New Scientist Space - Cosmology
Just one dose of psilocybin seems to be enough to rewire the brain
Psilocybin appears to alter brain networks linked to repetitive negative thoughts, which may explain how the drug helps to treat some mental health conditions
Categories: Astronomy
Hottest engine in the world reveals weirdness of microscopic physics
A tiny engine comprised of a glass bead zapped with electric fields behaves as if it is operating 2000 times hotter than the sun
Categories: Astronomy
Why are weather forecasting apps so terrible?
Weather apps regularly differ in their predictions for the same location – why is it so hard to predict local forecasts, and where can we get the best weather information?
Categories: Astronomy
Our verdict on ‘Circular Motion’: this dystopia hit too close to home
The New Scientist Book Club has just finished reading Alex Foster's sci-fi novel “Circular Motion”. We liked it – but there were calls for a bit more science in this slice of science fiction
Categories: Astronomy
Ursula Le Guin's son on why The Dispossessed is (maybe) his favourite
The New Scientist Book Club is currently reading Ursula K. Le Guin's classic science fiction novel "The Dispossessed". Here, her son Theo Downes-Le Guin considers the artistic process behind it – and why it still resonates today
Categories: Astronomy
Read an extract from The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin
The New Scientist Book Club is currently reading Ursula K. Le Guin’s classic novel The Dispossessed. In this extract from its opening, we get our first glimpse of the planet Anarres
Categories: Astronomy
Go-to therapy for chronic sinus condition doesn't work that well
Surgery, not antibiotics, might be the best way to treat chronic rhinosinusitis, a condition that leaves people with a permanently blocked or runny nose and a reduced sense of smell
Categories: Astronomy
Will Australia's social media ban really keep teenagers safe online?
Social media platforms will soon have to exclude children under 16 in Australia, but there are doubts over how age verification tools will work – and whether this is the right approach to deal with online harms
Categories: Astronomy
Urine tests detect high-risk HPV as effectively as DIY vaginal swabs
Several countries now offer at-home vaginal swabs to detect HPV status in place of traditional cervical cancer screening, but urine tests seem to work just as well
Categories: Astronomy
The foundations of eczema may start to be laid down in the womb
Eczema can be very distressing for children – and now it seems that its roots may at least partly lie in their mothers experiencing high levels of stress during pregnancy
Categories: Astronomy
Ancient crocodile relative could have ripped dinosaurs apart
A fossil discovered in Patagonia shows a 3.5-metre-long reptile from the late Cretaceous with large, serrated teeth capable of slicing through muscle
Categories: Astronomy
We're no longer at our unhappiest during middle age
People used to experience an "unhappiness hump" around midlife, but declining youth mental health may mean that is no longer the case
Categories: Astronomy
The captivating story that Earth’s ‘boring’ layered rocks tell us
Clues to our planet’s dramatic past are in the layers of rocks we might overlook. A great guide shows why they deserve our attention, says James Dinneen
Categories: Astronomy
Get ready for a glorious Harvest Blood Moon on 7 September
Sky watchers are in for a treat next month, says Abigail Beall, when there is a total lunar eclipse visible in much of the world
Categories: Astronomy
NASA's first space photos restored in stunning detail
The new book "Gemini and Mercury Remastered" features iconic images from the earliest days of human space exploration
Categories: Astronomy
New book about the story of carbon dioxide is a rousing call to action
The history of carbon dioxide’s role in life on Earth combined with a call to climate action makes for compelling reading, finds Chris Stokel-Walker
Categories: Astronomy
Could a huge lunar telescope be our best chance of spotting aliens?
In this latest instalment of Future Chronicles, an imagined history of future inventions, Rowan Hooper explores the advances that meant an optical telescope with an effective mirror size of 3000 km could be built on the moon
Categories: Astronomy
How a well-trained New Zealand dog took on quantum computers – and won
Feedback is alerted by a reader to the latest effort to create a quantum computer that can factorise extremely large numbers, and discovers an abrupt shift to K9 tech
Categories: Astronomy
Why do we love fake lips, but hate fake meat?
We are happy to inject synthetic substances into our faces in ever-increasing amounts, but reluctant to eat plant-based or cultivated fake meats. This inconsistent attitude has implications for sustainability, says Sophie Attwood
Categories: Astronomy
Alice Roberts investigates the unstoppable rise of Christianity
Why did Christianity grow from a niche sect to a religion followed by billions? Michael Marshall explores Alice Roberts’s latest book Domination
Categories: Astronomy