For decades, the vast majority of research has been published behind paywalls. This means that scientists, their institutions and the general public have to pay to gain access to scientific findings. An individual can purchase access to a specific article for a few tens or sometimes a hundred euros.
Ancient Egyptian physicians used a grain-based method to test for pregnancy by exposing barley and emmer wheat to urine samples. If the seeds germinated, pregnancy was considered likely. This early diagnostic practice, recorded in texts such as the Ebers Papyrus, has drawn modern scientific interest due to its possible biological basis.
The ThyRed Base is a newly launched wearable neck-mounted device designed to deliver red and near-infrared light therapy in a hands-free format. Using wavelengths of 630nm, 660nm, and 830nm, it falls within the photobiomodulation category, a field that studies how specific light frequencies interact with biological tissue. The device is designed to provide consistent, localized exposure to the neck area, aiming to support at-home use of low-level light therapy technology in a portable and user-friendly form factor.
Memory is no longer understood as a process confined to the brain alone. Emerging research across neuroscience, biology, and medicine reveals that memory is distributed across neural networks, cells, and even systems like the immune system and gut.
For decades, human language has been seen as a defining feature separating us from other animals. Recent research on Japanese tits, small songbirds of East Asia, challenges this view in surprising ways. Over twenty years of careful observation reveal that these birds combine calls in specific sequences, and that the order of these calls affects how other birds respond.
A major shift is happening in neurology. Scientists are moving beyond genetics to investigate a “silent pandemic” triggered by industrial chemicals. This 4,000-word feature examines how the solvent TCE is linked to the world’s fastest-growing brain disorder and what the 2025 EPA ban means for your health.
A breakthrough study from the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) reveals that a single dose of the bacterium Ewingella americana, isolated from the Japanese tree frog, can completely eliminate solid tumors. This deep dive explores how this “living drug” targets hypoxic tumor cores and re-educates the immune system to prevent cancer recurrence.
Researchers at Stanford University have developed a groundbreaking method to temporarily make the skin of living mice transparent using a common food dye, tartrazine. This reversible optical clearing allows scientists to observe blood vessels, organs, and cellular processes in real time without invasive procedures.
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is reshaping our understanding of objects from beyond the solar system. Recent JWST observations reveal an unusually carbon dioxide-rich coma and signs of long-term cosmic ray processing, offering unprecedented insight into its composition and history.
Why does doomscrolling feel so addictive? A 2024 fMRI study in Computers in Human Behavior reveals that negative social media content triggers dopamine in anxious brains, creating a compelling cycle of engagement. This article explores how algorithms amplify this behavior, the mental health impacts, and practical strategies like mindfulness and feed curation to regain control.
Florida has officially ended all state vaccine mandates, including those for schools and healthcare workers. This move has sparked a complex debate around public health, individual freedoms, and vaccine safety. The article examines the reasons behind the decision, historical vaccine concerns, and what it could mean for Florida and the nation going forward.
The human heart is vital but vulnerable, with cardiovascular disease a leading cause of death worldwide. Learn how biokinetics and structured exercise can help prevent heart disease, manage risk factors like stress and inactivity, and improve overall heart health.
Quantum entanglement, once a puzzling phenomenon in physics, is now at the forefront of a communication revolution. This strange connection between particles could soon enable ultra-secure networks, faster computing, and technologies we’ve only dreamed of. But what exactly is entanglement, and how close are we to turning this quantum mystery into everyday reality?
Social media addiction is increasingly linked to negative mental health effects, including anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. Discover how digital dependency impacts well-being and ways to mitigate its harmful effects.
In an age dominated by digital noise and constant distractions, our brains are increasingly overwhelmed by artificial stimuli. From incessant phone notifications to the hum of city traffic, modern environments are filled with sounds that negatively impact our cognitive performance and mental clarity. But what if the antidote to these sounds already exists in the natural world around us?
AI could efficiently explore a wide range of material configurations, significantly reducing the time required for testing different designs. This approach allows for the precise creation of materials with specific desired properties.
The recent breakthrough at Northwestern University represents a critical milestone in the application of quantum teleportation for communication systems. Researchers successfully managed to perform quantum teleportation over a 30-kilometer fiber optic cable that was simultaneously transmitting high-speed internet traffic.
Eli Lilly and Company announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Zepbound® (tirzepatide) as the first and only prescription medication for adults with moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and obesity. This groundbreaking approval offers hope to millions of individuals who suffer from these interconnected conditions.
In a shocking turn of events, hundreds of vials containing live and potentially deadly viruses have gone missing from a laboratory in Queensland, Australia. The breach, which was discovered in August 2023, has triggered a full-scale investigation into what is being described as a serious violation of biosecurity protocols.
The recent discoveries surrounding the second brain (the gut) and the third (the heart) are reshaping how we understand the relationship between our brain, body, and emotions. By recognizing the complexity of these neural networks, researchers and healthcare professionals are uncovering new approaches to treating mental and physical health that go beyond the traditional focus on the brain alone.
Toxic leaders are a widespread issue plaguing employees and organizations across various industries. A 2023 survey found that 87 per cent of professionals have had at least one toxic boss during their careers, with 30 per cent encountering more than one. Another survey found that 24 per cent of employees are currently working under the worst boss they’ve ever had.
Research has linked the warming climate to some of the deaths from exposure to fire smoke in large parts of the world. The number of landscape fire smoke-related deaths globally each year is about 339,000.
Researchers found that people who visited a high-intensity haunted house as a controlled fear experience displayed less brain activity in response to stimuli and less anxiety post-exposure. This finding suggests that exposing yourself to horror films, scary stories or suspenseful video games can actually calm you afterward.
The public deserves honesty and respect. Scientists need to do a better job delivering, says Frederic Bertley, president of the COSI Science Center.
Just like people confronted with a sea of options at the grocery store, bees foraging in meadows encounter many different flowers at once. They must decide which ones to visit for food, but it isn’t always a straightforward choice.
Since 1900, the number of published scientific articles has doubled about every 10 to 15 years; since 1980, about 8% to 9% annually. This growth reflects the immense and ever-growing scope of research across countless topics, from the farthest reaches of the cosmos to the intricacies of life on Earth and human nature.
Could climate engineering help reduce the national security risks of climate change, or would it make things worse? Answering that question is not simple, but researchers who study climate change and national security like we do have some idea of the risks ahead.
The kitchen offers plenty of opportunities to view and explore what physicists call soft matter and complex fluids. Everyday phenomena, such as Cheerios clustering in milk or rings left when drops of coffee evaporate, have led to discoveries at the intersection of physics and chemistry and other tasteful collaborations between food scientists and physicists.
Ancient civilizations constructed buildings right next to each other, which reduced the number of walls exposed to the intense solar radiation. Small courtyards provided lighting and ventilation. Narrow streets ensured shade throughout the day and allowed pedestrians to move comfortably through the city.
While promoting her role in the upcoming film adaptation of the Broadway hit “Wicked,” singer Ariana Grande made a podcast appearance that left many of her fans befuddled and concerned.
A company that makes tests for lead poisoning has agreed to resolve criminal charges that it concealed for years a malfunction that resulted in inaccurately low results. While many of the fault-prone devices were used from 2013 to 2017, some were being recalled as late as 2021. The Justice Department said the malfunction produced inaccurate results for “potentially tens of thousands” of children and other patients.
Although working memory has very limited capacity – at any given time, it can accommodate just four to seven pieces of information – it is essential for normal human functioning and represents what Spitzer calls a ‘superpower’.
There’s been a 50% drop in numbers of maths students at the lowest tariff universities over the five years between 2017 and 2021 in England. As a result, some universities are struggling to keep their mathematics departments open.
Environmental conditions during germination can have profound and long-lasting effects on plants that could increase both their size and their stress tolerance at the same time.
Astonishingly, honeybees possess one of the most complicated examples of nonhuman communication. They can tell each other where to find resources such as food, water, or nest sites with a physical “waggle dance.” This dance conveys the direction, distance and quality of a resource to the bee’s nestmates.
Consumers consider online reviews to be among the most important sources of information for making buying decisions. However, according to a 2019 report by Which?, the U.K.‘s consumer champion organization, many of these reviews on popular websites such as Amazon are fakes.
Every time you flush a toilet, it releases plumes of tiny water droplets into the air around you. These droplets, called aerosol plumes, can spread pathogens from human waste
A new virus called Langya has been discovered in China. It has been detected in 35 people and is thought to have been transmitted by shrews. So far it’s at an early outbreak stage.
Although the name and scenario are fictional, this is a question we have to confront now. In December 2021, Melbourne-based Cortical Labs grew groups of neurons (brain cells) that were incorporated into a computer chip. The resulting hybrid chip works because both brains and neurons share a common language: electricity.
Starting on Jan. 25, 2023, many of the 2,500 institutions and 300,000 researchers that the U.S. National Institutes of Health supports will need to provide a formal, detailed plan for publicly sharing the data generated by their research.
RNA viruses are best known for the diseases they cause in people, ranging from the common cold to COVID-19. They also infect plants and animals important to people.
Russia has dissolved academic connections with the West through legislation on so-called “foreign agents” and “undesirable organizations.” The government ramped up scrutiny of foreign funding and outlawed dozens of Western think tanks, charities, and universities that previously had worked in Russia.
It’s possible for artificial intelligence systems to generate false information in critical fields like medicine and defense that is convincing enough to fool experts.
What would happen if everyone on Earth went for an ocean swim at once? The total rise in sea level would be about 0.00012 of an inch, or less than 1/1000th of an inch. It turns out the oceans are enormous – and humans are just a drop in the bucket.
Imagine that as you are sitting on your lawn chair, a rocket will be passing by at about 86 % the speed of light. Let us take it a step further and consider that you have a laser based clock consisting of a rod with parallel mirrors and, whenever fired, it would take the laser one second to travel to the top mirror, reflect off of it, and travel back to the bottom mirror.
A pandemic on the other hand refers to a worldwide epidemic, which could have started off as outbreak, escalated to the level of an epidemic and eventually spread to a number of countries across continents.
When we compared our vampire bat DNA sequences with those obtained from goats, pigs, cows, dogs, chickens and humans, we found that Diphylla had consumed blood from chickens and humans.
In 2012, Dr Franz Messerli published a short article in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine that took a good hard look at the cognitive benefits of chocolate consumption. As chocolate contains flavanols, thought to facilitate brain cell connections and boost thinking skills, such a study seems to make sense.
Face masks help reduce coronavirus transmission, which has prompted mandates and expert recommendations for their use where social distancing is difficult. As the world emerges from shutdowns, wearing face masks for extended periods of time in settings such as offices will increase.
While cats may seem mysterious, their behaviour can help us to understand how they are feeling. The position of a cat’s body, head, ears and tail are all telltale hints.
COVID-19 causes similar symptoms to the flu. Fever is the most common symptom, occurring in almost 88% of cases, while a dry cough is the next most common.
Researchers used photosynthetic cyanobacteria to help grow a structural building material – and they managed to keep it alive.
The fossil find could represent an important shift in the simple narrative that all early species of human ancestry are East African.
Micius is the world’s first quantum communications satellite and has, for several years, been at the forefront of quantum encryption.
Professor Luc Montagnier, a French Nobel Prize winner, said in an interview that the Covid-19 virus is partially lab grown. His research showed that it contains small sequences from HIV, the AIDS virus.
Did you ever wonder what causes that earthy smell that rises after a light summer rain? That mysterious scent has been called “petrichor”.
Face masks in public are not perfect shields against Covid-19. However, they do offer a basic level of protection, which is better than nothing.
The French Health Minister, Olivier Veran, said that anti-inflammatory drugs, such as Ibuprofen and Cortisone may worsen coronavirus infection.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new COVID-19 test that is able to provide results in three and half hours, which is about ten times faster than usual.
NASA announced in a press conference that the name of its 2020 Mars rover is going to be Perseverance. This name was proposed by Alex Mather, a 13-year-old from Virginia.
We are being observed by cameras everywhere. Research shows that this exposure is affecting not only the way how we act, but also how we think.
The American singer Billie Eilish recently spoke to her fans about having struggled with Tourette’s syndrome since she was a child.
The Open Source Drug Discovery project, launched in 2008 by biophysicist Samir Brahmachari, aims to develop low-cost treatments for neglected diseases.
The number of scandals in which researchers have been exposed as having falsified their data raises the issue of how we should deal with research fraud.
It’s possible for children and young people to be infectious without having Wuhan coronavirus symptoms. This makes airport screening less useful.
The quality of a cup of coffee depends on the coffee’s origin, its roast and the water chemistry. The brewing way plays a big role in the overall flavor.
HPV vaccine is important for boys too, research suggests. More than 80% of sexually active people will be exposed to HPV in their lifetime.
There is a striking contrast between Edison’s image of individual ingenuity, and the reality of intensive, production-line invention that he pioneered.
The coronavirus that has triggered an outbreak of a deadly respiratory illness in China this winter has a surprising origin: Wuhan krait and cobra snakes.
The new human coronavirus outbreak is linked to a market in Wuhan, which sold meat and live animals. The virus causes severe pneumonia symptoms such as running nose, fever and sore throat.
There are 118 known elements in the periodic table but only 90 that occur in nature. The rest are mostly lab-created super-heavy mass substances.
SpaceX’s major breakthroughs have come through recovering and reusing as much of the rocket and launch vehicle as possible.
Bed bugs bites are unpleasant but not particularly dangerous. They were able to make a comeback thanks to a phenomenon known as pesticide resistance.
Dance and movement therapy goes beyond simply dancing. DMT uses dance and movement to promote insight, integration and well-being.
Annual emissions due to energy loss from the transmission of electricity on the power grid is more than emissions from some industries. Measured in millions of metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents.
The European Space Agency (ESA) have fully committed to mission plans to collect samples from the surface of Mars and return them to Earth
It may seem like we are living in an age of anxiety, where feeling worried, upset and stressed has become the norm. But we should remember that anxiety is a natural human response to situations.
Some people may contain intestinal microbes that are secreting alcohol, which might make them act as if they were drinking.
Local action on light pollution – by people in their homes or local councils dimming and reducing non-essential lighting in parks – might seem small in scale, but the results can be impressive.
The spatial memory performance of the New Zealand robin, shows male birds with superior memory abilities also have better breeding success.
Thanks to the audio recordings of distant rumblings on Mars released this week by NASA, we finally know what the red planet sounds like.
Democrats are more likely to pronounce “Iraq” as “ear-rock,” rather than “eye-rack” and “Chile” as “chee-lay,” rather than “chill-ee”.
Countries such as Russia and somewhat less explicitly Brazil and Belgium hold that the moon and asteroids belong to humanity as a whole.
What if we could generate electricity from the cold night sky? Researchers at Stanford and UCLA have just done exactly that.
We’ve been following a Swiss population of barn owls for more than 20 years, monitoring their hunting behavior with cameras and GPS trackers.
The concept of a circular economy which is actively supported by influential institutions such as the Ellen MacArthur foundation, or EU research programs.
29 states passed legislation allowing computer science to count in place of a science course. Are these changes are helping students or hurting them?
The beauty of puddle waves is no small thing by itself. By connecting nature with its primal language – mathematics – we gain access to its control panel.
Consultant anaesthetist at Torbay Hospital on England’s south coast has developed statistical methods to help spot signs of fraud in medical research.
An international team of scientists is constructing the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope in Chile, which will be an essential tool for asteroids alert.
Physicists at Colorado State University have developed a facility that allows researchers to deliver a slow and realistic deep space radiation exposure.
Researchers have found links between sexting and factors such as sexual activity, drugs and alcohol use and emotional health.
The laser scanning technology that has enabled this and other recent mammoth tree discoveries isn’t just a plaything for tree lovers.
The experience feels like waves of pleasure running all over your skin. Some researchers have even dubbed it a “skin orgasm.”
Household consumption – food, housing, transportation, apparel and other personal services – is an important contributor to greenhouse gas emissions.
We asked 252 left-wing supporters and 252 right-wing supporters to do some simple math. Their answers changed when we told them it was climate change data.
Musk is reported to be planning for up to 12,000 satellites in low Earth orbit. But this fleet of satellites could forever change our view of the heavens.
As the EU research budget has grown (from €3.8b in the 1980s to €100b for 2021-27), so has the pressure to produce greater socioeconomic benefit.
Venus is a planet almost exactly like Earth. It’s about the same size, is made of about the same stuff and formed around the same star.
The arctic and far North are burning. This summer, over 600 wildfires have consumed more than 2.4 million acres of forest across Alaska.