Inside the world of tiny phytoplankton – microscopic algae that provide most of our oxygen

Apr 30, 2021 07:50 am UTC| Science

Phytoplankton are microscopic algae living throughout the oceans surface waters. They cant swim and are at the mercy of the currents and tides. Despite their small size, phytoplankton enable life in the oceans and...

First human-monkey embryos created – a small step towards a huge ethical problem

Apr 23, 2021 12:07 pm UTC| Science Insights & Views

Scientists have created the worlds first monkey embryos containing human cells in an attempt to investigate how the two types of cell develop alongside each other. The embryos, which were derived from a macaque and then...

Lab–grown embryos and human–monkey hybrids: Medical marvels or ethical missteps?

Apr 23, 2021 11:52 am UTC| Science

In Aldous Huxleys 1932 novel Brave New World, people arent born from a mothers womb. Instead, embryos are grown in artificial wombs until they are brought into the world, a process called ectogenesis. In the novel,...

Antimatter: scientists find way to trap elusive material by blasting it with lasers

Apr 23, 2021 11:46 am UTC| Science

Antimatter is believed to play a huge part in the story of our universe. Its the counterpart to matter: identical in every way with protons, neutrons and electrons but with an opposite electric charge. According to our...

Shifting toward 'open peer review'

Apr 22, 2021 05:42 am UTC| Science

Twenty years ago, it was difficult to find information about local restaurants, except from the restaurants themselves. Now, thanks to the Internet, independent evaluations are easy to find. Its past time we make that the...

Space Science Series

NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter flight on Mars opens up new frontiers in space exploration

Apr 22, 2021 05:41 am UTC| Science

History has been made on Mars: NASAs Ingenuity helicopter just achieved the first powered and controlled flight on another planet. Ingenuity is a small, lightweight, drone-like helicopter that was carried on the...

How we found hints of new particles or forces of nature – and why it could change physics

Apr 11, 2021 12:32 pm UTC| Science

Seven years ago, a huge magnet was transported over 3,200 miles (5,150km) across land and sea, in the hope of studying a subatomic particle called a muon. Muons are closely related to electrons, which orbit every atom...