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How materials that rewind light can test physics' most extreme ideas

Strange solids called temporal metamaterials finally make it possible to investigate the controversial idea of quantum friction – and push special relativity to its limits




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Is the world's biggest fusion experiment dead after new delay to 2035?

ITER, a €20 billion nuclear fusion reactor under construction in France, will now not switch on until 2035 - a delay of 10 years. With smaller commercial fusion efforts on the rise, is it worth continuing with this gargantuan project?




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Take a look behind the scenes at the world's largest fusion experiment

Photographer Enrico Sacchetti captures the power and potential of ITER, an international nuclear fusion experiment currently under construction in southern France




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Certain quantum systems may be able to defy entropy's effects forever

A mathematical proof shows that some quantum states can resist nature’s tendency to disorder – but only under very specific conditions




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Tiniest 'ruler' ever measures distances as small as an atom's width

A new technique uses glowing molecules, laser light and microscopes to measure distances as minuscule as 0.1 nanometres – the width of a typical atom




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Quantum 'Schrödinger's cat' survives for a stunning 23 minutes

A typically fragile quantum superposition has been made to last exceptionally long, and could eventually be used as a probe for discovering new physics




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We've seen particles that are massless only when moving one direction

Inside a hunk of a material called a semimetal, scientists have uncovered signatures of bizarre particles that sometimes move like they have no mass, but at other times move just like a very massive particle




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Quantum Rubik's cube has infinite patterns but is still solvable

Allowing for moves that create quantum superpositions makes a quantum version of a Rubik’s cube incredibly complex, but not impossible to solve




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Gold hydrogen: Is there a huge reserve of clean fuel in Earth's crust?

Geologists think there may be vast natural stores of hidden hydrogen gas within Earth, but no one is sure how much there is or how much could be recovered for energy




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World's first drilling project to seek natural hydrogen hits a snag

A well in Nebraska is the first in the world to have been drilled in search of naturally occurring geologic hydrogen, but tests to determine how much of the gas it might supply are on hold because of a broken pump




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Dried-up lake may explain why California is 'overdue' major earthquake

Pressure on the San Andreas fault from a now-dried lake could have been sufficient to trigger past major earthquakes in California. The lake’s disappearance could explain why there have been no such quakes for nearly 300 years




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There's a gravity 'hole' in the Indian Ocean and now we may know why

Earth appears to have less mass beneath a certain part of the Indian Ocean compared with the rest of the planet. Plumes of magma at the location could explain why




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Chris Packham: We're precipitating a mass extermination event

Chris Packham's new BBC series, Earth, looks at significant moments in Earth's history, including anthropogenic climate change and biodiversity loss, "It's not a sixth mass extinction event that we're precipitating," he says, "it's a mass extermination event"




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GPS could predict earthquakes two hours ahead, but there's a catch

An analysis of GPS data has revealed a slow and otherwise undetectable slip of tectonic plates that begins two hours before an earthquake - but detecting this in advance would require more accurate sensors




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Stunning image of South America's largest lake hides a dark secret

Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela, the largest lake in South America, has been captured in detail by the European Space Agency's Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission




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Popocatépetl: Predicting Mexico's most dangerous volcano

Few volcanos come with more risk than Mexico's Popocatépetl, situated near Mexico City.  To mitigate danger, volcanologist Chiara Maria Petrone is trying to predict its next eruption




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See a dazzling collection of the year's best northern lights pictures

This spectacular selection of images is taken from the winners of the Northern Lights Photographer of the Year competition, run by Capture the Atlas




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World's first tunnel to a magma chamber could unleash unlimited energy

In Iceland, scientists are planning to drill two boreholes to a reservoir of liquid rock. One will give us our first direct measurements of magma – the other could supercharge geothermal power




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Lithium mining looks set to reshape Bolivia's Salar de Uyuni salt flat

Photographer Matjaz Krivic has been charting the effects of lithium mining on locals in the world's largest salt flat in Bolivia since 2016




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Stark, haunting images show Kazakhstan's former nuclear testing ground

These stunning photographs are all shortlisted for the Sony World Photography Awards 2024




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It's time to accept that we are in the Anthropocene once and for all

Humans are drastically changing the planet and the Anthropocene is a useful tool to help us deal with that – so let's stop quibbling over definitions




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Geoscientists are using telecom 'dark fibres' to map Earth’s innards

The networks of fibre optic cables that criss-cross the planet could be used to better understand what’s happening inside it




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These photos show how a warmer climate is damaging Earth's waters

Photographer Diane Tuft has documented how global warming is affecting bodies of water around the world




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Snow and rising sea levels may have triggered Japan's earthquake swarm

In an ongoing swarm of earthquakes that began hitting Japan in 2020, the shifting weight of surface water may have spurred the shaking




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Record-breaking drill core reaches 1.2 kilometres into Earth's mantle

A scientific drilling ship has burrowed further into Earth’s mantle than ever before, obtaining new clues about the processes that feed oceanic volcanoes and the possible origins of life




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How 'river piracy' made Mount Everest grow even taller

Rapid erosion caused by a geological act of “piracy” tens of thousands of years ago may have raised Earth’s crust and elevated Mount Everest by as much as 50 metres




9

Quantum 'Schrödinger's cat' survives for a stunning 23 minutes

A typically fragile quantum superposition has been made to last exceptionally long, and could eventually be used as a probe for discovering new physics




9

Michelangelo's 'The Flood' seems to depict a woman with breast cancer

The Renaissance artist Michelangelo had carried out human dissections, which may have led him to include women with breast cancer in some of his pieces




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Mountaineering astronauts and bad spelling? It's advertising's future

Feedback digs into a baffling ad for a mobile game and identifies a new and devilish way to advertise a product online: make it as confusing as possible to encourage people to click (it worked on Feedback)




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War-era sugar rationing boosted health of UK people conceived in 1940s

People conceived during the UK's 1940s and 50s sugar rationing have a lower risk of type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure than those conceived after rationing ended




9

We've seen particles that are massless only when moving one direction

Inside a hunk of a material called a semimetal, scientists have uncovered signatures of bizarre particles that sometimes move like they have no mass, but at other times move just like a very massive particle




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World's largest tree is also among the oldest living organisms

DNA analysis suggests Pando, a quaking aspen in Utah with thousands of stems connected by their roots, is between 16,000 and 81,000 years old




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COP29: Clashes over cash are set to dominate the climate conference

The focus is on finance at the UN climate summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, this month, but countries are a long way from any kind of consensus




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Ancient Egyptians shaped sheep's horns – and we don't know why

The earliest evidence of livestock with modified horns has been discovered in ancient Egypt – sheep skulls with horns that point in unnatural directions suggest humans forced them to grow that way




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Slick trick separates oil and water with 99.9 per cent purity

Oil and water can be separated efficiently by pumping the mixture through thin channels between two semipermeable membranes




9

Quantum Rubik's cube has infinite patterns but is still solvable

Allowing for moves that create quantum superpositions makes a quantum version of a Rubik’s cube incredibly complex, but not impossible to solve




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Migratory birds can use Earth's magnetic field like a GPS

Eurasian reed warblers don’t just get a sense of direction from Earth’s magnetic field – they can also calculate their coordinates on a mental map




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Ancient Herculaneum scroll piece revealed by AI – here's what it says

A Greek philosopher’s musings on pleasure, contained in ancient papyrus scrolls buried by Mount Vesuvius’s eruption 2000 years ago, have been rediscovered with the help of AI




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World's oldest wine found in 2000-year-old Roman tomb

An urn found in a tomb in Spain contained the cremated remains of a man, a gold ring and about 5 litres of liquid, which has been identified as now-discoloured white wine




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Easter Island's legendary societal collapse didn't actually happen

Historians have claimed the people of Easter Island overexploited natural resources, causing a population crash, but new evidence suggests they lived sustainably for centuries




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Ancient plant artefact reveals humanity's epic journey to Australia

We know that modern humans took one of two routes to first reach Australia, and now an ancient chunk of plant resin has tipped the evidence towards the northern option




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World's oldest cheese found on 3500-year-old Chinese mummies

DNA and protein analysis has identified a white substance smeared on mummies in China as a kind of kefir cheese, made from cow and goat milk




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The fascinating truth about why common sense isn't really that common

New research is revealing that common sense is a lot more idiosyncratic than we thought, with important implications for tackling political polarisation and the future of AI




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Read an extract from Rachel Kushner's Creation Lake

In the opening to Rachel Kushner's Booker-shortlisted novel Creation Lake, the latest pick for the New Scientist Book Club, we meet undercover operative Sadie Smith as she secretly reads the emails of an eco-activist group




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We're homing in on the best ways to tackle misinformation

A debating technique known as the "truth sandwich" is helping archaeologists combat a false narrative about an advanced ancient civilisation forgotten in human history




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DNA helps match 'Well Man' skeleton to 800-year-old Norwegian saga

The Sverris saga describes how castle invaders “took a dead man and cast him unto the well, and then filled it up with stones”, in what may have been an early act of biological warfare - and now researchers believe they have found the skeleton of the man in question




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Ancient Egyptians shaped sheep's horns – and we don't know why

The earliest evidence of livestock with modified horns has been discovered in ancient Egypt – sheep skulls with horns that point in unnatural directions suggest humans forced them to grow that way




9

PFAS 'Forever Chemicals' Linked With Liver Cancer

Title: PFAS 'Forever Chemicals' Linked With Liver Cancer
Category: Health News
Created: 8/10/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/10/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Need Advice on Medical Pot for Cancer Care? Don't Ask Local Dispensary

Title: Need Advice on Medical Pot for Cancer Care? Don't Ask Local Dispensary
Category: Health News
Created: 8/17/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/18/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Breakthrough Might Break Down PFAS 'Forever Chemicals'

Title: Breakthrough Might Break Down PFAS 'Forever Chemicals'
Category: Health News
Created: 8/19/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/19/2022 12:00:00 AM