescue? Among the theories of how they formed is “direct collapse,” which a study finds may be possible with some help from decaying dark matter. But a specific type of dark matter is needed to make this theory work…so what’s next?A photon has been observed travelling in negative time. It was caught leaving a cloud of atoms before it ever entered it. How is this possible? Is this a time travelling photon? Well, somehow, no laws of physics were broken. Obviously some quirky quantum effects are in play – but what exactly is going on?Plus: How Earth may have once had a ring around it; a pair of black hole jets that are 23 million light years across; how some long-stemmed flowers have evolved to help bats pollinate them; and the discovery of a brand new, teeny tiny chameleon.Hosts Timothy Revell and Christie Taylor discuss with guests Leah Crane, Sophie Bushwick and Karmela Padavic-Callaghan.Get 10 weeks of unlimited digital access to newscientist.com and our app for £10/$10 by visiting: newscientist.com/podcast –Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/podcasts Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Largest black hole jets ever found may change our understanding of the universe New Scientist 2024-09-20 | A pair of black hole jets that span 140 Milky Way galaxies in length, or 23 million light years across, is so large that it may change our understanding of both black holes and the structure of the universe.The jets, which Hardcastle and his team named Porphyrion, come from a black hole in a distant galaxy when the universe was just 6.3 billion years old, only half the age it is now. They identified the jet, as well as at least ten other jets that were also millions of light years across, using the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope, which consists of thousands of radio antennas in the Netherlands and Germany.Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2448553-black-holes-jets-are-so-huge-that-they-may-shake-up-cosmology Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
See the worlds best space images from the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2024 award New Scientist 2024-09-19 | Astronomy Photographer of the Year, the annual photo competition showcasing all things space, is back. Ed Bloomer, senior astronomy manager at Royal Museums Greenwich, London, takes us on a tour of his favourite images. An exhibition of the winning entries and some of the shortlisted photos is on now at the Greenwich site's National Maritime Museum.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/mg26334990-500-these-stunning-images-made-the-shortlist-for-space-photo-competition Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Mitosis in the embryo of a fruit fly wins Nikons Small World in Motion New Scientist 2024-09-19 | Nikon's Small World in Motion encompasses any movie or digital time-lapse photography taken through the microscope.Learn more ➤ nikonsmallworld.com/galleries/small-world-in-motion Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Why does this fish check itself out in the mirror before a fight? 🐟️🪞 New Scientist 2024-09-18 | Bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) are remarkably bright. These finger-sized coral reef fish were the first fish to pass the mirror test, a common assessment to see whether an animal recognises that the reflection is of its own body and not another animal. Researchers have now found that these wrasses use their likeness to construct a mental image of their body size, which they can compare to others.Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2447414-fish-size-themselves-up-in-a-mirror-to-decide-if-they-can-win-a-fight Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com/rs
Why do these lizards blow bubbles? New Scientist 2024-09-18 | Some lizards can stay underwater for longer by blowing out and then rebreathing bubbles of air. This has been suspected since the behaviour was first observed, and now Lindsey Swierk at Binghamton University in New York has confirmed it. Now Swierk has done a study in which she applied a kind of moisturiser known as an emollient to the heads of newly-caught lizards with a paint brush, to temporarily stop the skin repelling water.Learn more ➤Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Watch the mitosis of a fruit fly embryo 🪰🔬 New Scientist 2024-09-17 | The 2024 Nikon Small World in Motion video winners are here. As always, all the winning microscopy videos are remarkable. Now in its 14th year, this international video competition selects the best of hundreds of entries, each providing a different look into the microscopic world. Dr. Bruno Vellutini's winning video captures the rhythmic waves of division and tissue movements critical to proper embryonic formation in fruit flies. he video reveals the dynamic processes of fly embryogenesis, crucial for uncovering genetic pathways that mirror those in humans and other mammals, with applications for cancer research, birth defects, and potential treatment development.Tap the link in bio to learn more📹️ @nikoninstruments
Watch an unlikely meeting between a wombat and an echidna 👀 New Scientist 2024-09-16 | A rare and boisterous encounter between a young wombat and a spiny echidna has been caught on camera, to the delight of Australian conservationists.The exuberant behaviour captured by a camera trap is a sign that a gamble to establish a third population of critically endangered northern hairy-nosed wombats (Lasiorhinus krefftii) in Queensland, Australia, is paying off.Learn more here: newscientist.com/article/2447118-endangered-wombats-rare-encounter-with-echidna-caught-on-camera#wombat #wombats #echidna #australia #animals #endangeredspecies
Photo of Bailys beads wins Astronomy Photographer of the Year 🌙🔭 New Scientist 2024-09-14 | The overall winner of Royal Observatory Greenwich’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year 16 is Ryan Imperio for his photograph, Distorted Shadows of the Moon’s Surface Created by an Annular Eclipse, that captures the progression of Baily’s beads during the 2023 annular eclipse.Baily’s beads are formed when sunlight shines through the valleys and craters of the Moon’s surface, breaking the eclipse’s well-known ring pattern, and are only visible when the Moon either enters or exits an eclipse. These are a challenge to capture due to their brevity and the precise timing needed. The image will be on display alongside the winners of the other categories in the accompanying exhibition, opening at the National Maritime Museum.
Thorin and the lost Neanderthals | New Scientist Weekly 267 New Scientist 2024-09-13 | The remains of an ancient Neanderthal man discovered in France may be one of the last members of a lost line. Researchers analysing the DNA of the fossil nicknamed “Thorin” (named after the dwarven king in the Hobbit) made the surprising discovery that he’s possibly one of the last of his line. He may have been part of a group that lived in isolation for 50,000 years.How can we tell climate change is to blame for specific heat waves, hurricanes, or other extreme weather events the planet has been hit by in recent years? That’s where attribution science comes in. Find out how the fingerprints of climate change could one day make it into your daily weather report.Elephants, chimps and even chickens have shown signs of self-awareness. Even a fish, the cleaner wrasse, has passed the famous ‘mirror test’ in recent years. But new research on this territorial fish has found it can also use mirrors as a tool – to decide if they’re big enough to fight another wrasse. Learn more about how cleaner wrasse size themselves up before picking fights, and what this may say about their cognition.Private astronauts on a SpaceX mission performed the first ever civilian spacewalk on Thursday. Hear reaction to the historic news and why their state-of-the-art spacesuits are grabbing people’s attention. Plus hear how researchers have created a “cloud atlas”, full of gorgeous pictures of the weird and wonderful – and informative – clouds that fill Mars’ sky.Reporter James Woodford recently took control of one of the most advanced humanoid robots ever created. An energy company is helping NASA test a robot from its Valkyrie programme in Perth, Australia. James met the robot, nicknamed Val, and even helped use virtual reality tools to control her movements.Hosts Rowan Hooper and Christie Taylor discuss with guests Alison George, Madeleine Cuff, Corryn Wetzel and James Woodford.–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/podcasts Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
This fish sizes it itself up in a mirror before it decides to fight New Scientist 2024-09-13 | Scientists already knew that bluestreak cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus) are remarkably bright. These finger-sized coral reef fish are the first fish to pass the mirror test, a common assessment in which an animal recognises its reflection. Researchers have now found that these wrasses use their likeness to construct a mental image of their body size, which they can compare to others. Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2447414-fish-size-themselves-up-in-a-mirror-to-decide-if-they-can-win-a-fight Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Watch live: SpaceXs Polaris Dawn mission prepares for first ever civilian spacewalk New Scientist 2024-09-13 | Two private astronauts will attempt to make history today as they make the first ever civilian spacewalk, exiting a SpaceX Crew Dragon craft in a groundbreaking mission.–Learn more ➤newscientist.com/article/2447713 Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
A new cause of OCD? 🧠 New Scientist 2024-09-12 | About 2% of the global population are estimated to have OCD yet it is still quite a commonly misunderstood disorder with a limited number of treatment options. Evidence is mounting that the microbes in our gut play an important role in psychiatric conditions, such as depression and new research is revealing that this is the case for obsessive-compulsive disorder too. Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/mg26335082-600-a-fresh-understanding-of-ocd-is-opening-routes-to-new-treatments Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
Genome of Neanderthal fossil reveals lost tribe cut off for millennia New Scientist 2024-09-12 | Analysis of DNA from a Neanderthal fossil found in a French cave indicates that it belonged to a group that was isolated for more than 50,000 years–Learn more ➤ newscientist.com/article/2447513-genome-of-neanderthal-fossil-reveals-lost-tribe-cut-off-for-millennia Subscribe ➤ bit.ly/NSYTSUBS Get more from New Scientist:Official website: bit.ly/NSYTHPFacebook: bit.ly/NSYTFBTwitter: bit.ly/NSYTTWInstagram: bit.ly/NSYTINSTALinkedIn: bit.ly/NSYTLIN About New Scientist:New Scientist was founded in 1956 for “all those interested in scientific discovery and its social consequences”. Today our website, videos, newsletters, app, podcast and print magazine cover the world’s most important, exciting and entertaining science news as well as asking the big-picture questions about life, the universe, and what it means to be human. New Scientistnewscientist.com
