Pure Science

The Guardian

Cetus, also known as the whale, is one of the faint constellations but you have a week to trace its outline This week, track down the constellation Cetus, variously referred to as the whale or sea monster. It is one of the faint...

The Guardian

More and more people are turning to egg freezing to increase their chances of becoming a parent. Here’s what you need to know if you’re considering it – from the hidden costs to the chances of success When I first told my mother I was...

The Guardian

Once escapees from the pet trade, Los Angeles’s feral parrots have become a vibrant part of city life, and could even aid conservation in their native homelands A morning mist hung over the palm trees as birds chattered and cars roared by...

The Guardian

Respected ocean expert Katy Soapi continues to advocate to protect Tetepare, one of the last untouched places in Solomon Islands Scientist Katy Soapi’s earliest memories are of the sea. She grew up on Rendova, a lush island in western...

The Guardian

Third series of TV drama spiked interest in anti-anxiety drug amid warnings over illicit production of ‘benzos’ In the third series of the hit TV show The White Lotus, the entitled North Carolina housewife Victoria Ratliff is often shown...

The Guardian

Officials urge vaccination against mutated strain of virus that may be more transmissible than usual Hospitals are bracing for a once-in-a-decade flu season, with a mutated version of the virus that is spreading widely in younger people...

The Guardian

Blue Origin successfully launches its huge New Glenn rocket on Thursday with a pair of Nasa spacecraft destined for Mars. It is only the second flight of the rocket that Jeff Bezos's company and Nasa are counting on to ferry people and...

The Guardian

It certainly sounds like fun until you walk under a tree and… Sign up here to get an email whenever First Dog cartoons are published Get all your needs met at the First Dog shop if what you need is First Dog merchandise and prints Continue...

The Guardian

Well-preserved oak and maple boats used for transport and fishing to be displayed in Peterborough After lying undisturbed in mud for more than 3,000 years, three rare bronze and iron age log boats have emerged to offer fresh insights into...

The Guardian

A huge New Glenn rocket successfully took off to place two spacecraft in orbit for a later boost to the red planet Blue Origin successfully launched its huge New Glenn rocket on Thursday with a pair of Nasa spacecraft destined for Mars. It...

The Guardian

Research among women finds those who eat more UPFs have greater risk of early onset of polyp that can lead to cancer Women under 50 who have a diet high in ultra-processed foods (UPFs) stand a greater risk of having abnormal growths in...

The Guardian

Study estimates 53,000 females have died on South Georgia since 2023, with ‘dramatic impact’ on future of the species Bird flu has wiped out half of South Georgia’s breeding elephant seals, according to a study that warns of “serious...

The Guardian

Was the wartime chant about his solitary testicle correct? Did he have Jewish ancestry? New documentary Hitler’s DNA is trying to answer these, and more contentious, questions – but should it have gone there at all? If a TV programme sets...

The Guardian

Ian Sample joins Madeleine Finlay to discuss some of the most intriguing science stories from the week. They discuss the complicated legacy of James Watson, who won the Nobel Prize for the discovery of the structure of DNA; a new...

The Guardian

The geomagnetic storm, caused by powerful bursts of energy from the sun, also postponed the launch of two Mars-bound Nasa spacecraft in the US Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or...

The Guardian

Data also shows an average of nearly 400 newly reported cases of antibiotic-resistant infections a week last year The number of deaths linked to superbugs that do not respond to frontline antibiotics increased by 17% in England last year,...

The Guardian

Connection of near-ubiquitous EBV to autoimmune disease affecting about 1 in 1,000 people may spur hunt for vaccine A common childhood virus appears to be the trigger for the autoimmune disease lupus, according to groundbreaking research....

The Guardian

Aurora borealis reported in over a dozen states, stretching from New York to Texas and Tennessee A powerful geomagnetic storm lit up skies across much of the US late Tuesday and early Wednesday, giving people in dozens of states a rare...

The Guardian

Animal behaviourists tested 61 gulls in Cornwall to find most effective method of countering feathery threat Some people respond to the unwanted attentions of a gull eyeing up a bag of chips or a Cornish pasty by frantically flapping their...

The Guardian

New funding for researchers and streamlined regulation part of roadmap for phasing out use of animals in science Animal testing in science would be phased out faster under a new plan to increase the use of artificial intelligence and 3D...

The Guardian

Do you have an uncanny recall for faces? Have you ever recognised the same extra in TV shows that are decades apart? If so you could be part of the small number of super recognisers. Research from the University of New South Wales...

The Guardian

The solution to today’s poison puzzler Earlier today I set you the following puzzle. Here it is again with the solution. Two dead at the drink-off Continue reading...

The Guardian

Blue Origin says it is aiming for another attempt as soon as Wednesday as competition with Musk’s SpaceX intensifies Blue Origin, the space company owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos, was forced on Sunday to postpone the anticipated launch of...

The Guardian

Tearing up, sweating and other bodily functions are all signs that the body is trying to expel spicy foods as quickly as possible. But there is a simple reason why some people enjoy those sensations The first thing to understand about...

The Guardian

Wrap up warm, grab a deck chair and take your place to spot about 10-15 bright meteors an hour It is time again for one of the more reliable meteor showers of the year: the Leonids. Active between early November and early December, the...

The Guardian

Who poisoned who? Today’s puzzle is credited to Michael Rabin, the legendary computer scientist, who in the late 1980s posted it to an electronic bulletin board at Carnegie Mellon University. It has recently been brought to light by a...

The Guardian

Fascination of investors such as Elon Musk with uploading their brains to computers is hindering progress in curing disease, say scientists It has been an excellent year for neurotech, if you ignore the people funding it. In August, a tiny...

The Guardian

Nobel prize-winning biologist whose discovery, with Francis Crick, of the structure of DNA solved the mystery of genetic inheritance James Watson, who has died aged 97, had an extraordinary gift for science, combined with ruthless ambition...

The Guardian

Parenthood can seem an impossible dream for many, and online sperm donor groups offer a solution, but they can be a murky world A man going by the name “Rod Kissme” claims to have “very strong sperm”. It may seem like an...

The Guardian

Robert Beattie, 82, has found specimens of a 151m-year-old midge that challenge what we know about how the insects evolved Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here As a boy, holidaying with...

The Guardian

Endocrinologists warn taking testosterone unnecessarily can suppress the body’s natural hormone production Social media misinformation is driving men to NHS clinics in search of testosterone they don’t need, adding pressure to already...

The Guardian

Last weekend’s Cambridgeshire train attack brought up a question that we often ask ourselves. But the answer isn’t simple Emma Kavanagh is a psychologist who has worked for the police and the military The devastating attack on train...

The Guardian

Modern research shows the public work together selflessly in an emergency, motivated by a strong impulse to help It was early morning on 1 January last year when Colin McGarva dived into a flooding river in Worcester to rescue an...

The Guardian

Nobel prize winner shaped medicine, crimefighting and genealogy but later years marred by racist remarks James D Watson, whose co-discovery of the twisted-ladder structure of DNA in 1953 helped light the long fuse on a revolution in...

The Guardian

Global environment editor Jon Watts goes in search of answers to the question the journalist Dom Phillips was investigating when he was murdered: how to save the Amazon? In the final episode of this three-part series from June 2025, Jon...

The Guardian

History tells us that polite incrementalism and political kowtowing will prevail at Cop30 – even as catastrophe unfolds around us As world leaders gather in Brazil this year for Cop30 – the first Amazonian Cop – it’s worth doing a quick...

The Guardian

Country’s top court declines to block controversial cull of hundreds of birds amid fears of an avian flu outbreak Canada’s food inspection agency says it plans to begin a “complete depopulation” of hundreds of ostriches at a farm after the...

The Guardian

Droughts and heatwaves causing water in some areas to reach 41C, killing fish and endangered dolphins, say researchers Amazonian lakes are being transformed into simmering basins hotter than spa baths as severe heatwaves and drought grip...

The Guardian

UN body’s recommendations driven by AI advances and proliferation of consumer-oriented neurotech devices It is the latest move in a growing international effort to put guardrails around a burgeoning frontier – technologies that harness...

The Guardian

Tech billionaire relying on ‘false binary’ with call to focus less on emissions and more on aid for poor, experts say A new memo on the climate crisis from Bill Gates relies on “straw man” arguments about the threat to humanity and “false...

The Guardian

Jon Watts, the Guardian’s global environment editor, goes in search of answers to the question the journalist Dom Phillips was investigating when he was murdered: how to save the Amazon? In episode two of this miniseries from June 2025,...

The Guardian

The largest supermoon of the year, the so-called ‘beaver’ moon is the biggest and brightest of 2025, just 357,000 km from Earth Watch November’s ‘beaver’ supermoon rising over Sydney’s Bondi beach – video Glowing September supermoon lights...

The Guardian

Hut where father of immunology trialled first smallpox vaccine among 138 additions to Historic England list A rustic, ordinary-looking English garden hut regarded as the birthplace of immunology – revolutionising global public health and...

The Guardian

AI-inspired word joins ‘biohacking’, ‘Henry’ and ‘broligarchy’ on tech-heavy 2025 list “Vibe coding”, an emerging software development that turns natural language into computer code using artificial intelligence, has been named Collins...

The Guardian

This hit debut from Finland is intensely readable, but could have delved more deeply into the links between human progress and environmental destruction In November 1741 Georg Wilhelm Steller, “theologian, naturalist, and curious man”, was...

The Guardian

Astronomers cast doubt on Nobel prize-winning theory and suggest universe could end in ‘big crunch’ Astronomers have cast doubt on a Nobel prize-winning theory that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, suggesting that instead it...

The Guardian

Experts find artefacts left behind in Caral showing how population survived drought without resorting to violence Archaeologists in Peru have found new evidence showing how the oldest known civilization in the Americas adapted and survived...

The Guardian

For parents who have buried infants born too soon, a device like the AquaWomb is a miracle in waiting – and an impossible choice Beth Schafer lay in a hospital bed, bracing for the birth of her son. The first contractions rippled through...

The Guardian

Global environment editor Jon Watts goes in search of answers to the question the journalist Dom Phillips was investigating when he was murdered: how to save the Amazon? In episode one of this miniseries from June 2025, Jon explores what’s...

The Guardian

The three astronauts from the Shenzhou-20 mission flew to the Tiangong space station in April, and were expected to return on Wednesday The return to Earth of three Chinese astronauts has been delayed until an unspecified date after their...