Science
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A new tectonic plate boundary could be forming in southern Africa
Aerial view of the Kafue Rift southern boundary fault zone. The hot springs where researchers sampled gases lie in the green thickets Michael Daly The African continent may have begun tearing itself apart in a new location. Gases emerging from an arc of hot springs in Zambia appear to be coming from deep below Earth’s crust, in a sign that…
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Quantum computers simulated their biggest molecule yet – with help
An IBM quantum computer at Cleveland Clinic, one of the pair used to simulate a record-breakingly large molecule Kincaid/IBM One of the most promising uses for quantum computers is to simulate proteins that could help us discover new drugs, but these devices are currently too error-prone for the task. However, two quantum computers have now broken a simulation record –…
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Coral reefs on a remote archipelago shrugged off a massive heatwave
The Houtman Abrolhos Islands, off Western Australia, where corals appear to be exceptionally heat-tolerant Bill Bachman/Alamy Coral reefs on a chain of islands off Western Australia were almost untouched by a prolonged heatwave that devastated corals in other regions in early 2025. Researchers hope that learning the secret of extreme heat tolerance in these corals will help to protect reefs…
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Diamonds are surprisingly elastic when you make them tiny
An artist’s impression of nanodiamonds KATERYNA KON/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY/Alamy Diamonds are forever, but if you make them ultrasmall, they can get a little squishy. An experiment with some of the smallest diamonds ever studied has now revealed why they become surprisingly elastic when they are ultrasmall. “Bulk diamonds are widely known for extreme stiffness and hardness. At the nanoscale, things…
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The green solution to climate change isn’t happening – and that’s good
The Drax Power Station in the north of England Ian Lamond/Alamy You’ve probably seen those nice graphs showing carbon dioxide levels and temperatures falling towards the end of the century. How is this miracle meant to be achieved? The idea is that we harvest plants, burn them for energy and then capture and store the CO2. Voila, problem solved! Except…
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Iodised salt has become uncool but many of us need to eat more iodine
Boring old iodised table salt should make a comeback Tatjana Baibakova/Alamy When I was at uni, I had a biology lecturer who was obsessed with iodine, and whose life’s work had been tackling global dietary deficiencies. He urged us to always use iodised salt, telling us it had raised the IQ of whole nations and was one of the greatest…
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Food shock is inevitable due to the Iran war – and it could get bad
Food prices are expected to rise later this year dpa picture alliance/Alamy Global food prices hit their highest levels on record after the 1970s energy crisis, triggered by conflict in the Middle East, once inflation is corrected for. Could we be headed for a new record – the worst food shock ever – as fuel, fertiliser and pesticide prices skyrocket…
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Genetic clues tell the story of Neanderthals’ decline
Reconstructions of a Neanderthal man and woman at the Neanderthal Museum in Mettmann, Germany AP Photo/Martin Meissner/Alamy An analysis of Neanderthal DNA has helped piece together the story of many millennia of hard times that finally led to the demise of our ancient human relatives. Faced with a cooling climate, their population shrank and they wound up confined to what…
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Forget the multiverse. In the pluriverse, we create reality together
J R Eyerman/The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock What is now? The nature of the ever-changing present moment has always fascinated me, because there is a paradox at its heart. From a personal perspective, the present is everything: it is the only time we can ever act or choose; the only thing we can ever experience or know. What did you have…
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Why is black rain falling on Iran and how dangerous is it?
Black smoke rises after fires broke out following US-Israel attacks targeting oil storage facilities in Tehran, Iran, on 8 March Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images The skies in northern Iran were dark with smoke on 8 March as the US and Israeli bombing campaign against the country continued, and black rain even fell on the capital Tehran. The catastrophic scenes…
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