Researchers Use Statistics and Math to Understand How the Brain Works
Researchers at Georgia Tech's Institute for Neuroscience, Neurotechnology, and Society are applying mathematics, statistics, and AI to decode brain function. Projects include topographic AI models that mirror brain organization, AI‑driven analysis of spinal cord activity for motor control, and precise spike‑timing studies in hawk moths. A new framework called SWIRL improves prediction of animal decision‑making, while mathematical modeling of visual‑cortex connectivity aims to reveal how the brain routes visual information. Collectively, these efforts seek to translate neural complexity into actionable insights for medicine and technology.
Blue Origin's Rocket Reuse Achievement Marred by Upper Stage Failure
Blue Origin achieved its first successful reflight of the New Glenn orbital booster, landing the first stage on a drone ship in the Atlantic. However, the rocket's upper stage failed to insert AST SpaceMobile’s broadband satellite into the planned 285‑mile orbit, leaving...
Can a Common Parasite Medication Calm the Brain’s Stress Circuitry During Alcohol Withdrawal?
Researchers at UC San Diego discovered that rodents with high P2rx4 gene expression exhibit markedly increased alcohol consumption during withdrawal. Administering the antiparasitic drug ivermectin produced a dose‑dependent reduction in lever‑pressing for alcohol, especially in animals that responded behaviorally. Electrophysiological...
Loneliness May Contribute to Memory Issues, but Not Dementia — They Are 'Not the Same Thing'
A new six‑year study of more than 10,000 adults aged 65‑94 found that loneliness is associated with memory difficulties but does not increase the risk of dementia. Participants were dementia‑free at baseline, and researchers tracked cognitive performance while noting loneliness...
Sulphur-Soaked Lava World Is in a Planetary Class All Its Own
Astronomers using JWST and ground‑based telescopes have identified L 98‑59 d, a super‑Earth 35 light‑years away that is about 1.6 times Earth’s diameter. The planet’s mantle is a global magma ocean rich in sulphur, and a dense, hydrogen‑filled atmosphere plus tidal heating...
‘How Much Have We Missed?’: Book Tunes in to Overlooked World of Female Birdsong
The newly released guidebook "The Sound Approach to Birding 2" tackles the long‑standing omission of female birdsong from field guides and sound archives. It supplies a curated library of 300 recordings from 200 species, confirming female calls for 41% of Western...
How Engineers Kick-Started the Scientific Method
The article traces how 17th‑century engineers Cornelis Drebbel and Salomon de Caus inspired Francis Bacon’s vision of a systematic, experiment‑driven science, later dramatized in his utopian novel *New Atlantis*. Drebbel’s submersible and iterative testing, and de Caus’s hydraulic spectacles, demonstrated that hands‑on...
Scientists Just Found a Way to Control Electrons without Magnets
Scientists have demonstrated that chiral phonons can transfer orbital angular momentum to electrons in non‑magnetic quartz, establishing a magnet‑free route to orbitronics. The study, published in Nature Physics, shows that aligning chiral phonons produces an orbital Seebeck effect, generating a...
NYU Langone Health Neurologists Unveil Latest Clinical Findings and Research at AAN 2026
At the American Academy of Neurology meeting in Chicago, NYU Langone Health’s neurology department presented over 80 studies, highlighting its leadership in research and patient care. Dr. Jonathan Howard addressed medical misinformation, offering evidence‑based tactics for clinicians to improve health...
How Goodyear Developed Tires For The Moon
Goodyear supplied the first gas‑filled rubber tires to ever touch the Moon, fitting the hand‑pulled Modular Equipment Transporter (MET) on Apollo 14. The smooth, nitrogen‑inflated XLT tires hauled up to 360 lb of equipment across a two‑mile lunar loop, proving that rubber...
Shipping Antimatter by Truck to Understand the Universe
CERN shipped antimatter for the first time via a truck that circled its France‑Switzerland border facility. The cargo consisted of 92 antiprotons captured in a shielded Penning trap and moved to a nearby lab for precision measurements. This historic off‑site...
2026 Saw the Hottest March Ever Recorded in the Continental U.S.
In March 2026 the contiguous United States experienced its hottest month on record, averaging more than 9 °F above the 20th‑century norm. Ten western states, from Arizona to Wyoming, each broke their March heat records, contributing to the nation’s warmest 12‑month...
Cognition Might Emerge From Embodied “Grip” With the World Rather than Abstract Mental Processes
A new article in the Journal of Humanistic Psychology argues that cognition emerges from an embodied "grip" on the world, not from abstract mental processing. Drawing on phenomenology, the author describes "optimal grip" as the skillful attunement between body, perception,...
Why Game Theory Could Be Critical in a Nuclear War
Nobel laureate David Gross warned that humanity’s "half‑life" is about 35 years, citing a rising nuclear‑war risk that has climbed from roughly 1% to 2% per year. He hopes game theory could deter a first strike, but history shows rational‑actor...
Blue Origin Successfully Re-Uses a New Glenn Rocket for the First Time Ever
Blue Origin successfully reflown a New Glenn booster on its third launch, achieving the system’s first reuse. The mission, carrying AST SpaceMobile’s communications satellite, suffered an upper‑stage anomaly that placed the payload in an off‑nominal orbit. The company confirmed payload separation...
UK Startups Join DTC Quantum Incubator to Advance Practical Quantum Applications
Four UK startups have joined the DeepTech Catalyst Quantum incubator, receiving up to $125,000 each in targeted R&D funding and access to Harwell's high‑performance facilities. The cohort—Curenetics, Coherence Engine, AmorphiQ and Qascade—focuses on quantum‑enhanced AI for cancer vaccines, hardware simulation...
Update: New Glenn Puts BlueBird 7 Into “Off-Nominal Orbit”?
Blue Origin’s New Glenn NG‑3 mission successfully separated the 6,000‑kg BlueBird‑7 satellite, but the payload entered an off‑nominal orbit. The company confirmed the satellite’s power system is operational while investigators assess the orbital deviation. NG‑3 also marks the first reuse of...
How a Renaissance Gambling Dispute Spawned Probability Theory
The centuries‑old ‘problem of points’—how to split a pot when a game stops—sparked a dispute that ultimately birthed probability theory. Early attempts by Luca Pacioli and Niccolò Tartaglia proved inadequate, leading 17th‑century gambler Blaise Pascal to enlist Pierre de Fermat. Their letters produced...
Apollo v Artemis: How Earth Changed in 58 Years
NASA’s Artemis II crew captured a new “Earthset” photograph on April 6, 2024, mirroring the iconic 1968 Apollo 8 “Earthrise” image. The shot, taken from the Orion spacecraft during a seven‑hour lunar flyby, shows Earth’s sunlit side over Oceania and stark lunar terrain....
A Renewed Threat to JPL as the Trump Administration Tries Again to Cut NASA
The Trump administration’s 2027 budget request calls for a 23% cut to NASA’s overall budget and a 46% reduction to its science programs, putting 53 science missions – including Mars Perseverance and a new Venus orbiter – at risk. The...
Exercise, IADL, Social Interaction Ease Depression in Elderly
A 2026 BMC Geriatrics study by Zhao and Huang shows that regular physical exercise significantly reduces depressive symptoms among older Chinese adults. The benefit is strongest for seniors with higher instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) functional status, indicating that...
New Study Shows Vitamin D May Reduce Colon Cancer Risk By 58%
A new meta‑analysis of 50 studies covering over 1.3 million people finds that higher vitamin D levels cut colorectal cancer risk by up to 39%, with long‑term tracking showing a 20% reduction. The review highlights a 58% lower risk among women with...
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NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day showcases Messier 8 (M82), a nearby starburst galaxy known as the Cigar Galaxy. A composite image built from 33 hours of narrow‑band exposure highlights bright red filaments of atomic hydrogen driven by a powerful superwind. The...
New Research Points To Key Driver Of Biological Aging—With An Easy Fix
New research published in Cell Metabolism identifies “ferro‑aging,” a gradual buildup of iron in tissues that impairs organ function. The study shows the enzyme ACSL4 drives iron‑induced cellular damage, and blocking it in mice improves age‑related decline. In a 40‑month...
STAT+: The Race to Catch KRAS, Pancreatic Cancer’s ‘Greasy Ball,’ and Create the Most Promising Drug in Decades
A new wave of KRAS‑targeted therapies is reshaping pancreatic cancer treatment after decades of failure. Revolution Medicines’ daraxonrasib, a next‑generation KRAS inhibitor, delivered dramatic survival benefits for patient Leanna Stokes, who enrolled in a clinical trial. The drug’s success has...
Graphene-Based Interlayer Boosts Li-S Battery Performance
Researchers at Cochin University of Science and Technology have introduced a bifunctional polyaniline/reduced graphene oxide (PRGO) interlayer integrated into a lithium‑sulfur battery separator. The composite simultaneously anchors polysulfides and provides a conductive network, mitigating the shuttle effect that limits Li‑S...
HKUST Deep-Sea Research Programmes Gain UNESCO Endorsement for Climate and Ocean Science
HKUST has secured UNESCO endorsements for two international deep‑sea research initiatives—CliMetS, which studies methane seeps, and MOCSI, which investigates cold‑seep ecosystems. The programs unite more than 220 scientists from 138 institutions in 53 countries to build a global observation network...
This Everyday Disruption Was Linked To A 50% Higher Dementia Risk
A large longitudinal study of 2,200 seniors tracked with motion‑sensing devices found that weaker or fragmented circadian rhythms are associated with a markedly higher chance of developing dementia. Participants with a 50% drop in rhythm strength faced roughly a 50%...
Google Quantum AI Is Now Accepting Proposals for Early Access to Their Willow Quantum Processor
Google Quantum AI announced an early‑access program for its Willow quantum processor, inviting external researchers to submit proposals. The initiative targets projects that can demonstrate high‑impact scientific breakthroughs or novel quantum results. Proposals must be submitted by May 15, 2026, with successful...
American Microbiologist Wins Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize
Professor Joan Bray Rose, Homer Nowlin Chair at Michigan State University, has been awarded the 2026 Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize for pioneering Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA). Her work transformed water safety from reactive testing to predictive risk‑based management,...
India’s Forests Are Worth ₹2.5 Trillion — But Plantations Have Been Hiding It
A new peer‑reviewed meta‑regression finds Indian forests deliver roughly US$30 billion in ecosystem services each year, supporting 275 million people and employing about 100 million in forestry‑related jobs. The study argues that valuing only single services has skewed policy toward industrial plantations, which...
10x Genomics Unveils Atera Spatial Platform at AACR Meeting
10x Genomics announced the Atera spatial platform at the AACR meeting, promising whole‑transcriptome spatial profiling at scale. The instrument delivers four times the throughput, six times the plex capacity, and up to three‑fold higher sensitivity compared with the company’s Xenium...
Early Exposure to Forever Chemicals Linked to Altered Brain Genes and Impulsive Behavior in Rats
Researchers exposed pregnant Long‑Evans rats to 15 mg/L PFOS in drinking water, a dose comparable to high environmental contamination. Offspring showed altered gene expression—62 genes in the nucleus accumbens, 34 in the hippocampus, and 59 in the prefrontal cortex—affecting extracellular matrix...
SpaceX, Blue Origin Compete For 'Artemis III' Mission
NASA’s Artemis III mission, slated for next year, will conduct an Earth‑orbit docking test between the Orion capsule and a commercial lunar lander. SpaceX and Blue Origin are racing to deliver the first operational lander, with Starship and Blue Moon...
Qjump: Shallow-Circuit Quantum Sampling Guides Combinatorial Optimization On up to 104 Superconducting Qubits, Qjump Assists in Searching the Ground States...
Researchers at Zhejiang University introduced Qjump, a hybrid quantum‑classical algorithm that uses shallow quantum circuits to sample low‑energy states of Ising models. Demonstrated on a 104‑qubit superconducting processor, Qjump outperformed fixed‑parameter QAOA and a highly tuned simulated annealing baseline. The...
Rice Study Resolves Decades-Old Mystery in Organic Light-Emitting Crystals: Findings Reveal How Molecular Defects Can Enhance Light Conversion Efficiency:
Rice University researchers have solved a long‑standing mystery in the organic semiconductor 9,10‑bis(phenylethynyl)anthracene (BPEA) by showing that tiny structural defects enhance light conversion. Using spectroscopy and advanced simulations, they discovered that X‑shaped molecular defect pairs create distinct low‑energy emission pathways...
When Light Gets Trapped at Nanoscale: New Ways to Power the Future of Optoelectronics From Bound States in the Continuum...
Researchers have highlighted photonic bound states in the continuum (BICs) as a breakthrough for nanoscale light trapping, enabling ultra‑compact, chip‑compatible metasurfaces. A recent review by Do and Ha surveys material platforms, topological BIC variants, and emerging machine‑learning design methods, illustrating...
A Reusable Chip for Particulate Matter Sensing
Researchers at Ajou University have unveiled a reusable chip that combines surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensing with porous membranes to selectively detect PM10 and PM2.5 particles. The device uses two filter membranes (≈11 µm and ≈3 µm pores) and an on‑chip microheater...
Detecting Vibrational Quantum Beating in the Predissociation Dynamics of SF6 Using Time-Resolved Photoelectron Spectroscopy
Researchers used time‑resolved photoelectron spectroscopy to directly observe vibrational quantum beating during the predissociation of excited SF₆ molecules. An XUV pump (14.1 eV) and UV probe (3.1 eV) scheme captured oscillations with a 318‑fs period, indicating coherent interference between vibrational states separated...
Chemically Accurate Molecular Simulations Demonstrated on IQM Sirius Hardware
Researchers from India, Singapore and the USA used IQM's 24‑qubit Sirius superconducting processor to achieve chemically accurate molecular simulations via Sample‑based Quantum Diagonalization (SQD). The study compared two ansätze—Local Unitary Cluster Jastrow (LUCJ) and Linear‑CNOT Unitary Coupled‑Cluster (LCNot‑UCCSD)—showing LUCJ’s shallow...
One Man’s Obsessive Quest to Weigh the Human Soul
In the early 1900s physicist Duncan MacDougall attempted to weigh the human soul by measuring weight loss at the moment of death. Using a bedside scale, he reported a loss of roughly three‑quarters of an ounce—about 21 grams—when a terminal...
Definium Therapeutics Applauds White House Executive Order to Accelerate Mental Health Innovation and Expand Access to Psychedelic Medical Treatments
Definium Therapeutics welcomed the White House’s new executive order that aims to speed research, regulatory review, and access to innovative mental‑health treatments, including psychedelics. The order directs federal agencies to streamline pathways and boost cross‑agency collaboration. Definium highlighted its DT120...
European Consortium Launches €50 Million SPINS Pilot Line to Industrialize Semiconductor Quantum Chips
The European Union’s Chips Act has funded a €50 million (≈$55 million) SPINS pilot line to industrialise semiconductor‑based spin‑qubit chips. Led by imec and backed by 25 partners—including Infineon, STMicroelectronics and Fraunhofer IPMS—the initiative creates a 300 mm CMOS pathway for Si/SiGe, Ge/GeSi and...
Three Gene Therapy Pioneers Just Won the Breakthrough Prize. This Is Their Story
Three pioneering scientists—Jean Bennett, Albert Maguire, and David J. Wilson—have been honored with the 2026 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for their work on Luxturna, the first gene‑therapy approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Luxturna treats a rare...
Master of Chaos Wins $3M Math Prize for ‘Blowing up’ Equations
Mathematician Frank Merle received the 2024 Breakthrough Prize in Mathematics, a $3 million award, for his pioneering work on nonlinear dynamics. He introduced a novel approach that tackles the inherently chaotic, “blow‑up” behavior of equations by focusing directly on their nonlinear...
Fermilab Experiment Receives Prestigious Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics
The 2026 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics, worth $3 million, was awarded to the Muon g‑2 experiment, recognizing three generations of work that began at CERN, moved to Brookhaven, and culminated at Fermilab. Fermilab led the final stage, delivering the world’s...
China Claims New Jet Engine Can Hit Mach 6 Without Changing Modes
China’s state‑backed researchers say they have built a contra‑rotary ramjet engine that can accelerate a aircraft from take‑off to Mach 6 without switching between turbojet and ramjet modes. The prototype has been experimentally verified, marking the first public claim of a...
BepiColombo Will Enter Mercury Orbit in Late 2026
BepiColombo, the joint ESA‑JAXA mission launched in October 2018, is slated to enter Mercury orbit in late 2026 after a seven‑year cruise that included nine gravity‑assist flybys. The spacecraft comprises two science orbiters—the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter...
Gaganyaan-1: India’s First Orbital Crewed Spaceflight Programme Approaches Its Defining Test
India’s ISRO is set to launch Gaganyaan‑1, an uncrewed orbital test that will carry the Crew Module and Service Module, execute multiple orbits, and splash down in the Bay of Bengal. The mission follows a successful TV‑D1 pad‑abort test and...
Asymmetry Spawns Superior SiC Superjunctions
Researchers at Rohm have unveiled a unified analytical framework for silicon‑carbide (SiC) superjunction devices that incorporates crystal‑axis impact‑ionisation anisotropy and arbitrary geometric asymmetry. By tuning the width and doping of n‑ and p‑type pillars, the asymmetric semi‑superjunction design reduces specific...