Some truths about the Universe and our experience in it seem immutable. The sky is up. Gravity sucks. Nothing can travel faster than light. Multicellular life needs oxygen to live. Except we might need to rethink that last one.Earlier this year, scientists discovered that a jellyfish-like parasite doesn't have a mitochondrial genome - the first multicellular organism known to have this absence. That means it doesn't breathe; in fact, it lives its life completely free of oxygen dependency.This discovery isn't just changing our understanding of how life can work here on Earth - it could also...…Some truths about the Universe and our experience in it seem immutable. The sky is up. Gravity sucks. Nothing can travel faster than light. Multicellular life needs oxygen to live. Except we might need to rethink that last one.Earlier this year, scientists discovered that a jellyfish-like parasite doesn't have a mitochondrial genome - the first multicellular organism known to have this absence. That means it doesn't breathe; in fact, it lives its life completely free of oxygen dependency.This discovery isn't just changing our understanding of how life can work here on Earth - it could also...WW…

One of the defining characteristics of the mysterious deep-space signals we call is that they are unpredictable. They belch out across the cosmos without rhyme or reason, with no discernible pattern, making them incredibly hard to study.Now, for the first time, astronomers have found a ( ) that repeats on a regular cycle.Every 16.35 days, the signal named FRB 180916.J0158+65 follows a similar pattern. For four days, it will spit out a burst or two every hour. Then it falls silent for 12 days. Then the whole thing repeats.Astronomers with the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment...…One of the defining characteristics of the mysterious deep-space signals we call is that they are unpredictable. They belch out across the cosmos without rhyme or reason, with no discernible pattern, making them incredibly hard to study.Now, for the first time, astronomers have found a ( ) that repeats on a regular cycle.Every 16.35 days, the signal named FRB 180916.J0158+65 follows a similar pattern. For four days, it will spit out a burst or two every hour. Then it falls silent for 12 days. Then the whole thing repeats.Astronomers with the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment...WW…

Broadly speaking, animals tend to be sexually dimorphic. You have males, with small gametes, and females, with large gametes, both of which are required for sexual reproduction. Every now and again, though, nature throws a curveball - producing an organism that's a combination of both sexes, divided straight down the middle.This condition is known as gynandromorphism, and scientists have just found the first known gynandromorphic individual of its species in a nocturnal bee native to Central and South America, Megalopta amoenae.On its left side, the bee is physiologically male. It has a...…Broadly speaking, animals tend to be sexually dimorphic. You have males, with small gametes, and females, with large gametes, both of which are required for sexual reproduction. Every now and again, though, nature throws a curveball - producing an organism that's a combination of both sexes, divided straight down the middle.This condition is known as gynandromorphism, and scientists have just found the first known gynandromorphic individual of its species in a nocturnal bee native to Central and South America, Megalopta amoenae.On its left side, the bee is physiologically male. It has a...WW…

A new discovery could be a clue for us to see if life could emerge elsewhere in the Solar System. Using a new analysis technique, scientists think they have found an extraterrestrial protein, tucked inside a meteorite that fell to Earth 30 years ago.If their results can be replicated, it will be the first protein ever identified that didn't originate here on Earth."This paper characterises the first protein to be discovered in a meteorite," the researchers wrote in a paper . Their work is yet to be peer reviewed, but the implications of this finding are noteworthy.Over the last few years,...…A new discovery could be a clue for us to see if life could emerge elsewhere in the Solar System. Using a new analysis technique, scientists think they have found an extraterrestrial protein, tucked inside a meteorite that fell to Earth 30 years ago.If their results can be replicated, it will be the first protein ever identified that didn't originate here on Earth."This paper characterises the first protein to be discovered in a meteorite," the researchers wrote in a paper . Their work is yet to be peer reviewed, but the implications of this finding are noteworthy.Over the last few years,...WW…

In an incredible historic first, a human-made spacecraft has swooped in and made contact with the Sun.On 28 April 2021, NASA's Parker Solar Probe actually flew into and through the solar corona, the upper atmosphere of the Sun. Not only did it live to tell the tale – proving the efficacy of Parker's high-tech heat shielding – it took in situ measurements, giving us a wealth of never-before-seen data on the heart of our Solar System."Parker Solar Probe 'touching the Sun' is a monumental moment for solar science and a truly remarkable feat," , associate administrator for the Science Mission...…In an incredible historic first, a human-made spacecraft has swooped in and made contact with the Sun.On 28 April 2021, NASA's Parker Solar Probe actually flew into and through the solar corona, the upper atmosphere of the Sun. Not only did it live to tell the tale – proving the efficacy of Parker's high-tech heat shielding – it took in situ measurements, giving us a wealth of never-before-seen data on the heart of our Solar System."Parker Solar Probe 'touching the Sun' is a monumental moment for solar science and a truly remarkable feat," , associate administrator for the Science Mission...WW…

A cup of mud that has been buried beneath the floor of a cave for millennia has just yielded up the genome of an ancient human.Analysis reveals traces of a woman who lived 25,000 years ago, during the last ice age; and, although we don't know much about her, she represents a significant scientific achievement: the feasibility of identifying ancient human populations even when there are no bones to recover.The sample also yielded DNA from wolf and bison species, which an international team of scientists were able to place in the context of their population histories."Our results," , "provide...…A cup of mud that has been buried beneath the floor of a cave for millennia has just yielded up the genome of an ancient human.Analysis reveals traces of a woman who lived 25,000 years ago, during the last ice age; and, although we don't know much about her, she represents a significant scientific achievement: the feasibility of identifying ancient human populations even when there are no bones to recover.The sample also yielded DNA from wolf and bison species, which an international team of scientists were able to place in the context of their population histories."Our results," , "provide...WW…

There's been a fabulous new achievement in particle physics.For the first time, scientists have managed to image the orbits of electrons within a known as an exciton - a result that has allowed them to finally measure the excitonic wave function describing the spatial distribution of electron momentum within the quasiparticle.This achievement has been sought since the discovery of excitons in the 1930s, and while it may sound abstract at first, it could help in the development of various technologies, including quantum tech applications."Excitons are really unique and interesting particles;...…There's been a fabulous new achievement in particle physics.For the first time, scientists have managed to image the orbits of electrons within a known as an exciton - a result that has allowed them to finally measure the excitonic wave function describing the spatial distribution of electron momentum within the quasiparticle.This achievement has been sought since the discovery of excitons in the 1930s, and while it may sound abstract at first, it could help in the development of various technologies, including quantum tech applications."Excitons are really unique and interesting particles;...WW…

When a dog-sized Psittacosaurus was living out its days on Earth, it was probably concerned with mating, eating, and not being killed by other . It would never even have crossed its mind that, 120 million or so years later, scientists would be peering intensely up its clacker.However, that's precisely what they have done, yielding the most detailed description yet of a non-avian 's cloaca: the catch-all hole used for peeing, pooping, mating, and laying eggs.This Swiss Army knife of buttholes is common throughout the animal kingdom today - all birds, amphibians, reptiles, and even a few...…When a dog-sized Psittacosaurus was living out its days on Earth, it was probably concerned with mating, eating, and not being killed by other . It would never even have crossed its mind that, 120 million or so years later, scientists would be peering intensely up its clacker.However, that's precisely what they have done, yielding the most detailed description yet of a non-avian 's cloaca: the catch-all hole used for peeing, pooping, mating, and laying eggs.This Swiss Army knife of buttholes is common throughout the animal kingdom today - all birds, amphibians, reptiles, and even a few...WW…

Spiders rely quite significantly on touch to sense the world around them. Their bodies and legs are covered in tiny hairs and slits that can distinguish between different kinds of vibrations.Prey blundering into a web makes a very different vibrational clamor from another spider coming a-wooing, or the stirring of a breeze, for example. Each strand of a web produces a different tone.A few years ago, scientists translated the three-dimensional structure of a spider's web into music, working with artist Tomás Saraceno to create an interactive musical instrument, titled . Now the team has...…Spiders rely quite significantly on touch to sense the world around them. Their bodies and legs are covered in tiny hairs and slits that can distinguish between different kinds of vibrations.Prey blundering into a web makes a very different vibrational clamor from another spider coming a-wooing, or the stirring of a breeze, for example. Each strand of a web produces a different tone.A few years ago, scientists translated the three-dimensional structure of a spider's web into music, working with artist Tomás Saraceno to create an interactive musical instrument, titled . Now the team has...WW…

The constant ebb and flow of hormones that guide the menstrual cycle don't just affect reproductive anatomy. They also reshape the brain, and a study has given us insight into how this happens. Led by neuroscientists Elizabeth Rizor and Viktoriya Babenko of the University of California Santa Barbara, a team of researchers tracked 30 women who menstruate over their cycles, documenting in detail the structural changes that take place in the brain as hormonal profiles fluctuate. The results, which are yet to be peer-reviewed but can be found on preprint server bioRxiv, suggest that structural...…The constant ebb and flow of hormones that guide the menstrual cycle don't just affect reproductive anatomy. They also reshape the brain, and a study has given us insight into how this happens. Led by neuroscientists Elizabeth Rizor and Viktoriya Babenko of the University of California Santa Barbara, a team of researchers tracked 30 women who menstruate over their cycles, documenting in detail the structural changes that take place in the brain as hormonal profiles fluctuate. The results, which are yet to be peer-reviewed but can be found on preprint server bioRxiv, suggest that structural...WW…