Scientists are increasingly turning to genetically modified organisms—from heat-tolerant corals to engineered crops—as a strategy to buffer ecosystems against climate change. Known as facilitated adaptation, this approach leverages gene-editing tools to bolster species resilience, though ethical questions remain.
Scientists propose resurrecting woolly mammoths to restore Arctic grasslands and slow permafrost thaw, but the scale of the challenge is immense. With only 17,000 suitable elephant surrogates, artificial wombs may be the only path to the 80,000 animals needed. Ethical and logistical hurdles remain, yet the potential climate benefits drive the research forward.
South Australia's grid demand hit a new minimum of 587.8 MW on September 17, driven by strong rooftop solar output. This marks the second record low in a week, with solar now meeting nearly half of the state's electricity needs. The trend signals a shift in grid management and peak-time definitions.
A new study from Oxford and Harvard suggests that tardigrades, also known as water bears, could survive catastrophic cosmic events like asteroid impacts and supernovae, potentially outlasting all other life on Earth until the Sun's death. This research not only highlights the resilience of these microscopic creatures but also informs the search for life beyond our planet.
Researchers at RMIT University have developed a rechargeable proton battery using carbon and water, offering a potential alternative to lithium-ion cells. The prototype stores energy by splitting water molecules and could be commercially available within a decade.
During the recent total solar eclipse, astronauts aboard the International Space Station captured the Moon's shadow moving across the United States. NASA shared footage of the event, which also plunged cities like Dallas and Cleveland into darkness. The eclipse was notable for its path crossing densely populated areas.
A new study from the Dolphin Research Center in the Florida Keys shows that dolphins exposed to underwater drilling noise lengthen and amplify their calls to be heard, but often fail. The research, published in Current Biology, found that at the loudest noise levels, the dolphins' communication success dropped to 62.5 percent.
Earth Island Institute has filed a lawsuit in California against Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Nestlé, and other major plastic producers, accusing them of misleading the public about recyclability. The suit highlights that only 9% of U.S. plastic is recycled, and that plastic could outweigh fish in the ocean by 2050. This is the first legal action of its kind against the beverage industry.
A new study in Nature Climate Change reveals that the wealthiest 10% of the global population caused two-thirds of observed climate warming since 1990, with the top 1% contributing 20 times more than the bottom 99%. Researchers linked economic data with climate models to highlight the role of investments and consumption in emissions.
A new CGI video from Corridor Digital depicts a military robot enduring brutal training, but its creators highlight a serious future where autonomous machines could be deployed in combat, raising ethical questions about AI in warfare.
DARPA is collaborating with cybersecurity firm Galois to develop open-source voting technology that allows voters to verify their ballots are counted correctly. The initiative aims to strengthen existing voting machines by inviting experts to test for vulnerabilities, potentially reducing election fraud and errors.
CERN's LHCb experiment has confirmed the existence of the Xicc++ particle, a baryon with two heavy charm quarks, a first for such particles. This finding validates the Standard Model and offers new tools for probing the strong force, potentially illuminating conditions shortly after the Big Bang.
Scientists confirm a pear-shaped atomic nucleus in Barium-144, challenging long-held symmetry assumptions in physics. This finding could help explain the universe's matter-antimatter imbalance and why time appears to flow only forward.
