Cuddling koalas show unexpected sociable side in surprising video
A group of male koalas were filmed grooming and playing together, in contrast to their solitary reputation, probably as a result of an unusually dense population in southern Victoria ⌘ Read more
DeepSeek has burst the AI hype bubble – now all bets are off
The Chinese firm threatens the dominance of Silicon Valley’s AI elite, and its innovations show the technology could be more affordable and less costly to the environment ⌘ Read more
Enigmatic people who took over Europe millennia ago came from Ukraine
A huge study of ancient DNA reveals the origins of the Yamna, who spread across Eurasia around 5000 years ago, showing they came from a mixing of populations north of the Black Sea ⌘ Read more
New type of brain cell may tell us when to stop eating
Mice have neurons that can be controlled to stop them eating - and people probably have them too ⌘ Read more
Ancient relative of geese is the earliest known modern bird
A newly analysed fossil skull settles a palaeontological debate over Vegavis iaai, confirming it as a relative of ducks and geese that lived 69 million years ago ⌘ Read more
Indoor cannabis farms in US use more energy than all other agriculture
Two-thirds of US cannabis is grown indoors, requiring lights and temperature control that produce a vast amounts of emissions ⌘ Read more
Layered graphene has revealed a strange new kind of superconductivity
The odd superconductivity found in layered graphene may bring us closer to understanding room-temperature superconductors ⌘ Read more
What the new field of women’s neuroscience reveals about female brains
Neuroscientist-turned-entrepreneur Emilė Radytė is using brain stimulation to explore how things like premenstrual syndrome and period pain impact the brain ⌘ Read more
Volcano-scorched Roman scroll is read for the first time in 2000 years
A papyrus scroll carbonised by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius two millennia ago is slowly being read once again thanks to X-ray imaging and machine learning ⌘ Read more
Is cleaner air accelerating global warming more than we expected?
Reductions in air pollution have helped warm the planet by cutting down on reflective particles in the atmosphere – but researchers still disagree on the size of this effect ⌘ Read more
Grand canyons formed on moon in minutes after colossal asteroid strike
Two canyons that splay out from a vast asteroid crater on the moon may have been quickly formed by chains of impacts that followed the initial one ⌘ Read more
The shocking discovery that our gut microbiome drives ageing
A new understanding of our relationship with our “friendly” gut microbes shows they actually have a dark side and help cause ageing. Here’s how to fight back ⌘ Read more
Spiders can run just as fast after two of their legs drop off
When spiders self-amputate two of their legs, they quickly adjust their running gait so they can return to full speed ⌘ Read more
Laughing gas could be picked up by a breathalyser
Many countries have made it illegal to possess nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, and research now shows the drug can be picked up in someone’s breath ⌘ Read more
Bonobos can tell when they know something you don’t
Recognising that someone lacks information you possess is key for effective communication and cooperation, and bonobos seem to share this skill with humans ⌘ Read more
January 2025 sets surprise record as hottest ever start to a year
Meteorologists expected global temperatures to start falling after record highs in 2023 and 2024 – instead January 2025 hit a new high ⌘ Read more
Rice variant slashes planet-warming methane emissions by 70 per cent
Using traditional crossbreeding, researchers have created a new strain of rice that produces much less methane, a potent greenhouse gas, when it is grown in flooded fields ⌘ Read more
Omega-3 supplements seem to slow down biological ageing
Taking a daily omega-3 supplement appears to slow down the rate of biological ageing by three months – and even more so if you also take vitamin D and exercise ⌘ Read more
Why we must investigate Phobos, the solar system’s strangest object
Mars’s moon Phobos is so strange that no one knows how it formed. But a forthcoming mission could solve this mystery - and a host of other puzzles connected to the solar system’s deep past ⌘ Read more
Most detailed survey of particles around the sun reveals new mysteries
More than a decade of data about the particles zipping around our sun can solve mysteries from the behaviour of individual particles to the history of our solar system – while raising new questions ⌘ Read more