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As artificial intelligence powered prosthetic arms become more common, understanding how people respond to them will be essential. Acceptance depends not only on how well these devices function, but also on how natural they feel. In this study, researchers used virtual reality to create the illusion that a participant’s own…
Achilles tendon pain, tennis elbow, swimmer’s shoulder, and jumper’s knee affect both young athletes and older adults. These painful conditions develop when tendons are pushed beyond their limits and repeatedly strained. “Tendons are fundamentally susceptible to overuse,” explains Jess Snedeker, a professor of orthopaedic biomechanics at ETH Zurich and Balgrist…
Scientists have detected traces of plant-based poison on Stone Age arrowheads from South Africa, marking the oldest confirmed use of arrow poison ever identified. The findings, published in Science Advances, show that people living in southern Africa 60,000 years ago already understood how to harness toxic plants to improve their…
When NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission returned material from asteroid Bennu in 2023, scientists confirmed that the 4.6 billion year old rocks contained amino acids, the essential molecules that make life possible. Amino acids are responsible for building proteins and peptides in DNA, and they are central to nearly every biological process.…
Volcanoes are not just an Earthly phenomenon. Scientists have already identified volcanic features, including lava tubes, on both Mars and the Moon. Now researchers from the University of Trento report strong evidence that Venus also contains an empty lava tube beneath its surface. The finding adds to growing evidence that…
Scientists at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore have identified a protein that may help restore the brain’s ability to produce new cells as it ages. Their findings, published in Science Advances, point to a transcription factor called cyclin D-binding myb-like transcription factor…
Picture Europe tens of thousands of years ago. Thick forests covered much of the land. Herds of elephants, bison, and aurochs roamed freely. Small bands of humans moved through this world carrying fire and spears. New research suggests those early people changed their surroundings far more than scientists once believed.…
A new peer reviewed study is challenging one of the most widely shared claims about Yellowstone’s wolves. In a formal comment published in Global Ecology and Conservation, scientists from Utah State University and Colorado State University argue that a 2025 paper by Ripple et al. overstated how much wolf recovery…
Astronomers have identified a possible Earth-like planet called HD 137010 b that may share many similarities with our world. However, there is one striking difference. It could be even colder than the permanently frozen surface of Mars. The discovery comes from continued analysis of data collected by NASA’s Kepler Space…
A new scientific analysis suggests that known non biological processes cannot fully explain the amount of organic material discovered in a rock collected on Mars by NASA’s Curiosity rover. Organic compounds are carbon containing molecules that form the chemical building blocks of life as we know it. They can be…
Coral reefs provide enormous value to people around the world. They support fisheries, power tourism industries, protect coastlines from storms, and even help scientists discover new medicines. Altogether, these benefits are estimated to be worth about $9.8 trillion each year. Now, researchers report that a global marine heatwave caused widespread…
Researchers at the University of Southampton have found new evidence that Earth’s climate did not completely grind to a halt during its most extreme ice age, a time often called Snowball Earth. This dramatic chapter unfolded during the Cryogenian Period, between 720 and 635 million years ago. Scientists have long…
Spending less time in front of the television and more time on other activities could help prevent major depressive disorder, especially during middle age. That is the conclusion of a new study published in European Psychiatry on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association by Cambridge University Press. Researchers found that…
More than 50 skuas died in Antarctica during the summers of 2023 and 2024 after becoming infected with the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1. Researchers say this marks the first confirmed wildlife die off from the virus on the continent. The findings come from a study led by Erasmus…
A new investigation led by the Center for Astrobiology (CAB), CSIC-INTA, using modeling tools developed at the University of Oxford, has uncovered an extraordinary concentration of small organic molecules deep inside the heavily concealed core of a nearby galaxy. The discovery was made possible by observations from the James Webb…
Researchers at the University of Nottingham report that combining specific dietary supplements may provide stronger immune and metabolic support than taking prebiotics or omega 3 alone. Their findings suggest this paired approach could help lower the risk of diseases associated with long term inflammation. The study, published in the Journal…
Older adults who took part in a short program designed to sharpen how quickly they process visual information were less likely to develop dementia years later. The training, known as speed of processing training, teaches people to rapidly spot visual details on a computer screen and manage increasingly complex tasks…
A randomized controlled trial funded by the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation found that time-restricted feeding, a type of intermittent fasting, significantly lowered disease activity and systemic inflammation in adults with Crohn’s disease who also had overweight or obesity. Led by researchers at the University of Calgary, the study is the…
Three recently released Cochrane reviews conclude that GLP-1 medications, such as Ozempic, can lead to meaningful weight loss. However, the findings also highlight concerns about the heavy involvement of drug manufacturers in many of the studies. The World Health Organization (WHO) commissioned the reviews to help shape upcoming global guidelines…
How did life begin? A team of scientists from Japan, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, and Germany believes the answer may involve sticky gels that coated surfaces on early Earth long before the first true cells appeared. Their work, published in ChemSystemsChem, offers a fresh way to think about the origin…
For countless ages, a small chunk of ice and dust traveled alone through interstellar space, like a sealed bottle drifting across a vast cosmic sea. This summer, that traveler entered our solar system and received the name 3I/ATLAS, becoming only the third confirmed interstellar comet ever observed. When researchers at…
A sweeping new study led by a researcher at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa reveals that almost every forest bird species in Hawaiʻi can transmit avian malaria. That widespread ability to spread infection helps explain why the disease shows up nearly everywhere mosquitoes live across the islands. The findings,…
Gas giants are enormous planets made primarily of hydrogen and helium. They may contain dense central cores, but unlike Earth, they do not have solid surfaces you could stand on. In our solar system, Jupiter and Saturn are classic examples. Beyond our neighborhood, astronomers have identified many gas giant exoplanets,…
While there is currently no cure for Parkinson’s disease or Lewy body dementia, addressing depression early could improve quality of life and overall care for patients as these diseases develop. study published in General Psychiatry provides the most detailed longitudinal evidence to date, demonstrating that depression frequently precedes the diagnosis of…
New research from Griffith University suggests that keeping a bedroom at 24°C (75°F) overnight can lower stress responses during sleep in older adults. The findings point to bedroom temperature as an important and often overlooked factor in nighttime recovery. The study was led by Dr. Fergus O’Connor from Griffith’s School…
A new study from researchers at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin and the University of Naples Federico II has uncovered an unexpected truth about cat communication. A domestic cat’s purr reveals much more about its individual identity than its meow. Meows change widely depending on context, while purring stays consistent…
A new study from researchers at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin and the University of Naples Federico II has uncovered an unexpected truth about cat communication. A domestic cat’s purr reveals much more about its individual identity than its meow. Meows change widely depending on context, while purring stays consistent…
Life began in the sea. Around 475 million years ago, plants started spreading from water onto dry ground. Roughly 100 million years later, vertebrate animals followed. Yet even after animals established themselves on land, they remained meat eaters for tens of millions of years, feeding on other animals rather than…
Human blood vessels are anything but simple. They bend, branch, narrow, and widen, creating complex pathways that affect how blood moves through the body. For a long time, however, laboratory models treated blood vessels as straight, uniform tubes. While useful, those simplified designs failed to reflect the conditions where many…
The COVID-19 pandemic made one thing unmistakably clear: people can experience the same infection in dramatically different ways. Some develop mild symptoms, while others face severe illness. This wide range of outcomes raises a fundamental question. Why do two people exposed to the same pathogen respond so differently? A major…
