Recent reporting, background, and summaries from the science desk.
A groundbreaking study now challenges the long-held belief that high oxygen levels were necessary for ancient Earth's enormous insects, like 70 cm dragonflies, to achieve their massive sizes. Researchers found their flight muscles weren't oxygen-constrained, making the true reason for their gigantism and eventual disappearance a much bigger, intriguing mystery for scientists to unravel.
Scientists have, for the first time, pinpointed two specific types of brain cells that exhibit different behaviors in individuals with depression, as reported by ScienceDaily. This discovery provides a more precise biological understanding of the condition.
Scientists have successfully mapped the deformation of Earth's deepest mantle, revealing that long-lost tectonic plates buried thousands of kilometers underground are warping our planet's interior. This groundbreaking discovery, based on a massive global dataset of seismic waves, provides the first global-scale evidence confirming long-standing theories about Earth's internal dynamics.
New research reveals a direct link between rising global temperatures and an alarming increase in antibiotic resistance among soil microbes. This concerning trend, exacerbated by drought conditions, poses a significant and under-explored risk to human health worldwide.
Oregon Health & Science University researchers have developed scSurvival, a groundbreaking machine learning tool that precisely predicts cancer patient survival by analyzing molecular data from individual tumor cells. This innovative, first-of-its-kind method identifies specific cell populations within tumors linked to patient outcomes, offering the potential to revolutionize targeted therapies and identify high-risk patients.
Scientists have uncovered a bizarre new "superionic" state of matter deep within planets like Uranus and Neptune, where carbon and hydrogen combine under extreme pressures and temperatures. In this unique hybrid, hydrogen atoms flow freely through a rigid carbon framework, a discovery that could revolutionize our understanding of these planets' internal dynamics and mysterious magnetic fields.
NASA has successfully transferred the core stage of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket for the Artemis III mission from Michoud Assembly Facility to the Pegasus barge, a crucial step preparing it for an anticipated 2027 launch to return humans to the lunar surface. This significant progress for the Artemis program paves the way for future crewed missions, extending human exploration beyond the Moon and potentially to Mars.
Scientists have finally cracked a 200-year-old geological puzzle, successfully growing the elusive mineral dolomite in a laboratory for the very first time. Their groundbreaking discovery reveals that microscopic structural flaws initially block dolomite's formation, but these impediments naturally vanish over time, opening new avenues for advanced material development.
Two research teams have been awarded the prestigious 2026 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for their groundbreaking advancements in gene therapy. Their pioneering gene editing techniques offer revolutionary treatment potential for genetic diseases like blindness and sickle cell, bringing new hope to millions worldwide.
Scientists have pioneered a novel method using fossil phytoplankton to reveal the North Atlantic was a surprising 9 degrees Celsius cooler since the Miocene than previously believed. This groundbreaking discovery challenges long-standing views of extreme warmth in northern high latitudes and significantly improves the alignment of past climate observations with current models.
Scientists have uncovered a startling mechanism where bacteria "explode" themselves using virus-like particles called Gene Transfer Agents (GTAs) to rapidly spread antibiotic resistance among neighboring cells. This surprising "kamikaze" strategy, controlled by a three-gene system (LypABC) repurposed from an ancient immune defense, maximizes the release of resistance-carrying DNA, accelerating a global health threat.
The Artemis II crew has triumphantly returned to Earth after successfully orbiting the moon, where they conducted vital spacecraft tests and gathered crucial data on human responses to deep space conditions. This groundbreaking mission significantly advances human space exploration, paving the way for future Mars missions and a sustained human presence beyond Earth.