The 20th-century French philosopher Simone Weil once said that compassion was an impossibility. She said it is "a more astounding miracle than walking on water." The word she used for meeting the needs of the sufferer is not love or charity, but justice. Today, there is plenty of research that points to a decline in compassion. [...]
A camera-trap survey conducted throughout 2025 has revealed the bewildering breadth of biodiversity hidden within the Annamite Mountains, a largely unexplored forest haven stretching for 1,100 kilometers through Laos and Vietnam to northeast Cambodia. The Annamites are the sole stronghold for some of Southeast Asia's most spectacular and super-rare species, from the aptly named Annamite striped rabbit to the mystical saola. [...]
After a long search, RIKEN researchers have identified an enzyme crucial for keeping lipid-linked sugar chains in check in yeast cells. This finding, published in the Journal of Cell Biology, reveals a novel regulatory mechanism for sugar-donor levels. [...]
Supermarket shelves can look full despite the food systems underneath them being under strain. Fruit may be stacked neatly, chilled meat may be in place. It appears that supply chains are functioning well. But appearances can be deceiving. [...]
New work from Georgia Tech is showing how a simple glass of wine can serve as a powerful gateway for understanding advanced research and technologies. The project, inspired by an Atlanta Science Festival event hosted by School of Chemistry and Biochemistry Assistant Professor Andrew McShan, develops an innovative outreach and teaching module around nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) techniques, and is designed for easy adoption in introductory chemistry and biochemistry courses. [...]
In 2014, a NASA telescope observed that the infrared light emitted by a massive star in the Andromeda galaxy gradually grew brighter. The star glowed more intensely with infrared light for around three years before fading dramatically and disappearing, leaving behind a shell of dust. Although a telescope captured the phenomenon at the time, it took years for scientists to notice it. [...]
It is common to think of time as moving in only one direction—from point A, through point B, to point C. [...]
Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming how scientists understand proteins—these are working molecules that drive nearly every process in the human body, from cell growth and immune defense to digestion and cell signaling. At NUS, researchers are harnessing AI to fast-track discoveries, offering fresh insights into life at the molecular level and new strategies against disease. [...]
Recently, a research team led by Prof. Zhao Bangchuan from the Institute of Solid State Physics, Hefei Institutes of Physical Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with Prof. Xiao Yao from Wenzhou University, developed a composition gradient strategy to precisely regulate the internal stress distribution and electronic structure of Li-rich Mn-based cathode materials. The findings are published in Nano Letters. [...]
Scientists at the University of Groningen, led by Nobel laureate Ben Feringa and colleagues, have created a new porous material that captures and releases carbon dioxide using only visible light. The breakthrough could pave the way for more energy-efficient and sustainable carbon capture technologies that help combat climate change. [...]
Going to space is harsh on the human body, and as a new study from our research team finds, the brain shifts upward and backward and deforms inside the skull after spaceflight. [...]
In a recent study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science, Wanyue Zhao and her colleagues used volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to analyze the composition of scents given off by mummies and their embalming materials. The results showed differences in embalming methods across different time periods and could even distinguish between different body parts. [...]
Researchers have successfully shown a technology developed at the University of Queensland can improve the efficacy of a chemical-free flystrike treatment for sheep. The technology, BenPol, addresses the limitations of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) treatment to mitigate flystrike, which is the painful and sometimes fatal infestation of maggots on live sheep. The paper is published in the journal Pest Management Science. [...]
The southern Indian Ocean off the west coast of Australia is becoming less salty at an astonishing rate, largely due to climate change, new research shows. [...]
A major theme in communist governments is the idea of central planning. Every five years, the central authorities in communist countries lay out their goals for the country over the course of the next five years, which can range from limiting infant mortality to increasing agricultural yield. China, the largest current polity ruled by communists, recently released its fifteenth five-year plan, which lays out its priorities for 2026–2030. This one, accompanied by a press release of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the country's state-owned giant aerospace corporation, has plenty of ambitious goals for its space sector. [...]
For most young people, learning about social and political issues doesn't start with a textbook. It starts with a phone. [...]
The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory has launched a novel robotic platform to rapidly analyze plant root systems as they grow, yielding AI-ready data to accelerate the development of stress-tolerant crops for new fuels, chemicals and materials. [...]
A new study shows that during the last two deglaciations, i.e., the transition from an ice age to the warm interglacial periods, meltwater from the Antarctic ice sheet intensified stratification in the Southern Ocean. The results highlight the key role of the Antarctic ice sheet on ocean circulation and the regulation of the global climate. The study was led by François Fripiat, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry and the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and was conducted in collaboration with researchers from Princeton University and the Alfred Wegener Institute. It is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. [...]
Cape Town, in South Africa, is famous for its dramatic mountains and coastline, but its greatest treasure lies in the plants that carpet its slopes and valleys. Table Mountain National Park and its surrounds are home to 2,785 species, including subspecies and varieties. [...]
Gradually increasing the price of fossil fuels is considered a key element of effective climate policy—and yet it remains the subject of bitter controversy. In a new book, experts from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) explain this concept and correct false perceptions. The publication (in German) is aimed at professionals and laypeople who want to gain a thorough understanding of the topic. [...]
This week, researchers reported on a juvenile great white shark caught by fishermen in Spanish Mediterranean waters. China's clean air initiatives have resulted in major public health gains, but may have one unintended consequence. And satellite data revealed that boreal forests expanded globally by 12% but have shifted north since 1985. [...]
In 2024, 51% of families read aloud to their very young children, while 37% read aloud to their kids between the ages of 6 and 8 years old. [...]
A research team affiliated with UNIST has achieved a major breakthrough in the development of cost-effective, large-scale energy storage systems (ESS)—specifically, iron–chromium redox flow batteries (ICRFBs). Known for their safety, affordability, and suitability for grid-level applications, these batteries offer a reliable power source for high-demand facilities, like data centers, all while eliminating the risks associated with flammable electrolytes. [...]
Minutes after getting to a park in the middle of Phoenix, you can see flashes of green in the sky and hear chatter because love is in the air—or at least, the lovebirds are. [...]
Researchers in Costa Rica have unearthed fossils from a mastodon and a giant sloth that lived as many as 40,000 years ago, officials announced Friday, calling it the biggest such find here in decades. [...]
A study of more than 100 kindergarten-age children suggests kids tend to think of snakes differently than they do other animals and that hearing negative or objectifying language about the slithery reptiles might contribute to that way of thinking. [...]
Most people think of microbes in simple terms: Some make you sick, while others help keep you healthy. But microbes' influence stretches far beyond human bodies. These astonishingly complex organisms regulate the health of forests, oceans and grasslands and determine how ecosystems respond to environmental change. [...]
It's difficult to forget standing in front of a glacier that is advancing toward you, towering ice pillars constantly cracking as they inch forward. The motion is too slow to see in real time but is obvious from one day to the next. [...]
As millions of visitors prepare to descend on North Texas for the FIFA World Cup, city of Dallas officials say the global spotlight also brings local environmental responsibility. [...]
Quantum physics may sound abstract, but Ph.D. candidates Kirsten Kanneworff and David Dechant show that quantum research can also be very concrete. Together, they are investigating how quantum technology can change the world. While Kanneworff worked in the lab to study how quantum optics can be used to prove someone's location, Dechant focused on quantum computing for dynamic systems, such as the financial world. The two researchers are defending their doctoral theses this week. [...]
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