It is clear to everyone that astronomy at all events compels the soul to look upwards, and draws it from the things of this world to the other.

— Plato

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Updated: 3 hours 43 min ago

World's new fastest supercomputer is built to simulate nuclear bombs

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 12:02pm
The vast computational power of the El Capitan supercomputer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California will be used to support the US nuclear deterrent
Categories: Astronomy

Heart-shaped mollusc has windows that work like fibre optics

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 11:00am
Tiny, solid windows in the shells of heart cockles let in light for the photosynthetic algae inside them – and they could show us how to make better fibre-optic cables
Categories: Astronomy

The universe could vanish at any moment – why hasn’t it?

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 11:00am
A cataclysmic quantum fluctuation could wipe out everything at any moment. The fact that we’re still here is revealing hidden cosmic realities
Categories: Astronomy

Quantum computers hit a crucial milestone for error-free calculation

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 8:30am
The largest number of logical qubits has been linked through quantum entanglement, which is a key step towards quantum computers that can detect and correct errors
Categories: Astronomy

Bluesky is ushering in a pick-your-own algorithm era of social media

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 7:10am
More than 20 million people have joined Bluesky, a social network that gives you fine-grained control over what you see and who you interact with. I think it is the future of social media, says Chris Stokel-Walker
Categories: Astronomy

A giant hornet from Asia has appeared in Europe for the first time

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 5:58am
Four southern giant hornets have been identified in northern Spain, leading to concerns that the species could harm native insects if it becomes widespread
Categories: Astronomy

Wild cavefish can somehow survive with almost no sleep at all

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 5:00am
Several populations of Mexican tetra fish that live in darkness have independently evolved to need hardly any sleep, but the reason why is a mystery
Categories: Astronomy

AI maths assistant could help solve problems that humans are stuck on

Tue, 11/19/2024 - 3:00am
Most mathematicians have been reluctant to start working with artificial intelligence, but a new tool developed by researchers at Meta may change that
Categories: Astronomy

We may have solved the mystery of what froze Earth's inner core

Mon, 11/18/2024 - 3:00pm
A supercomputer simulation of iron and carbon atoms in Earth’s inner core may explain how a molten ball at the centre of our planet froze solid
Categories: Astronomy

Quantum time crystals could be used to store energy

Mon, 11/18/2024 - 2:59pm
The weird thermodynamics found in time crystals could be harnessed to store energy in a quantum battery-like device
Categories: Astronomy

We're starting to understand why some people regain weight they lost

Mon, 11/18/2024 - 1:36pm
Changes to the structure of DNA within fat cells may be why it is often so hard to keep weight off after you have lost it
Categories: Astronomy

Countries are cheating their way to net zero by overrelying on forests

Mon, 11/18/2024 - 11:00am
Leading researchers warn that relying on "passive" carbon sinks such as forests to absorb ongoing carbon emissions will doom the world to continued warming
Categories: Astronomy

Vital Atlantic Ocean current is already weakening due to melting ice

Mon, 11/18/2024 - 5:28am
A study modelling the impact of melting ice suggests scientists have underestimated the risk that an important ocean current will shut down and cause climate chaos
Categories: Astronomy

Evidence is growing that microbes in your mouth contribute to cancer

Mon, 11/18/2024 - 3:00am
The oral microbiome is increasingly being linked to head and neck cancer, but we don't yet understand its exact role
Categories: Astronomy

Australia wants to ban social media for under-16s, but it won't work

Fri, 11/15/2024 - 4:00pm
Attempts to prevent Australian children from accessing social media are likely to fail, and could do more harm than good
Categories: Astronomy

AI models work together faster when they speak their own language

Fri, 11/15/2024 - 11:00am
Letting AI models communicate with each other in their internal mathematical language, rather than translating back and forth to English, could accelerate their task-solving abilities
Categories: Astronomy

Satellites spot methane leaks – but ‘super-emitters’ don’t fix them

Fri, 11/15/2024 - 10:00am
Governments and companies almost never take action when satellites alert them about large methane leaks coming from oil and gas infrastructure
Categories: Astronomy

COP29 host Azerbaijan faces climate disaster as Caspian Sea dries up

Fri, 11/15/2024 - 9:00am
Water levels in the Caspian Sea are set to fall dramatically as the climate gets hotter, posing a major threat to economic activity and ecosystems in the region
Categories: Astronomy

A 200-year-old mystery about newts has finally been solved

Fri, 11/15/2024 - 7:00am
A genetic flaw dooms half of all crested newts to die before they hatch – now we know how this baffling evolutionary quirk came about
Categories: Astronomy

A unique pair of galactic lenses may help solve a cosmological riddle

Fri, 11/15/2024 - 6:07am
Two massive galaxies are bending light from the same distant quasar, creating a so-called Einstein zigzag lens that could help astronomers pin down how quickly the universe is expanding
Categories: Astronomy