Science
Scientific discoveries and research
How primitive plants evolved to survive Earth's most catastrophic extinction event
Earth responded to its most severe past warming event by evolving a new and bizarre type of photosynthesis that allowed a group of primitive plants to survive....
How maze-like magnetic patterns form and evolve in materials
The rapid increase in electric vehicle adoption in recent years has highlighted a crucial issue: the energy conversion efficiency of electric motors. In electri...
Engineers develop new plasma spray technique for tungsten–copper protective coatings
Engineers have developed a new high-performance tungsten–copper metallic coating in one step using plasma spray, for future high heat flux (HHF) plasma facing c...
Brushstroke-mapping AI reopens a centuries-old mystery about one of El Greco's masterpieces
Spanish Renaissance master El Greco is often considered one of the greatest painters of all time, and many of his artworks are displayed in galleries around the...
A long-sought quantum computing milestone arrives as fermionic atom gates top 99% accuracy
Two independent research teams have each demonstrated collisional quantum gates using fermionic atoms: a long-sought milestone in quantum computing where logic...
Costly school uniforms a barrier to education for some Kiwi kids
The cost of school uniforms is proving a barrier to education for secondary students in Aotearoa, with some missing school because they don't have a full unifor...
A hidden property of light could power future nanomachines
Light does more than illuminate the world—it can also push and twist matter. It was back in the 1870s that James Clerk Maxwell first predicted that light carrie...
Older workers seen as less competent and trustworthy by their younger peers, study shows
Older workers are stereotyped as less competent, less trainable, and less adaptable by their younger colleagues, influencing how they are viewed by management,...
Mind the gap! The semiconductor industry is relying on the wrong materials
2D materials are widely seen as a promising path toward better computer chips. Researchers at TU Wien have now shown that some of these materials are unsuitable...
Emojis trigger brain responses like real faces within 160 milliseconds, study finds
Facial expressions are a fundamental aspect of human social interaction. While emojis are an extremely popular way for people to communicate, very little is kno...
Mediterranean mussel farming could collapse by 2050
Greenhouse gas emissions are heating our atmosphere and oceans, and turning seawater more acidic. One of the myriad expected impacts of these conditions is a re...
How tiny cave shrimps power the underworld of the Yucatan
Beneath the lush rainforests of the Yucatan Peninsula lies a hidden, subterranean world: a vast network of flooded sinkholes and anchialine caves. These unique...