The Best New Science Fiction Books of May 2026
May 2026 brings a robust slate of new science‑fiction titles, ranging from the eighth Murderbot novel by Martha Wells to debut generation‑ship epic "The Republic of Memory" by Mahmud El Sayed. Established voices Matt Haig, Ann Leckie and Alan Moore also release fresh entries, while newcomers such as Portia Elan and Andrew Dana Hudson add experimental twists. The selections highlight themes of AI agency, time‑travel romance, post‑apocalyptic survival and culturally diverse world‑building, underscoring a vibrant market for speculative fiction.
Best Smart Plugs for 2026: An Upgrade for Any Home
CNET’s 2026 roundup tested 12 smart plugs and highlighted five stand‑outs. The Emporia 15W model leads with sub‑$15 pricing and detailed energy‑use tracking, while the TP‑Link Tapo Mini offers a tiny footprint at the same price point. Leviton’s D215P‑2RW brings...
‘I Refuse to Become Fragile’: Meet the Women Over 50 Entering Bodybuilding Competitions—And Winning
Women over 50 are increasingly entering competitive bodybuilding, with organizations like the OCB reporting record participation. Pioneers such as 82‑year‑old Iris Davis, physician‑competitor Marianne Dait, and others have secured national titles and even Guinness World Records, proving that muscular development...
Colossal Biosciences Plans to De-Extinct the Bluebuck Antelope
Colossal Biosciences announced a new de‑extinction project targeting the bluebuck, an antelope that vanished in the early 1800s. Using CRISPR‑based gene editing and cloned embryos, the company aims to reintroduce a living specimen within the next decade. The bluebuck joins...
Why Online Fitness Advice Can Seem so Contradictory
Online fitness advice often feels contradictory because experts tailor guidance to different audiences, from beginners to powerlifters. Social media platforms reward detailed debates, turning minor technique nuances into viral arguments. Trainers use cues as nudges rather than universal rules, which...
Is This ‘De-Extinction’ Project Actually Onto Something?
Dallas‑based biotech startup Colossal, backed by hundreds of millions of dollars from venture capitalists, the CIA and Peter Thiel, continues its high‑profile “de‑extinction” agenda. After controversial dire‑wolf hybrids, the firm announced a bluebuck project that focuses on a novel “ovum pickup”...
Avatar 4 Star Reveals the Massive Change From Its ‘Epic’ Time Jump
Avatar 4 will feature a significant story‑driven time jump, moving the narrative forward to explore new regions of Pandora and older versions of its characters. Trinity Jo‑Li Bliss, who plays Tuk, confirmed that only a small pre‑jump portion has been filmed,...
Where to Find Food Trucks in Los Angeles: Tips, Events, & Apps
Food trucks have become a defining feature of Los Angeles, with an estimated 4,000 mobile kitchens operating in 2026. The city’s sprawling layout and culture of culinary experimentation have kept the trend thriving, unlike many other U.S. markets where the...
The Truth About Taking Testosterone
BBC's Morning Live aired a segment on testosterone, where Dr. Xand explained the hormone’s role, potential therapeutic uses, and who might benefit. He clarified that testosterone is not a universal anti‑aging solution and highlighted that prescribing is tightly regulated, especially...
"We Live in a Secluded Village Where the Belief in Witches Was Still Very Much Alive Just a Few Decades...
Hungarian duo WitcheR, composed of keyboardist/vocalist Karola Gere and guitarist/vocalist Roland Neubauer, have released their fourth album Öröklet, a black‑metal record steeped in local witch folklore. Drawing on stories from their secluded forest village, the band fuses raw black‑metal soundscapes...
‘In Italy, Litfiba Are Part of the Cultural Fabric’
Italian rock icons Litfiba are reuniting their original 1980s lineup for a 40th‑anniversary tour celebrating the seminal 1986 album *17 Re*. The 20‑date domestic trek, spanning major cities and festivals such as Rock in Roma, has already moved 150,000 tickets...
DC’s Lanterns Reveals August Premiere Date on HBO Max
DC Studios announced that the live‑action series *Lanterns* will debut on HBO Max on August 16. The show stars Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, marking the first on‑screen appearance of the fan‑favorite John Stewart. Created...
The Hidden Costs of Ignoring Mental Health at Work
A construction foreman's suicide exposed a critical gap: many firms lack post‑vention plans, leaving managers to navigate grief without guidance. The article quantifies the broader economic toll, citing Ohio’s estimate of nearly $300 billion in annual productivity loss from untreated mental...
Symptom Progression Slowed in Lewy Body Dementia with Zervimesine
Cognition Therapeutics reported that the oral, brain‑penetrant small‑molecule zervimesine slowed symptom progression in a phase 2 SHIMMER trial of 130 adults with mild‑to‑moderate dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Over six months, patients receiving 100 mg or 300 mg daily showed 52‑86% slower decline...
Charley Discusses Being an Idealist at the End of Everything
Australian singer‑songwriter Charley releases her debut album, The Chronicles of a Serial Idealist, a 12‑track pop‑centric project that fuses nostalgic 2010s sounds with queer‑forward storytelling. The record, shaped during a lakeside retreat with co‑producers Harry Charles and Ned Houston, showcases...
Assessing the Impact of Drones on Whale Sharks
A Murdoch University team used biotelemetry tags on 13 whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef to compare swimming effort, tail movement and diving behavior with and without overhead drones. The drones were flown at altitudes ranging from 10 to 60 metres...
Mata Atlantica Bike Route (N1): Chapada
The Mata Atlântica Bike Route’s first segment (N1) opens a 1,200‑km stretch through Brazil’s Chapada Diamantina National Park and the semi‑arid Caatinga, linking historic mining towns to coastal Atlantic Forest. The trail mixes steep singletrack sections rated up to 9/10 with...
James Gunn Finally Explains Why DCU Wasn’t Completely Rebooted
James Gunn, co‑head of DC Studios, clarified why the new DC Universe retained certain legacy elements instead of a full reset. He said contractual obligations to the Peacemaker series made breaking the deal financially prohibitive, and his personal affinity for...
James Gunn Explains Clayface’s Fate, May Have Spoiled Movie’s Ending
DC Studios co‑CEO James Gunn hinted at the fate of Matt Hagen, aka Clayface, in the upcoming live‑action film. Responding to fan questions, Gunn said the shapeshifter ends up “back to prison” after the events of Creature Commandos, confirming the...
Goal Zero Yeti 1500 Power Station Review (2026): More Power, Better Chemistry
Goal Zero unveiled the sixth‑generation Yeti 1500 portable power station, now built with lithium‑iron‑phosphate (LiFePO₄) cells that promise 4,000 charge cycles to 80 % capacity. The unit delivers a 2,000 W continuous inverter, a 1,800 W AC fast‑charge input that fills the battery in...
Anitta’s Spiritual Turn Meets Brazilian Pop’s Momentum
Brazilian pop star Anitta has released EQUILIBRIVM, an album that turns inward toward her Candomblé faith while expanding her sound beyond funk into Afro‑Brazilian styles such as batuque, samba and ijexá. She brands the new rhythmic blend as “macumbeats” and...
DE Ug: Meet the Rappers Making Germany Cool Again
German underground rap is emerging from relative obscurity as a new generation of artists—led by Yungpalo, C4rl, Zackavelli and rising star Ceren—gain traction on global platforms. A high‑profile collaboration with UK star YT and the upcoming Bassmuzik festival in Hamburg...
Anni Albers, Necklace, c.1940
Anni Albers, renowned Bauhaus textile artist, created a silver necklace using everyday hardware—paper clips, an aluminum sink strainer, and a metal chain. The piece is one of only twelve documented jewelry works she produced, reflecting her fascination with material behavior...
Seefeel’s ‘Sol.hz’ Offers a Disorienting Clarity
British electronic collective Seefeel returns with "Sol.hz," their first full-length album since 2011. The record deepens the group’s minimalist, texture‑driven approach, reducing guitars and drums to faint feedback and fragmented percussion. Across nine four‑minute tracks, Seefeel favors sustained sonic fields...
Inside Monocle’s May 2026 Issue
Monocle released its May 2026 issue, featuring the publication’s annual Design Awards, an in‑depth tour of Cairo’s regenerated downtown, and a dedicated timekeeping special. The issue highlights a rising creative director, a recommended camera, and a designer‑approved dining chair, while...
Women Who Measure the Universe and Chart the Skies
Sandrine J. Thomas, associate director for Summit Operations at the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, will keynote the 42nd Coordinate Metrology Society conference, linking Earth‑based metrology to the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). The LSST camera, a 3.2‑gigapixel instrument...
Chainsaw Man Reze Arc Is Finally Streaming on Crunchroll
Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc is now streaming on Crunchyroll, arriving six months after its theatrical debut. The film adapts the manga’s emotionally brutal Reze storyline, focusing on Denji’s conflicted love between Makima and the new character Reze....
Caputo’s Is Kaput. Now Everyone Needs to Find New Bread.
Caputo’s Bake Shop, a family‑run Brooklyn institution since 1904, announced an abrupt closure after 122 years of operation. The bakery supplied thousands of locals and dozens of neighborhood restaurants, delivering roughly 6,000 loaves each week at its peak. Owner James...
Audit Yourself to Get More From GenAI
The MIT Sloan Review article introduces a self‑audit prompt that scores generative‑AI sessions against 30 habits organized into five goals—setup, refine, verify, own, and systematize. A field experiment with 250 Chinese consultants showed that AI‑assisted workers only outperformed peers when...
'Two Lives Hang in the Balance': Risky Surgery in the Womb Saved Baby From Deadly Disorder at Just 25 Weeks...
Doctors at Orlando Health performed the first ex‑utero intrapartum treatment (ExIT) at 25 weeks to rescue a fetus with congenital high airway obstruction syndrome (CHAOS). The team created a tracheal catheter, drained fluid‑filled lungs, and returned the baby to the...
Harriet Tubman and Georgia Anne Muldrow Cook a Powerful Brew
Harriet Tubman, the avant‑jazz trio, releases its first album in eight years, "Electrical Field of Love," featuring Los Angeles‑based vocalist Georgia Anne Muldrow. Producer Scotty Herd reshapes six hours of studio improvisation into twelve tightly edited tracks, echoing Teo Macero’s legendary collage...
Why Taylor Beebe Wants More Women To Take Up Space in the Gym (And in Life)
Taylor Beebe, a trainer and Strength in Diversity alum, competed in the International Drug‑Free Association Powerlifting World Championships in Seoul in the masters 40‑49 division. In a post‑competition interview she urged women to claim space in gyms and in life by...
Eating a Single Bag of This Food Might Make Your Attention Span Worse
A recent study of more than 2,100 Australian adults found that a 10 % increase in ultra‑processed food consumption – roughly the amount in a standard bag of chips – was linked to a 0.05‑point decline in attention scores and modestly...
Zn‐Na Alloy Interphase Engineering for Fast Kinetics and High Performance in Sodium‐Ion Batteries
Researchers have introduced a dual‑additive electrolyte that creates a NaZn13‑rich alloy interphase on hard‑carbon anodes, dramatically lowering sodium‑ion migration barriers. Zn(OTf)2 decomposes to form this conductive SEI layer, while NaSO2CF3 serves as a sacrificial sodium source that compensates irreversible capacity...
In Vitro Reconstruction of Axonal Heat Sensing with a Photothermal Nerve‐on‐a‐Chip
Researchers unveiled a photothermal nerve‑on‑a‑chip that couples graphene‑based microheaters with microelectrode arrays to deliver millisecond‑scale, localized heat to sensory axons while recording extracellular action potentials. The system captured rapid, reproducible heat‑evoked firing in rat dorsal root ganglion neurons and revealed...
Bionic Engineering Strategy for Preparing Flexible Carbon Paper From Waste Polypropylene: Excellent Electromagnetic Shielding Performance and Multifunctional Integration
Researchers have developed a flexible carbon paper (PP‑CP) from recycled polypropylene using a bionic “brick‑mortar” design. The heterogeneous swelling process creates an interpenetrating network that delivers a conductivity of 7,735 S m⁻¹. The material achieves an average electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness of...
Planning a Home Renovation? Don't Overlook Your Cooling System
Home renovation projects frequently ignore the impact on a house’s cooling system, yet added square footage, open‑plan layouts, and new windows can dramatically increase the cooling load. Relying on an existing, undersized air‑conditioning unit often leads to hot spots, higher...
Coordination‐Modulated MOF‐Derived Electrocatalysts for Enhanced C─C Coupling in CO2 to C2H4 and C2H5OH Conversion
The review outlines mechanistic pathways for electrochemical CO₂ reduction to ethylene and ethanol using MOF‑derived electrocatalysts. It integrates studies of *CO intermediates, in‑situ spectroscopy of dynamic active sites, and DFT calculations of energy barriers. Future directions include machine‑learning‑guided MOF screening,...
Revisiting The Shawshank Redemption Box Office: Did IMDb’s #1-Rated Movie Break Even? Its Box Office Deficit Explained
The Shawshank Redemption earned $29.4 million worldwide against a $25 million production budget, but fell short of the roughly $62.5 million needed to break even using the industry‑standard 2.5× multiplier. The film’s $33.1 million box‑office deficit stemmed from modest domestic receipts of $28.8 million and...
Exploring Birdsong Share Stripped Back Session ‘Live From The Cottage’
Exploring Birdsong has issued a three‑track EP titled “Live From The Cottage,” offering piano‑centric, stripped‑back renditions of the first three singles from their forthcoming debut album “Every House We Built.” The 11‑minute session showcases the band’s songwriting strength while delivering...
Posterscope India and iProspect India Roll Out OOH Campaign for The Mummy
Warner Bros. Discovery enlisted Posterscope India and iProspect India to launch an OOH campaign for the horror film *The Mummy* across Mumbai and Chennai. The activation ran from April 10 to 17, 2026, featuring a roaming mummy figure and themed billboards...
Ultra-Thin Optical Film Pushes Budget Resin Printers Toward Professional Precision
Researchers at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology have developed an ultra‑thin double‑sided optical film that collimates light in LCD‑based resin 3D printers. The film reshapes backlight rays, delivering 81% intensity uniformity and a beam divergence under 10°, rivaling...
Last Call For Gas Macan: Porsche Builds Up Inventory Before Production Ends
Porsche will halt production of the first‑generation, gasoline‑powered Macan this summer and is rapidly building up inventory to satisfy lingering U.S. demand. The automaker expects the stockpile to support sales into 2027, offsetting weaker interest in the upcoming electric Macan...
Turn Old Bundt Pans Into Kitchen Storage With This Genius DIY
A DIY guide shows how to repurpose worn Bundt cake pans into tiered storage stands using simple ornaments and hot glue. The method creates a two‑level platform for items like tea lights, cutlery, or pantry packets, and can be customized...
Faces of HR: Why Laura Maffucci Is Putting People Before the AI “Hype Train”
Laura Maffucci, Head of HR at global employment platform G‑P, is steering the company away from AI hype toward a people‑first approach. Drawing on 25 years of experience, she emphasizes mental‑health‑centric AI adoption, warning that unchecked automation fuels employee anxiety. Since...
The Biggest Fashion Collaborations You Missed in April
April proved to be a busy month for fashion partnerships, with high‑profile drops that flew under many consumers' radars. Burberry teamed up with outdoor brand Hunza G to launch a limited‑edition outerwear line, while New Balance collaborated with street‑wear collective...
The Built‐in Electric Field in Bimetallic System Promotes the Efficient Thermal Decomposition of Ammonium Perchlorate
Researchers have engineered a three‑dimensionally ordered macroporous (3DOM) CeO₂/Co₃O₄ catalyst that dramatically accelerates the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate (AP). The optimal 3DCe/0.9Co composition lowers AP’s high‑temperature decomposition point by roughly 30 % and cuts the activation energy. Electron transfer from...
Sulfur‐Vacancy‐Derived Lewis Acid Sites in 3R‐Phase ZnIn2S4 Nanosheets for Efficient Uranium Extraction From Wastewater
Researchers engineered two‑dimensional 3R‑phase ZnIn2S4 nanosheets with abundant sulfur vacancies, creating Lewis‑acid sites that bind uranyl ions and accelerate charge separation. The resulting photocatalyst achieves an unprecedented uranium uptake of 1320 mg per gram of material in high‑concentration wastewater, far surpassing...
Monica Galetti Is Launching a New Restaurant in Primrose Hill
Chef Monica Galetti is launching 130 Primrose, a social‑enterprise restaurant in Primrose Hill that will open on May 8. The venue will employ and train people impacted by homelessness, offering six‑month contracts and ongoing support. Galetti will design a menu that showcases...
Harlequin Has Secured a Significant Upsize From the Watches of Switzerland Group,
Harlequin’s retail centre has secured a major upsize from the Watches of Switzerland Group, adding a new flagship showroom slated to open in summer 2026. The expansion brings the total Watches of Switzerland space at Harlequin to 4,400 sq ft, featuring dedicated...