A new mathematical model suggests that social norms may be just as important as economics in determining how the world responds to climate change. The research shows that efforts to reduce emissions in one region can unintentionally influence climate action elsewhere, with consequences that could either strengthen or weaken global progress.
Research has shed intriguing new light on the genetics underlying the diverse plant organ shapes seen in agriculture and nature. Despite more than a century of scientific investigation into the role of inner and outer tissues, there is still much to learn about how leaves, stems, fruits and grains get their genetically determined shapes.
Hydrogels are squishy, biofriendly materials made mostly of water and a bit of polymer. The Jell-O-like substance is available in the form of medical patches, sprays and glues, and can be stuck to the skin or implanted in the body to dress wounds, affix implants, and encapsulate and release medicine over time.
In 2024, a U.S. government official warned that Russia could be developing a new satellite designed to carry nuclear weapons into space. The statement followed the launch of a suspicious Russian satellite into low-Earth orbit in 2022, just a few weeks before the country's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
How do some of geology's most mysterious iron ore deposits form? This question has preoccupied the geosciences for more than a century. An international research team led by Dr. Stefan Peters from the Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change (LIB) has discovered that major iron ore deposits contain traces of oxygen inherited from Earth's ancient atmosphere. The study, now published in Nature Communications, shows that oxygenation of the atmosphere by photosynthesis played a crucial role in the formation of these deposits.
A new report sheds light on an understudied aspect of public school success. Since the 1970s, researchers have found that the most effective public schools tend to be led by highly skilled principals. Less clear, though, is what it takes to help principals learn to be successful leaders.
A newer "climate-friendly" refrigerant used in car air conditioning systems may already be a significant, and possibly dominant, source of a "forever chemical" pollutant across Europe, according to a new University of Bristol-led study.
Australia is racing to contain the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), which is now believed to have infected seven seabirds.
Quantum computers, devices that store and process information leveraging the principles of quantum mechanics, have been found to be promising for tackling some problems that cannot be solved by classical computers. Quantum computers store data in the form of qubits (i.e., quantum bits), units of information that can exist in combinations of different states, instead of being limited to a binary value (i.e., 0 or 1), like classical bits.
A cynical doctor. A ruthless chemist. An arrogant billionaire. A calculating mafia boss. These are not only some of today's most iconic fictional characters—they are also the figures that artificial intelligence models found most similar to fictional biographies of people with Jewish names.
