The Southern Delta Aquariids and the Alpha Capricornids showers are best viewed on Tuesday or Wednesday between 11pm and dawnStargazers and night owls in Australia will be in prime position to catch a glimpse of two spectacular meteor showers this week as they pass through our atmosphere.The good news is that you won't need a telescope or a pair of binoculars to see the Southern Delta Aquariids and the Alpha Capricornids showers - just your own eyes. Continue reading...
by Presented by Madeleine Finlay, produced by Joshan on (#6YYYZ)
In 2024, the Oxford English Dictionary announced its word of the year was brain rot'. The term relates to the supposedly negative effects of consuming social media content, but it struck a chord more widely with many who feel they don't have the mental capacity they once had.Gloria Mark, a professor of informatics at the University of California, Irvine, has been studying our waning attention spans for 20 years. In this episode from January 2025, she tells Madeleine Finlay why she believes our powers of concentration are not beyond rescue, and reveals her top tips for finding focusIs modern life ruining our powers of concentration?Support the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...
Lancet Commission says three in five cases preventable with action on obesity, alcohol and hepatitisThree in five liver cancer cases globally could be prevented by reducing obesity and alcohol consumption and increasing uptake of the hepatitis vaccine, a study has found.
Diagnosed with impaired depth perception as a child, Hampton has learned to read subtle cues from penalty takers and embrace goalie tacticsHannah Hampton had already saved one penalty in the shootout against Spain at Euro 2025 when Aitana Bonmati, the back-to-back winner of the women's Ballon d'Or, placed the ball on the spot and stepped back, taking a moment before the strike. Bonmati thumped the ball hard and left, but Hampton was there, arms outstretched, to block the shot with both hands.Better pens than the last time, let's be honest!" Hampton said after the match, a reference to the more painful shootout against Sweden in the quarter-final that went to sudden death before England prevailed. Hampton saved two penalties that time, too. Continue reading...
Scientists use VR headsets to see how participants react to faces of people showing signs of viral infectionsWhether it's the person brandishing a tissue on the train or the child with the telltale signs of chickenpox, the threat of an infection can be enough for us to beat a retreat.Now researchers using virtual reality avatars have shown that the mere sight of a potentially contagious person is enough to mobilise our immune system too. Continue reading...
The full constellation never rises above the UK horizon, but its most recognisable part, the teapot, will be visibleIt's a good time of year to track down the summer constellation of Sagittarius, the archer, who is usually depicted as a centaur drawing a bow.The chart shows the view looking south from London at 23:00 BST on 28 July, when the most recognisable portion of the constellation will be visible. Often called the teapot because of its distinctive shape, it fits into the larger constellation. The teapot's spout, as represented by the star Alnasl, depicts the arrow's sharp head in the full constellation. The lid and handle represent the upper body and outstretched arms. Continue reading...
Skulls were collected from all over the world because of some academics' fascination with phrenology, the discredited belief that skull shape denoted intelligenceHundreds of skulls are neatly and closely placed, cheekbone to cheekbone, in tall, mahogany-framed glass cabinets. Most carry faded, peeling labels, some bear painted catalogue numbers; one has gold teeth; and the occasional one still carries its skin tissue. This is the University of Edinburgh's skull room".Many were voluntarily donated to the university; others came from executed Scottish murderers; some Indigenous people's skulls were brought to Scotland by military officers on expeditions or conquest missions. Several hundred were collected by supporters of the racist science of phrenology - the discredited belief that skull shape denoted intelligence and character. Continue reading...
We need to reckon honestly with science's past and present to avoid a grim futureScience is in crisis. Funding infrastructures for both basic and applied research are being systematically decimated, while in places of great power, science's influence on decision making is waning. Long-term and far-reaching studies are being shuttered, and thousands of scientists' livelihoods are uncertain, to say nothing of the incalculable casualties resulting from the abrupt removal of life-saving medical and environmental interventions. Understandably, the scientific community is working hard to weather this storm and restore funding to whatever extent possible.In times like these, it may be tempting to settle for the status quo of six months ago, wanting everything simply to go back to what it was (no doubt an improvement for science, compared with the present). But equally, such moments of crisis offer an opportunity to rebuild differently. As Arundhati Roy wrote about Covid-19 in April 2020, Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next." What could science look like, and what good could science bring, if we moved through the portal of the present moment into a different world?Ambika Kamath is trained as a behavioral ecologist and evolutionary biologist. She lives, works and grows community in Oakland, California, on Ohlone land
The urge to avoid music that brings up trauma from the past is powerful, but it may be better to actively engage'When Bonnie hears the opening bars of the Verve's Bitter Sweet Symphony, she is transported back to 1997. But it isn't a joyful memory that comes to mind; it is the painful recollection of driving home from school and seeing the sheriff changing a lock on her house.Then a teenager, Bonnie and her family were about to be evicted. And the Verve's song was everywhere. Continue reading...
Researchers believe humans' closest relatives may have stored meat from their kills for months before eating itFor hungry Neanderthals, there was more on the menu than wild mammals, roasted pigeon, seafood and plants. Chemical signatures in the ancient bones point to a nutritious and somewhat inevitable side dish: handfuls of fresh maggots.The theory from US researchers undermines previous thinking that Neanderthals were hypercarnivores" who stood at the top of the food chain with cave lions, sabre-toothed tigers and other beasts that consumed impressive quantities of meat. Continue reading...
Canadian data analysis underscores importance of support during and after pregnancy, researchers saySurrogates have a greater chance of being newly diagnosed with a mental illness during and after pregnancy than women who carry their own offspring, researchers have found.In addition, regardless of how they conceived, women with a previous record of mental illness were found to have a higher risk of being diagnosed with such conditions during and after pregnancy than those without. Continue reading...
SpaceX's powerful internet system suffers rare disruption in one of its biggest international outagesSpaceX's Starlink suffered one of its biggest international outages on Thursday when an internal software failure knocked tens of thousands of users offline, a rare disruption for Elon Musk's powerful satellite internet system.Users in the US and Europe began experiencing the outage at around 3pm EDT (1900 GMT), according to Downdetector, a crowdsourced outage tracker that said as many as 61,000 user reports to the site had been made. Continue reading...
Period characteristics can indicate medical conditions and could inform preventive care, study findsMenstrual cycle data should be routinely documented by healthcare professionals and researchers as it can be used as an indicator for other health issues, experts have said.This information - which includes cycle length, regularity, intensity and duration of bleeding - is not routinely collected in healthcare systems or research except when reproductive issues are being assessed. Continue reading...
Workers allege illegal terminations, censorship and collapse of scientific review standardsAlmost 150 workers from the National Science Foundation (NSF) have lambasted Donald Trump's cuts to the agency as politically motivated and legally questionable", joining colleagues at three other federal research agencies in warning that the administration is destroying innovation and sacrificing the US's position as a global scientific leader.The three-page dissent states the actions of the administration collectively amount to the systemic dismantling of a world-renowned scientific agency" and that they have been compelled to act because NSF employees are bound by their oath to uphold the Constitution." Continue reading...
Technology is tricky. That's why we need to think more carefully about risks and follow a more cautious approachToday, so-called techno-optimists fill the ranks of Silicon Valley billionaires. They proclaim a bright future for humanity delivered by the rapid pursuit of technological advances.Of course, these techno-optimists are right that technology and science are unarguably among humanity's greatest assets, and hope for the future. But they go too far, because it is also true that technology always creates new problems even as it solves others - this is also something we've learned through science. As a result, naive faith in technology is a recipe for repeatedly achieving a short-term buzz while also incurring long-term costs. Getting the best out of technology requires a more cautious and balanced approach.Mark Buchanan is a physicist and science writer and the author of Ubiquity and Nexus: Small Worlds and the New Science of Networks Continue reading...
Steve James, from Devon, hits halfway mark in circuit of Great Britain's coast as scientists monitor impact of extreme featThe first fortnight was tough - terrible blisters, a flare of gout that needed a visit to A&E and the rapid realisation that running 200 marathons in 200 days around the coast of Great Britain would not be a walk in the park.But Steve James, a 65-year-old retired banker from Devon, has found his feet, and on Thursday reached the halfway mark - an average of 100 marathons in 100 days. Continue reading...
by Presented by Ian Sample, produced by Madeleine Fin on (#6YVQZ)
Scientists are beginning to understand that ageing is not a simply linear process. Instead, recent research appears to show that we age in three accelerated bursts; at about 40, 60 and 80 years old. To find out what might be going on, Ian Sample hears from Prof Michael Snyder, the director of the Center for Genomics and Personalised Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, who explains what the drivers of these bursts of ageing could be, and how they might be counteractedScientists find humans age dramatically in two bursts - at 44, then 60Support the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...
Pioneering radio astronomer whose work locating celestial objects led to a greater understanding of the universeSir Francis Graham-Smith, who has died aged 102, was the last of the generation that created modern radio astronomy, the branch of astronomy that studies the universe with radio waves, in the 1940s and 50s. His PhD thesis, on the first Cambridge radio survey, carried out between 1948 and 1950, with reasonably accurate positions for the brightest sources, paved the way to demonstrating that the majority of celestial radio sources are distant galaxies with massive black holes in their nuclei.Following the discovery of pulsars, pulsating radio sources associated with rapidly rotating neutron stars, in 1967 by Antony Hewish, Jocelyn Bell and others, Graham-Smith used the Jodrell Bank Mark I telescope to study pulsars in detail. He and Andrew Lyne wrote the definitive book on the subject, Pulsar Astronomy (1990). Continue reading...
Aeneas program, which predicts where and when Latin texts were made, called transformative' by historiansIn addition to sanitation, medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, a freshwater system and public health, the Romans also produced a lot of inscriptions.Making sense of the ancient texts can be a slog for scholars, but a new artificial intelligence tool from Google DeepMind aims to ease the process. Named Aeneas after the mythical Trojan hero, the program predicts where and when inscriptions were made and makes suggestions where words are missing. Continue reading...
Study finds that only 9.5% of fungal biodiversity hotspots fell within existing protected areasThe underground networks of fungi that underpin the planet's ecosystems needs urgent conservation action by politicians, a research organisation has said.Scientists from the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (Spun) have created the first high-resolution biodiversity maps of Earth's underground mycorrhizal fungal ecosystems. Continue reading...
Researchers believe huge volcanic eruptions, and the absence of plants, turned our planet into one giant snowballIt's hard to believe, but about 700m years ago it's thought that our planet completely froze over with little to no liquid ocean or lakes exposed to the atmosphere, even in the tropics. But what tipped Earth's climate into Snowball Earth" state? A new study suggests a cold climate and massive volcanic eruptions set the scene.The Franklin eruptions - about 720m years ago - spewed out vast amounts of fresh rock, stretching from what is now Alaska, through northern Canada to Greenland. Similarly large eruptions have happened at other times, but this one happened to coincide with an already cold climate. And combined with a lack of plants (they hadn't evolved yet) these eruptions exposed a huge carpet of fresh rock to intense weathering. Continue reading...
Archaeologists and volunteers identify Sanday timbers as from 18th-century Royal Navy frigate turned whalerWhen a schoolboy running on a beach on the island of Sanday in Orkney last year came across the timbers of a shipwreck that had been exposed after a storm, local people knew the ship might have an intriguing history.Residents of the tiny island at the edge of the Scottish archipelago are familiar with ships that have come to grief in stormy seas, hundreds of shipwrecks having been recorded there over the centuries. Continue reading...
by Presented and produced by Madeleine Finlay with Ia on (#6YT1R)
Doctors in the UK have announced the birth of eight healthy babies after performing a groundbreaking procedure that creates IVF embryos with DNA from three people. Ian Sample tells Madeleine Finlay about the life-threatening genetic disorders that the technique appears to prevent, and Prof Sir Doug Turnbull describes the 25-year journey to achieving the breakthroughClips: Sky NewsEight healthy babies born after IVF using DNA from three people Continue reading...
Nearly 300 current and former employees signed the letter criticizing the rapid and wasteful changes' at the agencyAlmost 300 current and former US Nasa employees, including at least four astronauts, have issued a scathing dissent opposing the Trump administration's sweeping and indiscriminate cuts to the agency, which they say threaten safety, innovation and national security.The formal letter, titled The Voyager Declaration, is addressed to the acting Nasa administrator, Sean Duffy, a staunch Trump loyalist appointed on 7 July who is also his transportation secretary. The declaration, which is dedicated to 17 astronauts who have died in past spaceflight incidents, warns of catastrophic consequences if the proposed cuts to science grants, staffing and international missions are implemented. Continue reading...
Positive thinkers are literally on the same wavelength', say Japanese researchersWhether it's an exam, flight or health check, some people take a sunny view of the future while others plan for catastrophes.Now researchers have found that people with an upbeat outlook show similar patterns of brain activity when they mull over future scenarios. Continue reading...
I connected with other moms worldwide, doctors and a geneticist - and identified the rare genetic disorder that connects us allRight after my daughter, Maggie, was born in 2012, she held her hands clasped together against her chest. Like she's praying!" a nurse said in a singsong voice.But when the pediatrician walked in, the mood changed. Praying?" she asked, her voice tight. The nurse and I stepped back while the pediatrician gently moved Maggie's limbs, testing how much they could straighten or bend. While some tightness in the hips or knees can be normal for a newborn, Maggie's joints were unusually tight and her limbs could not straighten all the way. Continue reading...
The answer's to today's trivia teasersEarlier today I set you five Kennections", a puzzle devised by legendary US quiz show contestant and host Ken Jennings.Each challenge consists of five trivia questions, whose answers share a common theme. Continue reading...
Jeopardy's Jennings is the king of kenUPDATE: Read the answers here.Jeopardy! is the long-running US quiz show where contestants are given an answer and must respond with a question for that answer.Ken Jennings", for example, is the correct answer to the following question: Continue reading...
Formed from dust once in the tail of comet 96P/Machholz, the meteors can leave persistent trails in the skyStart watching for the Delta Aquariids meteor shower this week. The chart shows the view looking south-east from London at midnight on 28 July. The radiate is marked. This is the point from which the meteors appear to radiate in all directions.Most annual meteor showers have a well-defined peak of activity, but the Delta Aquariids are a more drawn-out affair. Although the predictions place the peak somewhere between 28 and 30 July, the activity can be just as strong leading up to and after the moment. Continue reading...
by Written by Scott Sayare and read by Bert Seymour. on (#6YSA1)
When fossilised remains were discovered in the Djurab desert in 2001, they were hailed as radically rewriting the history of our species. But not everyone was convinced - and the bitter argument that followed has consumed the lives of scholars ever sinceBy Scott Sayare. Read by Bert Seymour Continue reading...
UK research has brought real hope to families suffering from one of the most common inherited disorders, with a breakthrough that's been years in the makingEight babies have been born free of a disease that canlead to terrible suffering and early death, thanks to pioneering scientists in the UK employing a form ofgenetic engineering that is banned in some countries, including the US and France. Ten years ago, when the government and regulators were consideringwhether to allow mitochondrial transfer technology, critics warned of Frankenstein meddling" that would lead to three-parent children. It's hard now to justify such hostility in the face of the painstaking work carried out by the scientific andmedical teams at Newcastle, resulting in these healthy babies and ecstatic families.Mitochondria, like tiny battery packs, supply energy to every cell of the body. Their DNA is handed down in the egg from mother to child. In rare instances, there are genetic mutations, which means the baby may develop mitochondrial disease. About one in 5,000 people is affected by it, making it one of the most common inherited disorders. As the cell batteries fail in various organs, the child can experience a range of symptoms, from muscle weakness to epilepsy, encephalopathy, blindness, hearing loss and diabetes. In severe cases, they die young.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...
President's assault on science -particularly climate science - has led to unprecedented funding cuts and staff layoffsOur ability to respond to climate change, the biggest existential threat facing humanity, is totally adrift," said Sally Johnson, an Earth scientist who has spent the past two decades helping collect, store and distribute data at Nasa (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and Noaa (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration).Donald Trump's assault on science - but particularly climate science - has led to unprecedented funding cuts and staff layoffs across federally funded agencies and programs, threatening to derail research tackling the most pressing issues facing Americans and humanity more broadly. A generation of scientific talent is also on the brink of being lost, with unprecedented political interference at what were previously evidence-driven agencies jeopardizing the future of US industries and economic growth. Continue reading...
Administration's move to cut thousands of agency jobs will be devastating for US public health, union warnsThe Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said on Friday that it is eliminating its research and development arm and reducing agency staff by thousands of employees. One union leader said the moves will devastate public health in our country".The agency's office of research and development (ORD) has long provided the scientific underpinnings for the EPA's mission to protect the environment and human health. The EPA said in May it would shift its scientific expertise and research efforts to program offices that focus on major issues such as air and water. Continue reading...
Research looks at health impacts of being exposed to multiple pesticides versus just one substanceExposure to multiple pesticides increases the chances of pregnancy complications compared to exposure to just one pesticide, new peer-reviewed research suggests. The findings raise new questions about the safety of exposure to widely used pesticides and herbicides in food and agricultural communities.The study, which bio-monitored pregnant women in a heavily agricultural state in Argentina, adds to recent-but-limited evidence pointing to heightened dangers in mixtures of pesticides. Continue reading...
Withdrawal of USAID funds threatens decades of progress, say experts, with cuts to research and shortage of mosquito nets putting thousands at risk across the countryZimbabwe's efforts to control malaria have been dealt a huge blow as experts say the disease has returned with a vengeance" after US aid cuts, with 115 outbreaks recorded in 2025 compared with only one last year.The sharp rise in cases comes six months after Donald Trump halted critical funding for US research and national response programmes. Continue reading...
Analysis of bones from two caves shows prehistoric people butchered the same animals in different waysNothing turns up the heat in a kitchen quite like debating the best way to chop an onion. Now researchers have found even our prehistoric cousins had distinct preferences when it came to preparing food.Archaeologists studying animal bones recovered from two caves in northern Israel have found different groups of Neanderthals, living at around the same time, butchered the same animals in different ways. Continue reading...
by Kat Lay, Global health correspondent on (#6YPXP)
The country, beset by war, has the world's lowest rates of vaccination, says the World Health Organization, as global immunisation drive also stallsChildren in Sudan, caught up in what aid organisations have called the world's largest humanitarian crisis and threatened by rising levels of violence, are increasingly vulnerable to deadly infectious diseases as vaccinations in the country plummet.In 2022, more than 90% of young children in Sudan received their routine vaccinations. But that figure has nearly halved to 48%, the lowest in the world, according to the World Health Organization. Continue reading...
by Presented by Madeleine Finlay with Ian Sample, pro on (#6YPW1)
Madeleine Finlay is joined by Ian Sample to discuss three intriguing science and environment stories. From a breakthrough in the quest to create organs in the lab to a world-first climate visa that will see citizens relocate from the island of Tuvalu to Australia, plus what happens when two massive black holes collideScientists detect biggest ever merger of two massive black holesA climate crisis, a ballot, and a chance at a new life in Australia Continue reading...
Seeds of rocky planets forming in gas around star Hops-315 is called glimpse of time zero', when new worlds start to gelAstronomers have discovered the earliest seeds of rocky planets forming in the gas around a baby sun-like star, providing a precious peek into the dawn of our own solar system.It's an unprecedented snapshot of time zero", scientists reported on Wednesday, when new worlds begin to gel. Continue reading...
Meteorite weighing 54lb found in Sahara in 2023 beats estimate as dinosaur skeleton sells for more than $30mThe largest piece of Mars ever found on Earth was sold for just over $5m at an auction of rare geological and archaeological objects in New York on Wednesday, while a juvenile dinosaur skeleton went for more than $30m.The 54-pound (25kg) rock named NWA 16788 was discovered in the Sahara desert in Niger by a meteorite hunter in November 2023, after having been blown off the surface of Mars by a massive asteroid strike and traveling 140m miles (225m km) to Earth, according to Sotheby's. The estimated sale price before the auction was $2m to $4m. Continue reading...
Move follows concerns several papers in Forensic Sciences Research did not meet ethical standards on DNA collectionOxford University Press (OUP) will no longer publish a controversial academic journal sponsored by China's Ministry of Justice after years of concerns that several papers in the publication did not meet ethical standards about DNA collection.A statement published on the website of Forensic Sciences Research (FSR) states that OUP will stop publishing the quarterly journal after this year. Continue reading...
Thought extinct in wild until three plants were found in 2002, Snowdonia hawkweed numbers have risen to sixOne of the rarest plants in the world is growing at a secret location on the edge of Eryri in north Wales.The Snowdonia hawkweed (Hieracium snowdoniense) is a small plant, barely reaching 30cm high, but with a brilliant golden yellow inflorescence that looks a bit like a dandelion, which it is closely related to. The Snowdonia hawkweed was first discovered only in 1880 at a remote hillside near Bethesda on the edge of Eryri, or Snowdonia, but in about 1950 the plant vanished, feared extinct after sheep grazed heavily in the area. And so the plant earned the unenviable title of the Welsh dodo. Continue reading...
by Presented by Madeleine Finlay with Rhiannon Lucy C on (#6YNQ8)
Guardian feature writer Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett recently wrote about the growing cohort of parents whose children are on the waiting list for an autism or ADHD diagnosis, and are turning to the internet to buy melatonin to help them sleep. She tells Madeleine Finlay about their experiences and what is driving them to the hidden market. Paul Gringras, a consultant in paediatric sleep medicine and neurodisability, and lead of sleep medicine at King's College London, also explains why melatonin can be helpful for neurodivergent children and why he is concerned about the increasing number of parents looking for it onlineI feel like a drug dealer': the parents using hidden-economy melatonin to help their children sleepWhat you should know about melatonin for sleep problems in children - International Pediatric Sleep Association Continue reading...
Axiom-SpaceX mission led by Peggy Whitson, 65, returns to Earth from International Space StationThe Nasa retiree turned private astronaut Peggy Whitson splashed down safely in the Pacific early on Tuesday after her fifth trip to the International Space Station, along with crewmates from India, Poland and Hungary returning from their countries' first ISS missions.A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying the four-member team parachuted into the sea off the coast of California at about 2.30am PDT (10.30am BST) after a fiery reentry through Earth's atmosphere that capped a 22-hour descent from orbit. Continue reading...
UK Biobank project to share 1bn images of organs, blood vessels and bones to help study ageing and ill healthScientists expect to gain unprecedented insights into human ageing and the earliest signs of disease after scanning 100,000 people from head to toe in the world's largest whole body imaging project.The completion of the decade-long task means qualifying researchers worldwide will have access to 1bn de-identified images of the hearts, brains, abdomens, blood vessels, bones and joints of volunteers alongside medical histories and rich data on their genetic makeup, health and lifestyle. Continue reading...
Over the coming months, the planet will be in retrograde motion, and will also appear brighter as it draws closerThe moon will help us track down Saturn, the sixth planet in the solar system, this week. Currently residing in the constellation of Pisces, the fishes, Saturn is gradually building in brightness as the Earth's orbit is carrying the two planets closer together. This year, the closest approach between them will occur on 21 September.In the meantime, the moon can be useful as your guide to locate Saturn and then watch it over the coming months as the planet performs a lazy pirouette in the sky, known as retrograde motion. This is an optical illusion caused by our changing line of sight to the planet as Earth overtakes it on the inside. Continue reading...
Hollingside lane, Durham: Pleated inkcaps may live for a day but here we've been watching other fungi, such as dryad's saddle, grow since springThere were none here yesterday, and by the end of tomorrow they'llhave deliquesced and disappeared, but for now the neatly mown grass under our feet was studded with 2in-tall parasol inkcaps (Parasola plicatilis). They looked like an invasion of tiny parachutists; in reality they'd risen from the underworld.They were here all along, as a mycelium of microscopically slender hyphae, down among the grassroots. Autumn is the fungal forager's season but fungi, as hyphae or spores, are everywhere, unseen, all the time. Occasionally, driven by the imperative to reproduce, their ramifying network of independent threads collaborates, producing spores in toadstools. Some, like these inkcaps, are ephemeral; others, like the dryad's saddle (Cerioporus squamosus) we'd been watching since spring, grow from teacup to tea-tray proportions, slowly digesting dead wood, taking months to reach maturity. Continue reading...
Science | The Guardian