Today's Science Pulse
UK-led study reveals hidden massive star clusters deep within nearby galaxies
Astronomers using the VLA and ALMA uncovered previously unseen giant star clusters embedded deep inside nearby galaxies. The findings show that young stellar activity drives the evolution of these galaxies, reshaping their interstellar environments. Multiple observations confirm the clusters act as hidden “ring factories” of star formation.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Foundation Alloy raises $22M Series A
Polysaccharide Microneedles and 3D Printing Explored for Cancer Immunotherapy Applications
Researchers reviewed polysaccharide‑based microneedles as a platform for cancer immunotherapy, emphasizing how additive manufacturing—particularly high‑resolution 3D printing—can create customizable transdermal delivery arrays. Natural polymers such as hyaluronic acid, chitosan and alginate provide biocompatibility and enable dissolvable or hydrogel‑based needles with pH‑ and enzyme‑responsive release. SLA and DLP printing deliver micron‑scale geometry but struggle with polysaccharide rheology, prompting hybrid workflows that combine printed molds with biomaterial loading. Clinical translation remains early, limited by scale‑up, drug‑loading capacity and regulatory pathways.
Beware of Headlines Touting Impossible AI Benefits, Analysts Warn
Researchers at Tufts University and a Vienna lab demonstrated that a neuro‑symbolic, rule‑based approach can train a robot‑manipulation model using dramatically less energy than a comparable vision‑language‑action neural model. Media outlets amplified the finding with headlines claiming a "100× power...
Alamar Biosciences Files Nasdaq IPO After $128M Series C and 100‑Hire Surge
Alamar Biosciences, the Fremont‑based proteomics company, filed to go public on Nasdaq after raising $128 million in a Series C round and adding almost 100 employees in two years. The move marks the firm’s transition from research‑focused labs to commercial sales of...
A Once-Fantastical Collider Could Answer Physics’ Biggest Mysteries
Physicists are rallying behind a muon collider as the next big step after the Large Hadron Collider, arguing that muon collisions could reach energies unattainable with protons. Although muons decay in microseconds, recent breakthroughs in rapid acceleration and beam cooling...
What Sharks Attacked 5 Million Years Ago
A recent study by the Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels examined two fossil whale skulls from Belgium, revealing embedded shark teeth and distinctive bite marks. Micro‑CT scans identified an aggressive bite by the extinct great‑white ancestor *Carcharodon plicatilis* on...
Artemis 2 Countdown Continues – No Issues
NASA’s Artemis II mission is on track for a 6:24 p.m. EDT launch on April 1, 2026, with the countdown now entering the L‑15H30M window. All non‑essential personnel have cleared Launch Complex 39B and critical pre‑launch activities such as nitrogen inerting and ground launch...
Pig Liver Xenotransplant Shows Promise, but More Work Remains
Genetically modified pig livers have entered early clinical testing, with a Chinese patient surviving 171 days after transplantation. Researchers in China are exploring pig livers as auxiliary support, while a University of Pennsylvania team is evaluating extracorporeal pig livers as...
Kim Fisher on Why Food as Medicine Is at a Tipping Point — And What It Will Take to Get...
In this episode, Unity Stokes talks with Kim Fisher, Chief Impact Officer of Startup Health’s Food is Medicine Moonshot and Program Director of UC Davis’s Innovation Institute for Food and Health, about the rapid emergence of the food‑as‑medicine movement. Fisher...
Research Indicates a More Complex Sun’s Magnetic Engine
A Southwest Research Institute (SWRI) led study reveals that the Sun’s magnetic engine is far more intricate than previously thought, displaying multi‑layered turbulence and unexpected polarity reversals. The team combined helioseismic measurements with satellite magnetogram data to map the solar...
Dhabi: Scientists Detect Magnetic Waves Deep Within the Sun, Helping Predict Solar Activity
Scientists at New York University Abu Dhabi have identified a new class of magnetic waves deep within the Sun, located about 0.9 solar radii from the core. Using six years of helioseismic data, the team captured subtle acoustic shifts that...
Avoid These 12 Myths & Build More Muscle
A recent scientific review debunked 12 pervasive muscle‑building myths, from elaborate periodization models to the so‑called “anabolic window” and spot‑reduction claims. The authors found that progressive overload, sufficient protein and energy balance, and consistent training volume are the true drivers...
Explaining the Swirl of Wildfire Smoke
Recent research explains why wildfire smoke in the stratosphere consistently forms anticyclonic vortices. Smoke injected at roughly 15 km rises to 35 km, stretching and intensifying any rotation. While classic theory predicts a cyclone‑anticyclone pair, the study shows that vertical shear can...
Earth Formed From Local Building Blocks
A new study published by ETH Zurich reveals that Earth’s building materials originated primarily from local solar‑system sources rather than distant interstellar debris. Researchers used high‑precision isotopic analysis of ancient rocks and meteorites to trace the planet’s accretion history. The...
NSF Awards up to $45M to Scale Great Lakes RENEW Water Innovation Engine
The U.S. National Science Foundation has awarded up to $45 million to Current’s Great Lakes RENEW initiative, bringing total federal backing for the program to nearly $60 million. The three‑year infusion will expand a coalition of more than 75 utilities, universities, labs and...
AZD5004
Elecoglipron (ECC5004/AZD5004), an oral small‑molecule GLP‑1 receptor agonist, completed Phase 2 trials in type 2 diabetes and obesity, meeting primary endpoints in the SOLSTICE and VISTA studies. AstraZeneca licensed global rights from Eccogene for an upfront payment of $185 million and potential milestones...
Last Call for Microbiome Start-Ups and Research Abstracts for Probiota Americas
NutraIngredients is inviting consumer‑facing, science‑driven startups and researchers to submit entries for its Probiota Pioneers and Scientific Frontiers tracks, with winners presenting at Probiota Americas in Vancouver from June 8‑10, 2026. Startups must be Americas‑based, under 20 employees, founded within ten years...
Researchers Uncover New Clues About Carbonaceous Asteroids
Stony Brook University researchers have identified new compositional clues about carbonaceous (C-type) asteroids, using advanced infrared spectroscopy and sample‑return data. Analyzing five near‑Earth asteroids, they found water‑ice and organic molecule abundances up to 20% higher than previously recorded. The study,...
CS and Cognitive Science Shaped Modern AI
How did computer science influence cognitive science and vice versa? How did this interaction play a critical role on the path to modern AI? Join Inner Cosmos this week with cognitive scientist Tom Griffiths. eagleman.com/podcast/147
Weebit Nano Turns Lab‑Born ReRAM Into AI Memory Leader
Weebit Nano Ltd., a ReRAM-based technology company that we launched in 2016, uses an oxide memory that we developed in our lab in 2010. Weebit’s ReRAM is projected as a preferred AI-based electronic memory. Many thanks to Coby Hanoch and...
What Did Pompeii Smell Like? A New Study Analyzes Its Ancient Incense
International researchers have chemically analyzed two incense vessels from Pompeii, marking the first scientific test of ritual residues at the site. The samples revealed charred oak and laurel, typical of offerings to Jupiter and Apollo, as well as frankincense from...
Short-Acting Psychedelic DMT Shows Promise as a Rapid Treatment for Major Depressive Disorder
A phase IIa trial published in Nature Medicine found that a single intravenous dose of dimethyltryptamine (DMT), paired with structured psychotherapy, produced a rapid and sustained reduction in major depressive disorder symptoms. Participants receiving 21.5 mg of DMT showed an average...
3 Future Food Projects Get $4.7M Dutch Govt Funding for Cultivated Meat & Fermentation
The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has granted $4.7 million to three consortia to accelerate cultivated meat and precision‑fermentation technologies. The Up‑Cell project at TU Delft will engineer scalable animal cell lines, while Maastricht‑led MeatUp focuses on whole‑cut meat alternatives using seaweed‑based...
A New Way to Eavesdrop on Ocean Temperature in the Arctic
Scientists at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution have demonstrated that underwater acoustic travel times can accurately gauge Arctic Ocean temperatures across a 2,600‑kilometer baseline. The method, known as ocean acoustic thermometry, was field‑tested during the 2019‑2020 CAATEX experiment using six...
Study Links Diets High in Ultra-Processed Foods to Increased Heart Attack, Stroke Risk
Researchers at Florida Atlantic University analyzed NHANES data from 4,787 U.S. adults and found that individuals in the highest quartile of ultra‑processed food (UPF) consumption faced a 47 percent greater risk of cardiovascular disease, primarily heart attacks and strokes. The study,...
Unlocking Designer Roots for Future Cereal Crops
Researchers at the University of Queensland and Australian National University identified the CEPR1 signaling gene as a conserved regulator of root architecture across barley, rice, maize and Arabidopsis. Knocking out CEPR1 creates steeper, narrower roots that improve water and nutrient...
Oops! NASA Once Lost a $125 Million Spacecraft Because Engineers Forgot to Convert to Metric
The Mars Climate Orbiter, a $125 million NASA mission launched in 1998, was lost in September 1999 when it descended far too low over Mars. The failure was traced to a simple unit‑conversion mistake: Lockheed Martin’s navigation software used Imperial units instead of...
Gut Bacterial Gene Switches Asparagine: Tumor Fuel or Immune Boost
As a medical school professor, this is one of the most paradigm-shifting findings I've seen this year. Weill Cornell researchers discovered that a single bacterial gene in your gut determines whether the amino acid asparagine fuels tumor growth or supercharges your...
LIGO May Have Detected First Primordial Black Hole, Study Finds
University of Miami researchers Alberto Magaraggia and Nico Cappelluti say LIGO’s latest signal, S251112cm, shows a collision involving a black hole lighter than the Sun – a hallmark of a primordial black hole. If confirmed, it would be the first...
Study Links Heart‑Brain Sync to Better Health and Stress Resilience
Researchers have demonstrated that a simple musical intervention during surgery can markedly lower patients' blood pressure, heart rate, and postoperative pain, underscoring the powerful heart‑brain connection. The findings suggest everyday practices that align cardiac and neural rhythms could become a...
Tirzepatide Plus Hormone Therapy Boosts Weight Loss 35% in Post‑Menopausal Women
Mayo Clinic and Wayne State scientists report that post‑menopausal women who combined tirzepatide with hormone therapy lost 35% more body weight than those on tirzepatide alone. The retrospective analysis of 120 women showed an average 19.2% loss versus 14%, prompting...
Light Bends Perovskite Crystal Lattice, Opening Way to New Devices
Researchers at UC Davis have demonstrated that halide perovskite crystals undergo rapid, reversible lattice distortions when illuminated, a phenomenon termed photostriction. Using laser excitation and X‑ray probing, they showed the effect can be tuned by adjusting the crystal composition, light wavelength,...
Study Shows Parenthood Doesn’t Boost Happiness, While Parental Guilt Soars
Researchers analyzing data from more than 5,000 adults in ten countries report that having children has no measurable effect on overall happiness or life satisfaction, and it even lowers relationship satisfaction. At the same time, a separate survey highlights a...
Ultrasound Stimulation Accelerates Unlearning of Fearful Memories in Humans
Researchers used transcranial ultrasound to stimulate the amygdala during a fear‑conditioning experiment, finding that participants learned fear more slowly and extinguished it faster. The breakthrough suggests a drug‑free tool for anxiety, PTSD and self‑mastery.
D‑Wave Beats Rigetti on Financial Health While Rigetti Leads in Superconducting Roadmap
D‑Wave Quantum secured a $20 million system sale to Florida Atlantic University and an €10 million ($11.5 million) deal in Italy, outpacing Rigetti Computing’s $8.4 million India sale. While Rigetti’s superconducting approach promises broader market potential, D‑Wave’s healthier balance sheet and manufacturing partnerships make...
Starcloud Secures $170M, Becomes Fastest YC Unicorn at $1.1B Valuation
Starcloud announced a $170 million financing round that lifts its valuation to $1.1 billion, making it the fastest Y Combinator graduate to reach unicorn status. The capital, led by Benchmark and EQT Ventures, will fund next‑generation satellites and expand manufacturing as the company...
Deep Rover Enables Kilometer-Deep Ocean Exploration
What if you could dive a kilometer underwater, gaze into the abyss, and unravel the ocean's mysteries? Deep Rover made it possible. https://spectrum.ieee.org/deep-sea-submersible?share_id=9311646
Even a Three‑second Pause Reshapes the Universe
The Universe has changed by the time you finish this sentence It takes just over three seconds to read a typical sentence. In that tiny flash of time, the Universe has changed in tiny but mighty ways. On cosmic timescales, that really adds...
SignateraTM MRD Identifies Breast Cancer Patients Who Can Forgo Surgery
Natera’s Signatera circulating‑tumor DNA test was shown in a prospective Clinical Cancer Research study to identify older women (≥70) with early‑stage ER⁺/HER2‑ breast cancer who can safely forgo surgery and remain progression‑free on primary endocrine therapy. Baseline MRD‑negative patients (68%...
Viral Research Reveals Immune Secrets for Vaccine Design
Here is my talk on how studying viral infections can teach us a lot about the immune system, and how we can use those insights to develop vaccines against viruses. "Night science moments" make science so exciting 🌓 @NightScienceIns @ItaiYanai...
FDA Hurdles Stall Academic Scaling of Custom Gene Editor
Baby KJ scientists hit speed bump in quest to scale custom gene editor. Stringent FDA requirements could prove stumbling block for academics https://t.co/HsaK7lSuh1 via @Jasonmmast
AI Accelerates the Race to Build New Reactors
The race to build new nuclear reactors — fast (with AI's help) https://t.co/guGFZFErdy by @ChuckMcCutcheon in @axios
Deep‑Sea Mining Debate Requires Systems‑Level Metal Comparison
Excited to share our latest paper in Environmental Science: Advances, with @saleem_ali and Aiden Kuo. We argue the deep-sea mining debate needs a systems-level framework to compare oceanic and terrestrial sources of battery metals. #CriticalMinerals https://t.co/78nnRhcdNX
Okinawa’s Centenarian Boom Driven by Pre‑WWII Cohorts
The number of 100+ year olds in Okinawa has increased by 4283% from 1975 1975: 29 centenarians 2021 peak: 1271 centenarians Okinawa’s longevity story is generation-specific: people born before WWII had a clear mortality advantage While post-WWII cohorts have had worse mortality than mainland...
Molecular Solar Battery Stores Days of Energy, Produces Hydrogen
Molecular solar battery stores energy for days, yields hydrogen on demand #energysky -- via pv magazine global: https://t.co/uI9nAShJoB
Artemis II Orion Deemed Unsafe for Flight
Artemis II Orion spacecraft (built by Lockheed Martin, Boeing and Airbus) is not safe to fly via @idlewords https://t.co/PzojTp2Xt9 https://t.co/sNN96eyWwc
Artemis II Crew Set to Launch Around Moon Tomorrow
One more day until crew will fly around the Moon for Artemis II! Cameras are set and hands off at the pad 🤞 https://t.co/WwfKVz6YEr
Calcium, Exercise, DXA Scans Prevent Costly GLP‑1 Surgeries
This is a very important study and I'm hearing from clinical experts in my network that the best prevention is calcium, weight bearing exercise and getting regular DXA Scans. Otherwise we're going to see a big increase in high-cost orthopedic...
Future Foundation Models Will Span All Scientific Disciplines
In the Future there will be Foundation models general and specialized for ALL of Science
Bifunctional Enzyme Restores Redox
A metabolic safety valve for reductive stress "...Pan et al. rewire this circuit with a bifunctional enzyme that uncouples NAD⁺ regeneration from lipogenesis, restoring redox homeostasis under respiratory stress..." https://t.co/EChxGHwyXU https://t.co/LYIZNylLrr
Exploring Evidence-Based Longevity at LIC 2026
Excited to join LIC 2026 in Gstaad this September. Looking forward to thoughtful conversations on what evidence-based longevity actually looks like in practice, and where science, medicine, and capital can move the field forward. | @Longevity_Inv #LIC2026 🚀