Ever since humans have embarked on sea voyages, they needed to ensure vessels were waterproof, resistant to salty seawater, and could withstand microorganisms or sea-dwellers like worms. Until the mid-20th century, however, the study of non-wood materials used to build ships was overlooked. Even today, little work has been done on materials used for waterproofing.
The world is undergoing a fundamental change to how money works, and New Zealand should choose its response wisely, an Otago researcher cautions. New University of Otago—Ōtākou Whakaihu Waka research co-authored by Dr. Murat Ungor from the Department of Economics, and his former Masters student Jack Buchan, has been published in the International Journal of Political Economy.
Chiang Mai, Thailand's second-largest city, lies within a network of narrow valleys in the country's northern highlands. Though the historic city is known for panoramic views of the surrounding mountains, clear skies have become less common. In recent decades, smoke has increasingly darkened the skies during the dry season, particularly in March and April.
Michigan and parts of Wisconsin are in the midst of a historic flooding event in spring 2026. Days of heavy rainfall on top of snow have sent lakes and rivers over their banks and threatened several dams in both states, forcing people to evacuate homes downstream. By April 20, 2026, nearly half of Michigan's counties were under a state of emergency. In Cheboygan, Michigan, large pumps were brought in to lower pressure on a century-old dam in the city.
Thousands of slips in Tairāwhiti in January. The loss of eight lives in the Bay of Plenty later that month. And, days ago, landslides that damaged homes, forced evacuations and blocked roads across the North Island.
Researchers at Hannover Medical School (MHH) have developed a method for the efficient production of human immune cells, such as macrophages, in medium-sized bioreactors. These immune cells can be derived from induced pluripotent stem cells and are important for disease research and the development of new therapeutic approaches. The method has now been published in the journal Nature Protocols.
In everyday life, our genetic material is constantly under attack from many factors. Environmental influences such as light, along with internal processes like inflammation, can generate oxidative stress that damages DNA and its downstream partner, RNA, which can lead to faster aging and diseases such as cancer.
Ultra-faint dwarf galaxies—tiny satellite galaxies orbiting the Milky Way—have long been seen as cosmic fossils. Now, a new study published today in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society uses an unprecedented set of simulations to show just how powerfully these faint systems can reflect the conditions of the early universe and tell us why some galaxies grew and others did not.
Featuring gory attacks by bloodthirsty vampires, one may be quick to categorize "Sinners" as a horror movie. That classification, however, may not be fair to the artists who created it. In "Sinners," the creators cleverly use horror as a metaphor for violent racism in the Deep South during the early 20th century, making the film just as much a period drama as a horror film.
As space agencies and private companies look toward a sustained human presence on the moon, a fundamental challenge centers on how to build strong, durable infrastructure without hauling every material from Earth. New research from Rice University points to an unexpected solution—transforming one of the moon's most stubborn obstacles, its abrasive dust, into a valuable building resource. The study demonstrates that lunar regolith simulant, a terrestrial stand-in for the moon's fine, abrasive dust, can be used to strengthen advanced composite materials. The work, published in Advanced Engineering Materials, was also selected for the cover of the journal's latest issue.
