Science

Chimpanzee Sultan (Image Credit: Zentrum für Geschichte der Psychologie, Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg via University of Auckland) More than a century ago, a small group of chimpanzees helped revolutionise the way scientists understood intelligence. Through a series of pioneering experiments on the Spanish island of Tenerife, these apes demonstrated that they could solve problems using insight rather…

Astronomers have spent years using the James Webb Space Telescope to examine the atmospheres of distant worlds, hoping those thin outer layers would reveal what lies beneath. For one of the galaxy’s most abundant classes of planets, that assumption may need another look.Many warm sub-Neptunes could contain far more water than their visible atmospheres indicate….

A new scientific study has revealed the current state of California’s giant sequoia range, revealing the alarming extent of damage that has been caused to them by extreme wildfires over the last decade. A study published in the journal Fire Ecology on March 27, 2026, revealed that approximately 17% of all mature giant sequoias have…

US is currently battling a growing Cyclospora outbreak across the states. According to researchers, it is the largest outbreak of its kind in the country’s history and health officials are yet to identify the source. Since May 1, 1,645 infections with the parasite have been confirmed across 45 states and more than 5,100 further cases…

Marie Curie and her husband spent nearly four years boiling down seven tonnes of pitchblende in a leaky Paris shed with no ventilation to isolate one-tenth of a gram of radium chloride. Today, the notebooks they kept during those years, between 1899 and 1902, are kept in lead-lined boxes at the Bibliothèque nationale de France….

Centuries after he transformed humanity’s understanding of the universe, Galileo Galilei continues to inspire people with ideas that extend far beyond astronomy and physics. Today’s Quote of the Day features one of his most enduring reflections on knowledge and discovery: “All truths are easy to understand once they are discovered; the point is to discover…

Mars still experiences powerful dust storms, but one patch of rock inside Gale Crater appears to have preserved something far older. What looks like a collection of layered stone has turned out to be a record of a single weather event that unfolded billions of years ago. Rather than relying on computer models or indirect…

Cities in the Netherlands are experimenting with a greener approach to urban surfaces by using grass-filled permeable paving blocks in places where conventional sealed concrete or asphalt might otherwise be used. These specially designed blocks contain open spaces where grass can grow, while gaps in the surface allow rainwater to pass through rather than immediately…

Life on Earth isn’t just about the flora and fauna anymore, microplastics have entered the equation deep enough to reach the surface levels of vast oceans that no human has ever seen. Plastic pollution has become a global environmental crisis with an estimated 11 million tons of plastic entering the oceans annually. As larger plastic…

Haven or trap? Study finds sinkholes protect endangered tree at evolutionary cost China’s huge sinkholes, known as tiankengs (“heavenly pits” in Chinese), are both helping and harming one of the region’s most endangered plants at the same time. They protect the rare Magnolia aromatica tree from climate change, but they also keep its populations isolated,…