New Scientist Space - Space Headlines
Mathematician wins 2024 Abel prize for making sense of randomness
Michel Talagrand has won the 2024 Abel prize for his work researching probability theory and the extremes of randomness
Categories: Astronomy
Artists who use AI are more productive but less original
An analysis of work posted on a popular art-sharing website finds that users who adopted generative artificial intelligence tools increased their output, but saw a drop in novelty
Categories: Astronomy
Human brains have been mysteriously preserved for thousands of years
Intact human brains 12,000 years old or more have been found in unexpected places such as shipwrecks and waterlogged graves, but it is unclear what preserved them
Categories: Astronomy
Amazingly preserved Bronze Age village reveals life in ancient England
A settlement in the east of England burned down in a fire 3000 years ago, falling into a muddy waterway that preserved everything inside the houses including tools, fabric, cooking pots and more
Categories: Astronomy
CRISPR could disable and cure HIV, suggests promising lab experiment
The gene-editing strategy could be a way to disable HIV that lies dormant in immune cells, meaning people would no longer need to take daily medication
Categories: Astronomy
Common antibiotics can regenerate heart cells in animals
A combination of widely available antibiotics may be able to treat heart failure after researchers found that the therapy regenerates heart cells in animals
Categories: Astronomy
DeepMind and Liverpool FC develop AI to advise on football tactics
An AI model trained on data from Premier League matches can help football coaches devise tactics for attacking or defending corner kicks
Categories: Astronomy
Why supersonic, diamond-spewing volcanoes might be coming back to life
Strange volcanoes called kimberlites bring diamonds up from Earth's depths. Scientists have always struggled to understand why they switched off millions of years ago – but perhaps they didn't
Categories: Astronomy
Genetics may protect against disease linked to eating human brains
Remote tribes in Papua New Guinea were ravaged in the 20th century by kuru, which was spread when people ate their dead relatives as part of funeral rituals – but some individuals may have had genetic resistance to the condition
Categories: Astronomy
Gene variants may protect against brain disease linked to cannibalism
Remote tribes in Papua New Guinea were ravaged in the 20th century by kuru, which was spread when people ate their dead relatives as part of funeral rituals – but some individuals may have had genetic resistance to the condition
Categories: Astronomy
'Red alert' after key global warming records were smashed in 2023
2023 wasn't just the hottest year on record by far, it also saw record glacier loss, sea level rise, ocean heat and sea ice loss, says World Meteorological Organization report
Categories: Astronomy
'Forever chemicals' have infiltrated food packaging on a wide scale
Nearly 70 "forever chemicals", also known as PFAS, are commonly found in materials that come into contact with food, some of which have been linked to negative health outcomes
Categories: Astronomy
‘Running of the bulls’ festival crowds move like charged particles
Researchers have studied the movements of thousands of people waiting for the opening of the San Fermín festival and found they behave like electrons circling in a magnetic field
Categories: Astronomy
Nvidia's Blackwell AI 'superchip' is the most powerful yet
A computer chip featuring over 400 billion transistors can train artificial intelligence models faster and using less energy, says Nvidia - but it is yet to reveal the price tag
Categories: Astronomy
Cannabis vaping liquids contain lead and other toxic metals
The heating elements in vapes can release toxic metals. Now an analysis of cannabis vaping liquids shows metals like lead are present at dangerous levels – even before the vape is used
Categories: Astronomy
Intermittent fasting linked to a higher risk of heart disease death
Only eating within an 8-hour window is associated with a significantly higher risk of heart disease-related death compared with eating over 12 to 16 hours
Categories: Astronomy
Blood-clotting drug derived from pigs can now be made synthetically
A common anti-clotting drug called heparin is made from pig intestines, which risks contaminations and infections. A safer, synthetic version has now been developed but its production needs scaling up
Categories: Astronomy
Mammoth carcass was scavenged by ancient humans and sabre-toothed cats
A southern mammoth skeleton found in Spain bears cut marks from stone tools and bite marks from carnivore teeth, suggesting that both hominins and felids feasted on its meat
Categories: Astronomy
Nobel-winning biologist on the most promising ways to stop ageing
Efforts to extend our lifespan continue and many look promising, but success will have unintended consequences, says Nobel prizewinner Venki Ramakrishnan
Categories: Astronomy
Titan’s sand dunes may be made of smashed up small moons
The sand dunes that splay across the surface of Saturn’s moon Titan may be made of the ground-up remains of ancient irregular moons, rather than atmospheric particles
Categories: Astronomy