Science

A seismic wave generated by Japan’s devastating 2011 magnitude 9.0 Tohoku-Oki earthquake travelled nearly 2,900 kilometres to the boundary of Earth’s core, reflected back about 13 minutes later and shifted the entire country eastward by roughly six millimetres, according to a study published in the journal Science. The movement was far too small for anyone … Read more

Humans Fed Salmon to Canines 12,000 Years Ago, Study Suggests, Hinting at the Origin of Our Relationship With Dogs Early humans in Alaska were sharing their salmon catches with ancient canines 12,000 years ago. This shows that close relationships between humans and dog ancestors developed 2,000 years earlier than anyone previously thought in the Americas.The … Read more

In the Indian state of Rajasthan, authorities have excavated a 28km artificial lake to line it with plastic and separate it from sand. Behind this lies the mission to supply water to 5 million people living in the cities of Jaisalmer and Barmer in the state. A reservoir in the Thar Desert The Thar Desert … Read more

Two Asian praying mantises are spreading across Europe, and scientists warn they may now threaten native wildlife Two giant Asian praying mantis species are rapidly spreading across Europe, leading scientists to officially classify them as invasive threats to native wildlife.These fast-breeding predators are steadily moving north, helped by rising global temperatures and the warm conditions … Read more

Artistic rendering of Penrose super-radiance: electromagnetic waves with selected rotation patterns are amplified as they interact with a system that appears to rotate at superluminal speeds. (Credit: Dalila Pasotti and Hadiseh Nasari) Physicists have successfully recreated some of the extreme physics of black holes inside a laboratory by building a stationary device that can copy … Read more

Floating solar panels helped cut diesel use and also created a haven for salmon. (Picture source: Mowi.com) A salmon farm off the coast of Chile has found an unexpected benefit after replacing diesel generators with floating solar panels. While the project was launched to cut emissions and reduce fuel use, the new system also created … Read more

Imagine placing a flat piece of plastic on a warm surface and watching it fold itself into a fully functional robot without human hands, motors or complex assembly. It may sound like science fiction, but researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) demonstrated exactly that with a tiny, origami-inspired robot designed to assemble itself … Read more

Carl Friedrich Gauss (Image: Wikipedia) Most people assume that if an idea sounds complicated, it must also be profound. Carl Friedrich Gauss, one of the greatest mathematicians in history, was not convinced. “When a philosopher says something that is true then it is trivial,” he observed. “When he says something that is not trivial then … Read more

Brazil is dealing with one of its worst dengue fever outbreaks in years, and scientists are trying something unusual to bring the numbers down. Instead of just relying on vaccines and mosquito spray, health teams are releasing genetically modified mosquitoes into several cities, hoping these lab-bred insects will help shrink the population of disease-spreading mosquitoes … Read more

Seagrass meadows could help nourish millions, new study finds Underwater fields of seagrass could play an important role in fighting malnutrition among vulnerable coastal communities, according to new research published in Cell Reports Sustainability. The study was carried out by scientists from Stockholm University and Project Seagrass. It found that fish caught in seagrass meadows … Read more