Science
By Science Correspondent A landmark study combining artificial intelligence and genetics has, for the first time, revealed the complex biology behind the development of the human fovea—the tiny pit at the back of the eye responsible for sharp central vision used in reading, recognising faces, and driving. Researchers from
Science
By Science Correspondent Dogs may understand more than just commands—they might also grasp the purpose of objects, much like human infants. In a study published September 18 in Current Biology, researchers show that some dogs can categorize toys by function, such as pulling or fetching, even when the toys
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By Science Correspondent A new study shows that helping others just a few hours a week can significantly slow cognitive decline in middle-aged and older adults. Researchers from The University of Texas at Austin and the University of Massachusetts Boston found that both formal volunteering and informal helping—such as
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By Science Correspondent Great British Bake Off star and Leicester’s culinary chemist Dr Josh Smalley is judging a national contest that combines science and baking, run by the Medical Research Foundation. He recently teamed up with Bristol Biomedical Research Centre researcher Lavinia Paternoster to bring a research project to
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By Jill Dando News A new study from the University of Vienna has found that bold geese—not aggressive ones—are more likely to become leaders within their flocks. Researchers at the Konrad Lorenz Research Center observed a group of greylag geese in Austria over four years. They tracked which
Animals
By Science Correspondent A new cancer treatment has shown early promise in pet cats—and it might help humans too. Researchers in the U.S. have completed the first-ever clinical trial of a new drug for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), a type of cancer that’s very
Science
By Science Correspondent Does your morning coffee really make you happier? Researchers from the University of Warwick and Bielefeld University say so. They have tracked the mood of more than two hundred young adults for up to four weeks each. The young people involved received prompts on their phones seven
Health,
By Health Correspondent The next generation of an artificial heart valve made from a new plastic material could be a step closer to bedside. The research, led by the Universities of Bristol and Cambridge, demonstrated that the polymer material used to make the new artificial heart valve is safe following
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By Science Correspondent Have you ever met someone who just doesn’t like music? While that might sound surprising, scientists now know there’s a real reason why – and it all comes down to the way the brain is wired. About ten years ago, researchers in Spain discovered a small
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By Science Correspondent Water is essential for life on Earth. So, the liquid must be a requirement for life on other worlds. For decades, scientists’ definition of habitability on other planets has rested on this assumption. But a new study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) challenges that idea.
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By Science Correspondent Astronomers at the University of Warwick have made a rare discovery: a nearby white dwarf star is likely the result of two stars merging into one — a cosmic event uncovered using the Hubble Space Telescope. The white dwarf, known as WD 0525+526, sits about 130 light-years
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By Science Correspondent A new study has revealed that while Tyrannosaurus rex had a skull built for powerful, crushing bites, other meat-eating dinosaurs like spinosaurs and allosaurs had much weaker bites and relied on slashing and tearing instead. Published in Current Biology, the research analysed the skulls of 18 species
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By Science Correspondent Scientists have discovered that jewel wasps can slow down their biological rate of ageing. A study of jewel wasps, known for their distinctive metallic colours, has shown that they can undergo a kind of natural ‘time-out’ as larvae before emerging into adulthood with this surprising advantage. The
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By Science Correspondent Scuba diving isn't just a fun vacation activity—it’s a global industry worth up to $20 billion a year, according to a new study published July 25 in Cell Reports Sustainability. The research shows that dive tourism not only boosts local economies by creating
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By Science Correspondent NASA’s new mission, TRACERS, has launched successfully and will soon begin studying how Earth’s magnetic field protects us from space weather. The twin satellites—short for Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites—lifted off Wednesday at 11:13 a.m. PDT from Vandenberg Space
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A new study by researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and Université Paris Cité has revealed how ants actively adapt their wax layer to protect against dehydration, especially in rising temperatures. While it’s known that insects use a wax coating to retain moisture and communicate, this study is the