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In the canopies of a South American rainforest, a tiny soldier termite has stunned a team of international scientists with its whale-like features.

Billions of alkaline-loving microbes could offer a new way to protect nuclear waste buried deep underground. This approach overcomes the limitations of current cement barriers, which can crack or break down over time.

Syntax Bio, a synthetic biology company programming the next generation of cell therapies, has published new research in Science Advances detailing the company's CRISPR-based Cellgorithm technology, which lays the groundwork for programmable control of gene activity in human stem cells and offers an alternative to the slow, variable manual processes researchers use today.

A new AI model could help radiologists identify brain abnormalities in MRI scans for all conditions including stroke, multiple sclerosis and brain tumors.

Modern neural networks, with billions of parameters, are so overparameterized that they can "overfit" even random, structureless data. Yet when trained on datasets with structure, they learn the underlying features.

A new study provides a crucial roadmap for Japan to address an escalating ecological challenge while advancing food sustainability: overcoming the psychological barriers to game meat consumption.

New research published in the journal eNeuro examined whether eliminating a protein that is elevated in the brains of those with Alzheimer's could prevent or reduce damage and behavioral symptoms in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

UCLA scientists have characterized the structure and function of a key survival protein in breast cancer cells that helps explain how these tumors resist environmental stress and thrive in acidic, low-oxygen environments that would normally be toxic to healthy cells. The paper is published in the journal Nature Communications.

Astronomers have captured images of two stellar explosions—known as novae—within days of their eruption and in unprecedented detail. The breakthrough provides direct evidence that these explosions are more complex than previously thought, with multiple outflows of material and, in some cases, dramatic delays in the ejection process.

Finland was the first country to offer the zoonotic avian influenza A(H5N8) vaccine manufactured by Seqirus to at-risk occupational groups following the extensive clade 2.3.4.4b A(H5N1) outbreak affecting wild birds and fur farms in Finland in 2023.

A new article published in Nature Communications offers insight into how government planners can better account for the many uncertainties that accompany the transition from fossil-fuel power systems to renewable or decarbonized systems. The paper, titled "Identifying key uncertainties in energy transitions with a Puerto Rico case study," is the work of a team from the University of Virginia including first author Kamiar Khayambashi, a Ph.D. student in the School of Engineering and Applied Science.

The copper isotope Cu-64 plays an important role in medicine: It is used in imaging processes and also shows potential for cancer therapy. However, it does not occur naturally and must be produced artificially—a complex and costly process.

Researchers have built a tiny, lightweight microscope that captures neuron activity with unprecedented speed that can be used in freely moving animals. The new tool could give scientists a more complete view of how brain cells process information during natural behavior.

A team from the Faculty of Physics and the Center for Quantum Optical Technologies at the Center of New Technologies, University of Warsaw has developed a new method for measuring elusive terahertz signals using a "quantum antenna."

Iron-on patches can repair clothing or add personal flair to backpacks and hats. And now they could power wearable tech, too. Researchers reporting in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces have combined liquid metal and a heat-activated adhesive to create an electrically conductive patch that bonds to fabric when heated with a hot iron. In demonstrations, circuits ironed onto a square of fabric lit up LEDs and attached an iron-on microphone to a button-up shirt.

A new study led by researchers at York University shows that dance can be beneficial in halting the cognitive decline associated with Parkinson's disease and, for some participants, they even showed signs of improvement. Faculty of Health Associate Professor Joseph DeSouza, co-author of the study, says since cognition is nearly always expected to decline as the illness progresses and this was a multi-year study, the findings are quite remarkable.

A research team from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has demonstrated ultrafast and highly reversible all-slope sodium storage using specially engineered hard carbon anodes.

The rise of artificial intelligence, cloud platforms, and data processing is driving a steady increase in global data center electricity consumption. While running computer servers accounts for the largest share of data center energy use, cooling systems come in second—but a new study by researchers at the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), formerly known as NREL, offers a potential solution to reduce peak energy consumption.

As power demand surges in the AI era, the protonic ceramic electrochemical cell (PCEC), which can simultaneously produce electricity and hydrogen, is gaining attention as a next-generation energy technology. However, this cell has faced the technical limitation of requiring an ultra-high production temperature of 1,500°C.

Children referred to a first seizure clinic (FSC) see a neurologist epilepsy specialist within one week, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Epilepsy Society, held from Dec. 5 to 9 in Atlanta.

Stars form in massive clouds of gas called molecular clouds. As they form, they accrete gas from these clouds, and as the stars rotate, gas and dust accumulates in a rotating disk around the star called a protoplanetary disk. As the name makes clear, this is where planets form by accreting material from the disk.

The microbe Pyrodictium abyssi is an archaeon—a member of what's known as the third domain of life—and an extremophile. It lives in deep-sea thermal vents, at temperatures above the boiling point of water, without light or oxygen, withstanding the enormous pressure at ocean depths of thousands of meters.

Inspired by the Japanese art of kirigami, a team of scientists from the University of Amsterdam have developed a material that can reflect different colors of light, depending on how it is stretched. The results were recently published in the journal ACS Photonics.

Though some might see video games as a distraction, a recent study from the University of Georgia suggests they can actually serve as a place to practice key science skills—with the help of some adorable cats, of course.

Researchers at UC Santa Barbara have invented a display technology for on-screen graphics that are both visible and haptic, meaning that they can be felt via touch.

When ice melts into water, it happens quickly, with the transition from solid to liquid being immediate. However, very thin materials do not adhere to these rules. Instead, an unusual state between solid and liquid arises: the hexatic phase. Researchers at the University of Vienna have now succeeded in directly observing this exotic phase in an atomically thin crystal.

A new study by researchers at the University of Amsterdam shows how gravitational waves from black holes can be used to reveal the presence of dark matter and help determine its properties. The key is a new model, based on Einstein's theory of general relativity, that tracks in detail how a black hole interacts with the surrounding matter.

Wastewater from washing machines is considered a major source of microplastics—tiny plastic particles that are suspected of harming human and animal health. Researchers at the University of Bonn have now developed a filter to curb this problem. Their invention was inspired by the gill arch system in fish.

A study from the University of East Anglia is helping scientists better understand how our brains remember past events—and how those memories can change over time.

Researchers from the School of Physics at Wits University, working with collaborators from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, have demonstrated how quantum light can be engineered in space and time to create high-dimensional and multidimensional quantum states. Their work highlights how structured photons—light whose spatial, temporal or spectral properties are deliberately shaped—offer new pathways for high-capacity quantum communication and advanced quantum technologies.

A research team at Sejong University's Plant Immunity Laboratory, led by Professor Nam-Soo Jwa, has uncovered an important regulatory component of rice immunity.

Saliva and plasma could be crucial in detecting recurrences or relapses of head and neck cancers, negating the need for a painful and invasive biopsy.

Methanol is an ideal feedstock for bio-manufacturing. Converting it into lactate, a monomer for biodegradable plastic, offers a promising strategy for addressing the challenge of white pollution. However, it remains difficult to engineer microbes to produce lactate from methanol due to methanol toxicity and strong competition between product synthesis and cell growth.

To increase driving range, electric vehicle (EV) batteries rely on high-nickel cathodes. However, this high nickel content has a critical drawback: battery performance degrades rapidly during charging and discharging. The primary cause has now been identified as internal structural distortion, which generates "oxygen holes" that shorten the battery's lifespan—similar to how a warped pillar can crack a building's walls.

A curious seagull strolled nonchalantly through the penguin enclosure at a zoo in Paris.

A research team from the Institute of Modern Physics (IMP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has directly measured the masses of two highly unstable atomic nuclei, phosphorus-26 and sulfur-27. These precise measurements provide crucial information for determining the nuclear reaction rate during X-ray bursts, advancing our understanding of how elements are synthesized under such extreme conditions.

Meta announced Friday it will integrate content from major news organizations into its artificial intelligence assistant to provide Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp users with real-time information.

Patricia DeLucia has spent decades studying something many of us never think about: judgments about collisions that are crucial for safety. But the roots of her research stretch back to her childhood, long before she became a professor of psychological sciences at Rice University.

A new multi-site study led by researchers at CU Anschutz shows that people with cystic fibrosis (CF) who start the triple-drug therapy elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor (ETI) can safely reduce many of their daily lung treatments while maintaining good health for years.

A research team at the Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS) has developed a high-performance heat-dissipating composite material that achieves both eco-friendliness and low-cost processing.

The order of cancer-driving mutations—genetic changes—plays an important role in whether tumors in the intestine can develop, new research reveals.

The fossil called "Medusa" could be a dinosaur mummy—the remains of an Edmontosaurus about 66 million years old that researchers believe contains a significant amount of skin and tendon tissue.

Oxford's Big Data Institute and Nuffield Department of Population Health report that daily step counts may help identify who will later be diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, with lower activity patterns acting as an early marker of the condition.

A new series in The Lancet led by a UC Berkeley professor equips policymakers and clinicians with a toolkit to break out of silos and make more informed health decisions.

A gene that turns on very early in embryonic development could be key to the formation of the placenta, which provides the developing fetus with what it needs to thrive during gestation.

The world's first single-dose vaccine to prevent dengue fever has been approved for licensure in one of the largest countries affected by the disease, following 16 years of research contributions by scientists at the University of Vermont (UVM) Vaccine Testing Center, in partnership with the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH).

Why do some people find a short jog exhausting, while others seem to run effortlessly? Of course, part of the answer lies in training and muscle strength. But the brain also plays a role, particularly in how we perceive effort.

Vanderbilt researchers have developed a lightweight wearable device that shifts body armor weight off the shoulders and back of soldiers, helping reduce pain and injury risk.

Adopting digital twin technology to manage the power consumption of idle devices could save organizations thousands of pounds a year and help reduce their carbon footprint, new research suggests.

What does the space shuttle have in common with the original iPhone? According to Francisco Polidoro Jr., professor of management of Texas McCombs, they're both breakthrough inventions that integrate webs of interdependent features.

ChatGPT maker OpenAI and an Australian data center operator have agreed to develop a multibillion-dollar AI center in Sydney.

Future events such as the weather or satellite trajectories are computed in tiny time steps, so the computation must be both efficient and as accurate as possible at each step lest errors pile up. A Kobe University team has introduced a new method that uses deep learning for creating tailored, accurate simulations that respect physical laws, while also being more computationally efficient.

A new report from the University of Liverpool and the United Nations Migration Agency–International Organization for Migration (IOM) demonstrates how harnessing digital data collected from mobile phone applications and social media platforms can transform the way humanitarian agencies track and respond to population displacement during crises.

The world is loud. A walk down the street bombards one's ears with the sound of engines revving, car horns blaring, and the steady beeps of pedestrian crossings. While smartphone alerts to excessive sound and public awareness of noise exposure grows, few tools help people take protective action.

Researchers at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) have extracted the building blocks of precise hand gestures used in the classical Indian dance form Bharatanatyam—and found a richer "alphabet" of movement compared to natural grasps. The work could improve how we teach hand movements to robots and offer humans better tools for physical therapy.

The next era of power system operations is taking shape through digitalization, artificial intelligence, and intelligent automation. To help utilities and navigate this change, Fraunhofer FIT and Accenture have published a white paper titled "Transformation Journey Towards Software-Defined Power System Operations."

Technology, no matter how advanced, always comes with a shelf life. Mechanical equipment used in clean-energy systems is no different. But as global efforts toward carbon neutrality accelerate, assessing the durability of infrastructure such as wind turbines, solar power plants, and nuclear facilities has become increasingly important.

Railway infrastructure could be made safer and more reliable using AI, artificial intelligence, according to research published in the International Journal of Information and Communication Technology. The research outlines a new automated, real-time fault detection system based on deep learning that can identify problems with track, bridges, tunnels, and signaling equipment. The work could address long-standing challenges in maintaining complex transportation networks.

Shopping assistant chatbots were a novelty a year ago. Now, they're everywhere.

Cornell researchers have developed a new transistor architecture that could reshape how high-power wireless electronics are engineered, while also addressing supply chain vulnerabilities for a critical semiconductor material.

As disruptions to GPS services increase globally, radio signals from low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites could become reliable navigation alternatives, a new study suggests.

While burning electric vehicles, exploding e-bikes and melting smartphones no longer make the headlines, the issue of battery safety has yet to be fully resolved. To address this, UBC researchers recently made a crucial breakthrough in battery research that may improve the longevity and safety of zinc-ion batteries.