New Scientist Space - Cosmology
Ancient Maya burned their dead rulers to mark a new dynasty
In the foundations of a Maya temple, researchers found the charred bones of royal individuals – possibly evidence of a fiery ritual to mark the end of one dynasty and the beginning of another
Categories: Astronomy
What is cloud seeding and did it cause the floods in Dubai?
Cloud seeding almost certainly did not play a significant role in the flooding on the Arabian peninsula this week – but the heavy rains may have been exacerbated by climate change
Categories: Astronomy
Ancient marine reptile found on UK beach may be the largest ever
The jawbone of an ichthyosaur uncovered in south-west England has been identified as a new species, and researchers estimate that the whole animal was 20 to 25 metres long
Categories: Astronomy
Ancient humans lived inside a lava tube in the Arabian desert
Underground tunnels created by lava flows provided humans with shelter for thousands of years beneath the hot desert landscape of Saudi Arabia
Categories: Astronomy
Fallout review: This jaunty trip to the apocalypse is lots of fun
Amid a deluge of dour TV shows about the end of the world, Fallout, based on the hit video games of the same name and set in the wastelands of 2296, stands out, says Bethan Ackerley
Categories: Astronomy
These photos show AI used to reinterpret centuries-old graffiti
Artist Matthew Attard turned to eye-tracking technology to generate a fresh take on images of ships carved by seafarers on chapels in Malta hundreds of years ago
Categories: Astronomy
May Contain Lies review: How to cut to the truth and think smarter
Can you see through deceiving data and beguiling stories? Read Alex Edmans's new book and take his card test to find out
Categories: Astronomy
Does the future of boxing lie in humans versus robots? Possibly
Feedback pores over new research that suggests "robot-human boxing" would reduce brain injuries by reducing the number of live opponents involved
Categories: Astronomy
Why we need to change the way we think about exhaustion
One in five adults worldwide is living with fatigue. The general advice is to “do more” - but this isn’t the only solution to our exhaustion epidemic, says Amy Arthur
Categories: Astronomy
A Body Made of Glass review: A very personal history of hypochondria
Millions of people experience symptoms many doctors dismiss as imaginary, but why? Caroline Crampton's moving first-person account is very revealing
Categories: Astronomy
How to see the Lyrid meteor shower and when is the peak?
Caused by debris from a comet thought to originate in the Oort Cloud, the Lyrid meteor shower peaks this year on 22 April and is best viewed from the northern hemisphere, says Abigail Beall
Categories: Astronomy
Old-fashioned pessimism might actually help us fight climate change
Negative thinking is unpopular but it could drive more realistic efforts to limit harm from global warming
Categories: Astronomy
Skin-deep wounds can damage gut health in mice
We know there is some connection between skin and gut health, but many assumed the gut was the one calling the shots. A new study suggests that the influence can go the other way
Categories: Astronomy
Intel reveals world's biggest 'brain-inspired' neuromorphic computer
A computer intended to mimic the way the brain processes and stores data could potentially improve the efficiency and capabilities of artificial intelligence models
Categories: Astronomy
Turning plants blue with gene editing could make robot weeding easier
Weeding robots can sometimes struggle to tell weeds from crops, but genetically modifying the plants we want to keep to make them brightly coloured would make the job easier, suggest a group of researchers
Categories: Astronomy
A new understanding of tinnitus and deafness could help reverse both
Investigations of the paradoxical link between tinnitus and hearing loss have revealed a hidden form of deafness, paving the way to possible new treatments
Categories: Astronomy
A cicada double brood is coming – it's less rare than you think
Up to 17 US states could be peppered with more than a trillion cicadas this spring, and though it has been a while since these two specific broods emerged at once, double broods are not that rare
Categories: Astronomy
Dusting farms with waste concrete could boost yields and lock up CO2
Ground-up concrete can remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in a similar way to ground-up rocks, according to a field study in Ireland
Categories: Astronomy
Colonies of single-celled creatures could explain how embryos evolved
We know little about how embryonic development in animals evolved from single-celled ancestors, but simple organisms with a multicellular life stage offer intriguing clues
Categories: Astronomy
Sleeping bumblebees can survive underwater for a week
A serendipitous lab accident revealed that hibernating bumblebee queens can make it through days of flooding, revealing that they are less vulnerable to extreme weather than previously thought
Categories: Astronomy