New Scientist Space - Space Headlines
World’s only lungless frog species actually does have lungs after all
The rare Bornean flat-headed frog was thought to be the only frog with no lungs, but we now know it has very, very tiny ones
Categories: Astronomy
Zapping spinal cord injuries helps restore hand strength and movement
Electrical stimulation on the back during rehabilitation exercises causes lasting improvements in people’s ability to use their hands.
Categories: Astronomy
Why are there so many rogue planets and what do they look like?
Estimates suggest there are trillions of free-floating worlds in our galaxy alone. Most of them will be frozen planets like Pluto, but some might be warmer – and possibly even habitable
Categories: Astronomy
What is thought and how does thinking manifest in the brain?
We can describe different kinds of thought and how they arise, to some extent, but the relationship between neural activity and the nature of what we are thinking isn't well understood
Categories: Astronomy
Incredible maths proof is so complex that almost no one can explain it
Mathematicians are celebrating a 1000-page proof of the geometric Langlands conjecture, a problem so complicated that even other mathematicians struggle to understand it. Despite that, it is hoped the proof can provide key insights across maths and physics
Categories: Astronomy
VR headset can give you 360-degree vision like an owl
A virtual reality system and a head-mounted 360-degree camera make it possible to look directly behind you without twisting your entire body
Categories: Astronomy
Heatwaves seem to be driving severe asthma flare-ups in children
Children are more likely to be hospitalised for asthma complications during a heatwave, a problem that is expected to get worse with climate change
Categories: Astronomy
Physicists are grappling with their own reproducibility crisis
A contentious meeting of physicists highlighted concerns, failures and possible fixes for a crisis in condensed matter physics
Categories: Astronomy
Keto diet may accelerate organ ageing
In mice, a ketogenic diet increases the build-up of zombie-like cells in the heart, kidney, lungs and brain, which can accelerate organ ageing and lead to health problems
Categories: Astronomy
Orchids feed their young through underground fungal connections
A common species of orchid seems to pass food packages to nearby seedlings, in a kind of plant parental care
Categories: Astronomy
Food 'addiction' should be treated like drug abuse, claim doctors
A group of doctors and scientists is getting behind the controversial idea that people can be addicted to certain trigger foods, in the same way as drugs and alcohol. The team says this addiction should be treated with abstinence, which goes against mainstream medical advice
Categories: Astronomy
Nomads thrived in Greece after the collapse of the Roman Empire
Analysis of pollen in sediment cores from a large lake in Greece shows that nomadic livestock herders took over the region after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire
Categories: Astronomy
Tech firms claim nuclear will solve AI's power needs – they're wrong
Some AI firms think nuclear power can help meet the electricity demand from Silicon Valley’s data centres, but building new nuclear power stations takes too long to plug the gap in the short term
Categories: Astronomy
Fragile quantum entanglement may survive chaos of chemical reactions
Strange quantum characteristics of molecules can weather the chaos of chemical reactions, which may benefit quantum technologies or unveil hidden natural phenomena
Categories: Astronomy
AI noise-cancelling headphones let you focus on just one voice
You can blank out certain types of background noise and focus on just one conversation using prototype noise-cancelling headphones
Categories: Astronomy
Some brain injury patients would recover if life support weren't ended
After comparing people with brain injuries whose life support was continued with those who had it turned off, scientists calculated that around 40 per cent in the latter group may have made some recovery
Categories: Astronomy
A lost branch of the river Nile flowed past the pyramids of Egypt
Soil core samples show an ancient riverbed under the desert near many Egyptian pyramids, revealing an ancient waterway that dried up thousands of years ago
Categories: Astronomy
'Smiling' black bear caught on camera in Pasadena goes viral
Wildlife photographer Johanna Turner used a trail camera to capture this cheery shot of a black bear, which is going viral after she posted it on social media
Categories: Astronomy
Genetic mutation gives cats a 'salty liquorice' coat colour
Researchers have discovered the gene variant responsible for a distinctive colour pattern seen in cats in Finland, named salmiak after a variety of liquorice
Categories: Astronomy
Virtual power plants could ease growing strain on US electric grid
Energy-saving networks that link smart devices, solar panels and batteries could regulate power demand and help avoid fossil fuel use at peak times
Categories: Astronomy
