Science & Technology
NASA’s Roman telescope just opened its planet-hunting eye
NASA’s Roman Space Telescope has demonstrated remarkable pointing stability and given its powerful planet-imaging coronagraph its first look at the cosmos. The telescope can already stay locked on a target with precision comparable to aiming a laser at…
Nearly 6 in 10 people with high blood pressure don’t know they have it
Nearly 6 in 10 people with high blood pressure in a large England study had never been diagnosed or treated, and half of those already taking medication still had elevated readings. Researchers say a more proactive approach to finding and controlling h…
97-million-year-old fossils reveal the earliest known animal “GPS”
Mysterious 97-million-year-old magnetic fossils may be the oldest evidence of an animal using Earth’s magnetic field like a built-in GPS. Their sophisticated magnetic structure could have helped an unknown ocean creature navigate thousands of kilometer…
The early universe wasn’t nearly as pristine as scientists thought
JWST has revealed that galaxies were spreading carbon, oxygen, and other heavy elements through space just 500 million years after the Big Bang. The surprising discovery suggests the young universe became chemically enriched much earlier than expected,…
Scientists just pushed superconductors beyond their usual current limit
Ultrashort electrical pulses allowed scientists to push superconductors closer than ever to the point where their electron pairs actually break apart. The method revealed hidden differences between superconducting materials and could open new ways to p…
Cancer stem cells have an “energy addiction” scientists may be able to exploit
High-risk MDS stem cells appear to have an unexpected “energy addiction,” relying far more heavily than healthy blood-forming cells on a molecule called NAD. Disrupting this energy pathway selectively weakened the cancer-driving cells, revealing a pote…
Even one strength training session a week could make a difference
Strength training may be one of the most powerful tools for staying independent as you age. Age related muscle loss, known as sarcopenia, can make everyday tasks harder while increasing the risk of falls, fractures, and loss of mobility. Research shows…
Scientists find an “earthquake gate” as California fault stress hits a 1,000-year high
Researchers say stress on Southern California’s San Andreas and San Jacinto faults has reached some of the highest levels seen in a 1,000-year simulation. Because both faults are highly stressed at the same time, the Cajon Pass junction may be increasi…
Weak sunlight can still damage your DNA, scientists warn
Weak sunlight can still damage skin DNA if you spend enough time outdoors, according to a landmark Australian study. Even UV doses too low to cause visible redness triggered cellular damage that could accumulate over time and contribute to skin cancer …
Electrons slow to a crawl in a strange new quantum state
Scientists at the University of Chicago have uncovered a surprising quantum state in the layered magnetic material Fe5GeTe2, where huge numbers of electrons move together unusually slowly while remaining quantum coherent. The behavior contradicts exist…
Scientists may have found a “unifying theory” of chronic fatigue
Scientists found that five seemingly unrelated conditions, including long Covid, ME/CFS, and PTSD, may disrupt many of the same biological networks involved in immunity, metabolism, and cellular energy. The findings could help explain their shared symp…
One tiny chemical difference between RNA and DNA may help explain how life began
Scientists may have found a clue to one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the origin of life: how fragile RNA molecules could gather and survive before cells existed. New research shows that RNA is unusually good at assembling into tiny liquid-like …