After success in Tanzania, other African countries may introduce the rodents to help sniff out the diseaseMwajuma Abdalla Ngema went to the clinic in Dar es Salaam with a persistent cough and intense pain around her ribs. The mother of two was tested for tuberculosis (TB) but the result came back negative. I was given some medication to manage the cough but the pain was unbearable," says Ngema, who went home feeling frustrated at the lack of clarity over her health.A few days later, Ngema was called back to Mbagala Kizuiani clinic - she had subsequently tested positive. She was relieved to finally have a diagnosis: I am currently on medication and on the road to recovery." Continue reading...

For the past 10 years cosmologists have been left scratching their heads over why two methods for measuring the universe's rate of expansion provide totally different results. There are two possible solutions to the puzzle, known as the Hubble tension: either something is wrong with the measurements or something is wrong with our model of the universe. It was hoped that observations from the James Webb space telescope might shed some light on the problem, but instead results published last week have continued to muddy the waters. To understand why the expansion rate of the universe remains a mystery, and what might be needed to finally pin it down, Madeleine Finlay speaks to Catherine Heymans, the astronomer royal for Scotland and a professor of astrophysics at the University of EdinburghThe Hubble constant: a mystery that keeps getting biggerSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...

Academics agree that by protecting robotic vehicles and landing sites we will help archaeologists of the futureJust as the outline of an iron-age hut or remains of a Roman sword cause excitement today, archaeologists of the future could be brushing Martian dust off metal and marvelling at one of Nasa's rovers.Researchers have said that such instruments, as well as other forms of human activity on Mars, including landing sites and debris, must be preserved as part of the archaeological record of space exploration. Continue reading...

UK not part of Iris2 project described as a significant step towards Europe's sovereignty and secure connectivity'The EU has launched an ambitious 10bn (8.3bn) space programme with a constellation of 290 satellites to rival Elon Musk's Starlink, further widening the post-Brexit security gap with the UK.The constellation is intended to ensure the bloc's security for governments and armies amid increasing global concerns over cybersecurity. Continue reading...

Scientists explain why the music of Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga and Wicked sticks in our minds - and the best ways to ditch an unshakeable tuneSomething has changed within me - and it's really bloody annoying!Ever since Wicked stormed the global box office last month, many people have been holding space for the lyrics of Defying Gravity - which is to say, unable to get them out of their head. Continue reading...

US company Viatris has applied for a UK trademark for wafer-like film that dissolves in the mouthIt is a little blue pill that has transformed male health and the sex lives of millions.But while Viagra's success has made the erectile dysfunction drug famous, a less conspicuous form could soon become available. Continue reading...

The former Friends star criticised the film which makes extensive use of an AI-driven tool called Metaphysic Live to de-age and face-swap actorsTom Hanks' new film Here has been criticised as an endorsement for AI" by former Friends star Lisa Kudrow.Kudrow was discussing the implications of ageing with host Dax Shepard on the Armchair Expert podcast and pointed to Here as the harbinger of crisis for the film industry. Continue reading...

Peak of activity will be on 22 December and early risers should definitely look upAnother week, another meteor shower. Last week it was the highly reliable Geminids meteor shower, this week it is the lesser shower known as the Ursids. Whereas the Geminids were disrupted by the presence of a full moon, the Ursids will appear in a largely dark sky. Only after midnight will the moon, now progressed to its last quarter phase, appear above the horizon.The Ursids themselves will potentially be visible from the moment darkness falls in the northern hemisphere, since their radiant is located in the constellation of Ursa Minor, near to the north celestial pole. Continue reading...

Oxford analysis shows evidence of bloody massacre, with hand and feet bones chewed by human molarsA collection of human bones discovered 50 years ago in a Somerset pit are evidence of the bloodiest known massacre in British prehistory - and of bronze age cannibalism, archaeologists say.At least 37 men, women and children were killed at some point between 2200BC and 2000BC, with their bodies thrown into a deep natural shaft at Charterhouse Warren, near Cheddar Gorge. Continue reading...

Experts express fear - and resilience - as they prepare for president-elect's potential attacks on climate researchAs the world's largest gathering of Earth and space scientists swarmed a Washington venue last week, the packed halls have been permeated by an air of anxiety and even dread over a new Donald Trump presidency that might worsen what has been a bruising few years for science.The annual American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting drew a record 31,000 attendees this year for the unveiling of a slew of new research on everything from seismology to climate science to heliospheric physics, alongside a sprawling trade show and bouts of networking as scientists jostle to advance their work. Continue reading...

A professor of statistics explains that living is about taking risks and not knowing the outcome, and why it's important to accept and embrace thatMy father was an enthusiastic traveller, but as he got older he increasingly suffered from what he called travel fever", a vivid term for the acute anxiety felt before a journey, essentially due to uncertainty about all the things that could go wrong. Sadly, this eventually stopped him from going on holiday. Then I, too, started to suffer similar apprehension, so I consulted a psychotherapist. She recommended a small piece of cognitive behavioural therapy, which involved acknowledging the mental and physical symptoms of anxiety, but telling myself that these were essentially indistinguishable from feelings of excitement about the prospect of a journey. This reframing of my feelings has been reasonably effective - it's one way of dealing with uncertainty.It's not just the uncertainty of travel that we all have to face. None of us knows what is going to happen, or what is currently going on outside our immediate knowledge, or the vast majority of what has happened in the past. Uncertainty has been called the conscious awareness of ignorance", and there is a lot we are ignorant about. Continue reading...

Lines for pastries, phones, even paying respects have become famous. What is it that draws people to spend their scarce, precious time in queues?

Life-saving surgery in Greg Scott's youth instilled determination to find more effective EEG diagnosisAs a student, the neurologist Greg Scott had very little interest in following a career in medicine. Computing was the focus of his studies.Then one day he suffered a grand mal seizure. Also called a tonic-clonic seizure, it causes a loss of consciousness and violent muscle contractions. Continue reading...

The Southern Sky Astrophotography 2024 exhibition displays the top entries from the 20th David Malin awards for Australian astronomers and photographers. The images are on display at the Sydney observatory until 1 February Continue reading...

Head north, avoid light pollution and seek out high ground - how to plan to see the northern lightsThe northern lights lit up the skies across the UK and Europe several times this year, and experts are predicting 2025 will be a great year for spotting the often elusive light show.The dazzling natural phenomenon, also known as the aurora borealis, has been particularly active in late 2024 and this will continue into next year. Continue reading...

Nyxoah's Genio device zaps the nerves in the tongue to help sufferers breathe better overnightPatients with a common sleep disorder have been fitted with an app-controlled device that zaps the nerves in the tongue to help them breathe overnight in a UK first.Sleep apnoea causes breathing to stop repeatedly during sleep and is thought to affect about 8 million people in the UK. Continue reading...

Amazing flurry of activity' possible in 2024's largest meteor shower with peak visibility across the country early on Saturday

Experts warn that mirror bacteria, constructed from mirror images of molecules found in nature, could put humans, animals and plants at risk of lethal infectionsWorld-leading scientists have called for a halt on research to create mirror life" microbes amid concerns that the synthetic organisms would present an unprecedented risk" to life on Earth.The international group of Nobel laureates and other experts warn that mirror bacteria, constructed from mirror images of molecules found in nature, could become established in the environment and slip past the immune defences of natural organisms, putting humans, animals and plants at risk of lethal infections. Continue reading...

As a study reveals that England has fourth-fastest growth rate globally, we outline some of the issues that increase riskRates of bowel cancer in young people are rising more sharply in England than in many other countries around the world, a study has found. Experts are still in the early stages of understanding the reasons behind the rise but here we look at some of the factors that could be contributing. Continue reading...

As a UK report finds women with reproductive conditions have faced poor care due to medical misogyny', people share their sufferingWomen and girls in the UK with gynaecological conditions such as endometriosis and adenomyosis have spent years in pain due to medical misogyny", according to a parliamentary report.The women and equalities committee report found that women with reproductive conditions faced inadequate care due to a pervasive stigma" and symptoms being normalised" by healthcare professionals. Continue reading...

On Monday Google unveiled its Willow quantum computing chip. The new chip takes just five minutes to complete tasks that would take 10 septillion years for some of the world's fastest conventional computers to complete. But despite its impressive power, it's not clear the chip has any practical applications. So does it bring quantum computing any closer? To find out Ian Sample speaks to Winfried Hensinger, professor of quantum technologies at the University of Sussex.Because of industrial action taking place by members of the National Union of Journalists at the Guardian and Observer this week, you may notice some disruption to the availability of new episodes in your Guardian podcast feeds in the coming days. All the work on this episode was done before the strike action began. For more information please head to theguardian.comGoogle unveils mindboggling' quantum computing chipSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...

Cochlear implantation is controversial in ways that parallel medical situations - such as artificial limbs and cornea transplants - are not. Why does this issue provoke such fierce debate?

Study suggests rate of disease among young adults is rising for first time and England has one of the fastest increasesThe number of under-50s being diagnosed with bowel cancer is increasing worldwide, according to research that also reveals rates are rising faster in England than almost any other country.For the first time, global data suggests doctors are seeing more young adults develop early-onset bowel cancer, from Europe and North America to Asia and Oceania. Continue reading...

UK's AI research body's ability to be a serious scientific organisation' is in danger, 90 staff tell trusteesStaff at the UK's national institute for artificial intelligence have warned that its credibility is in serious jeopardy" and raised doubts over the organisation's future amid senior departures and a cost-cutting programme.More than 90 staff at the government-backed Alan Turing Institute have written to its board of trustees expressing concerns about its leadership. Continue reading...

Researchers find that varying stiffness and speeds at which skin grows lead to mechanical' formation of inward foldsIt sounds like a conundrum that Rudyard Kipling would have explored in his Just So Stories, but researchers say they have the answer to how crocodiles get the scales on their heads.Many animals, from turtles to birds, have scales - hard plate-like structures that form on the skin. Continue reading...

As Apple Intelligence rollout continues, linguists say tools to rewrite texts and emails can miss nuance and characterIs that you? Or is it the bot? Linguists have said the nuance and character of human language is at risk, as Apple becomes the latest tech firm to launch artificial intelligence tools that can rewrite texts and emails to make users sound more friendly or professional.The ability to lighten a grumpy missive or turn arcane language into something a five-year-old could understand is promised from the new technology, which will be available on UK iPhones, iPads and Macs from Wednesday. Continue reading...

Company and investors to buy up to $1.25bn of stock at $185 a share, up from $112 a few months ago

The technology, which enables a gene to spread itself through a population, might prove a significant tool for disease preventionMosquitoes carry some of the world's deadliest diseases, including malaria, yellow fever and dengue. But challenging geography, conflict, budgets and insecticide resistance are among the issues hampering efforts to fight them.With global malaria cases continuing to rise and the climate crisis hastening the spread of virus-carrying mosquitoes into more countries, scientists are searching for low-cost, equitable ways to stop them transmitting disease. Continue reading...

The disease killed 600,000 people amid 263m cases globally in 2023, says WHO, calling for nations to address funding shortfallMalaria killed almost 600,000 people in 2023, as cases rose for the fifth consecutive year, according to a new report from the World Health Organization (WHO).Biological threats such as rising resistance to drugs and insecticides, and climate and humanitarian disasters continue to hamper control efforts, world health leaders warned. Continue reading...

UN health body says patients could have more than one disease as unidentified illness continues to cause alarmTen patients suffering from a mystery disease that has broken out in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have tested positive for malaria, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said.However, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the patients could have more than one disease simultaneously. Continue reading...

I tried Sora, OpenAI's new tool, and it just left me sad. Are we ready for a world in which we can never tell what is real?I recently had the opportunity to see a demo of Sora, OpenAI's video generation tool which was released in the US on Monday, and it was so impressive it made me worried for the future. The new technology works like an AI text or image generator: write a prompt, and it produces a short video clip. In the pre-launch demo I was shown, an OpenAI representative asked the tool to create footage of a tree frog in the Amazon, in the style of a nature documentary. The result was uncannily realistic, with aerial camera shots swooping down on to the rainforest, before settling on a closeup of the frog. The animal looked as vivid and real as any nature documentary subject.Yet despite the technological feat, as I watched the tree frog I felt less amazed than sad. It certainly looked the part, but we all knew that what we were seeing wasn't real. The tree frog, the branch it clung to, the rainforest it lived in: none of these things existed, and they never had. The scene, although visually impressive, was hollow.Victoria Turk is a London-based journalist covering technology, culture and society Continue reading...

Elsevier investigates journals by scientist who created discredited rankings of countries' intelligenceA leading academic publisher is reviewing its decision to publish research papers by the late British professor Richard Lynn, an influential figure in the discredited field of race science" who argued western civilisation was threatened by genetically inferior ethnic groups.Elsevier provides access to more than 100 papers by Lynn, including several iterations of his national IQ" dataset, which purports to show wide variations in IQ between different countries but which has been criticised by mainstream scientists for serious flaws in its methodology. Continue reading...

Filter performs well in removing plastic pollution from water and Chinese researchers say it appears to be scalableA sponge made of cotton and squid bone that has absorbed about 99.9% of microplastics in water samples in China could provide an elusive answer to ubiquitous microplastic pollution in water across the globe, a new report suggests.Just as importantly, the filter's production appears to be scalable, the University of Wuhan study authors said in the paper, which was peer-reviewed and published in the journal Science Advances. That would address a problem that has stymied the use of previous microplastic filtration systems that were successful in controlled settings, but could not be scaled up. Continue reading...

A look at wrath, gluttony and the rest from a medical perspective offers valuable insights - but is disease a good guide to normal functioning?From Adam has sprung one mass of sinners and godless men," wrote St Augustine, arguably the key architect of the Christian doctrine of original sin. The notion that babies are born with this indelible stain, the residue of Adam's fall in Eden, can seem one of the most pernicious features of Christian dogma. But as Guy Leschziner argues in Seven Deadly Sins, we could interpret Augustine's austere judgment as an acknowledgment that we are inherently inclined to do things we shouldn't. The catalogue of seven direst vices first adduced by Tertullian and immortalised in Dante's Divine Comedy - pride, greed, wrath, envy, lust, gluttony and sloth - may seem arbitrary, but we can all recognise aspects of them in ourselves.Leschziner, a consultant neurologist at Guy's Hospital in London, explores the physiological and psychological roots of these failings" and argues that, in mild degree, all might be considered not just universal but necessary human attributes. The goal, he implies, is not to renounce them but to align our natural impulses with the demands of living healthily and productively in society. Seven Deadly Sins takes the case-study format pioneered by Oliver Sacks in using dysfunction to explore the neurological origins of behaviour. It is a profoundly humane book, occasionally compromised by excessive clinical detail and perhaps more so by its lack of wider context. Continue reading...

Madeleine Finlay speaks to Sophie Scott, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at University College London, to dig into the science of laughter. Sophie explains what exactly laughter is, the many different purposes it serves for humans and animals, and how prioritising it could make us all feel a little betterSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...

Research shows walk or cycle improves cognitive performance for day ahead - and day afterFor cycle-to-work commuters and those who start the day with a brisk walk, the benefits of banking some early exercise is well understood.Now scientists believe activity is not just a good idea for improving the day ahead - physical activity could be associated with small increase in memory scores the next, too. Continue reading...

The solution to today's puzzleEarlier today I set you the following puzzle, which I read in the new Sally Rooney novel, Intermezzo. Here it is again with the solution.A liar who always lies says All my hats are green." Continue reading...

Literary logicUPDATE: Read the solution hereMidway though the new Sally Rooney novel, Intermezzo, two of the characters discuss a puzzle about hats. I thought it would make a perfect puzzle for this column, so here it is.A liar who always lies says All my hats are green." Continue reading...

This year, why not welcome the shadowy side of winter with an ancient ritual or two?We spend much of our midwinter in joyous celebrations - of Christmas, of New Year, with friends and family, good food, good drink and bright fires blazing in our hearths, But beyond that firelight, there are lingering shadows: we might associate Christmas with parties, love and general jolliness, but for millennia it was a time when the world was turned on its head, when hideous creatures rampaged through the streets, when the dead returned, when chaos reigned. Associated with all these horrors are a host of unsettling celebrations and rituals - there's plenty to pick from, but here are my own top 10. Continue reading...

Fantastically expensive and hard to handle, the substance holds the key to a holy grail of science. And experts at Cern now know how to transport itResearchers are preparing to make one of science's most unusual journeys. They are planning to transport a container of antimatter in a lorry across Europe.Antimatter is the most expensive material on Earth - it's estimated it would cost several trillion dollars to make a gram - and it can only be manufactured in particle physics laboratories such as the Cern research centre near Geneva. Continue reading...

In some ways it's not really about the chewing, Philippa Perry suggestsThe question My wife's eating habits drive me crazy. What can I do? We've been married for 30 years and we are a good team together. But she doesn't seem able to eat with her mouth closed. Sitting beside me even now, she's noisily crunching her way through a bunch of cheese crackers and an apple. When we're out with friends, she's by far the noisiest eater at the table.I love her energy, strength and, if it's not a mealtime, her presence, but we're eating together more as we head into retirement and I find it difficult to stay in the room with her. Continue reading...

A lot of talent is wasted in a world where more than half of laureates come from households in the richest 5%We like scientific breakthroughs. Humanity ultimately relies on them. So it matters if we're missing out on discoveries.But compelling evidence that we are indeed missing out comes from a new study of the childhood background (measured on the basis of their father's occupation) of some very successful scientists: Nobel laureates. Continue reading...

A new exhibition at Oxford's Bodleian Libraries examines the enduring appeal of divinationIn Cameroon, the Mambila people practise a specific form of divination that will have arachnophobes sweating. Using tarot-like leaf cards", questions are asked, and a tarantula emerges from a hole in the ground to select a card and offer guidance.This spider divination is one of the specialities of David Zeitlyn, a professor of anthropology at the University of Oxford - so much so that he is a fully initiated spider diviner, trained by the people he has spent time with for his research. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Experts say increasing law from 14 days could lead to breakthroughs in understanding of miscarriagesThe 14-day limit for human embryo research should be extended to 28 days, the fertility regulator has recommended in a move that could pave the way for breakthroughs in understanding the causes of miscarriages and heart defects.If adopted in law, this would permit scientists to cultivate embryos to the equivalent of 28 days of development for the first time, allowing them to study a crucial black box" period. They say this could help uncover the origins, and develop new screening tools, for recurrent miscarriages and severe conditions such as spina bifida. Continue reading...

Study finds increased risk of fatal complications for patients from every minority ethnic background after donor stem cell transplantBlack and Asian cancer patients are less likely to survive in the five years after a donor stem cell transplant than their white counterparts, according to a study and largest of its kind.The study, published in Lancet Haematology, looked at 30,000 patients who had a stem cell transplant between 2009 and 2020 on the NHS, with 19,000 of these being cancer patients. Continue reading...

US space agency chief says astronauts still on schedule to make landing well ahead' of China's lunar voyageThe Nasa administrator, Bill Nelson, announced has announced new delays in the US space agency's Artemis programme to return astronauts to the moon for the first time since 1972, pushing back the next two planned missions amid potential policy changes under president-elect Donald Trump's administration.Nelson told a news conference on Thursday at Nasa headquarters that the next Artemis mission, sending astronauts around the moon and back, has been delayed until April 2026, with the subsequent astronaut landing mission using SpaceX's Starship planned for the following year. Continue reading...

Hunting bigger, more experienced animals eradicates memories and knowledge crucial to group survival, research suggestsIt's not just humans who get wiser as they age - animals do too, according to a growing body of research. The bigmouth buffalo fish can reach 127 years old, the Greenland shark 392, and some sponges can live for 10,000 years or more. And age is not just a number: as animals get older they behave differently depending on their life experiences, gain richer knowledge of their environment, and often pass it on to younger members of their group, researchers say.The problem is, we are killing off these older creatures. Earth's old animals are in decline," researchers warned in a paper published in Science last month, which analysed more than 9,000 peer-reviewed papers. Few animals make it to old age, and the ones that do are vulnerable to being hunted or harvested by humans, because they are the biggest or have, for example, the largest antlers, horns or tusks. Continue reading...

Ian Sample speaks to colorectal surgeon and researcher James Kinross about the miraculous world of our gut microbiome, how modern life is impacting it, and what we can do to look after itBecause of industrial action taking place by members of the National Union of Journalists at the Guardian and Observer this week, we are re-running an episode from earlier in the year. For more information please head to theguardian.com. We'll be back with new episodes soon.This episode originally ran on Tuesday 23 January 2024The trillions of microbes living on and inside the human body are an important part of who we are, from mediating all our interactions with the environment to determining our cancer risk and influencing who we fall for. Scientists are only just beginning to decipher the species of bugs we share our lives with and how they shape us. Continue reading...

Cosmic collisions' 12bn years ago could be key to understanding formation, say researchersGalaxies crashing together 12bn years ago could have caused the universe's biggest galaxies to form, according to research.A study by astronomers at the University of Southampton is hoping to solve what they are calling an intergalactic mystery" of how elliptical galaxies were created. Continue reading...

Researchers say risk could be reduced by 21% but connection controversial'Eating a few pieces of dark chocolate five times a week while avoiding milk chocolate has been linked to a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.The connection between chocolate consumption and type 2 diabetes risk is controversial", according to researchers, although they highlight that most previous studies did not explore the difference between types of chocolate. Continue reading...