Deborah Bloomfield

Homo sapiens are incredible things. In humanity’s longest prehistoric migration, groups of daring people walked over 20,000 kilometres (12,427 miles) from North Asia across to North America and down to the southernmost tip of South America. In a new study, scientists have traced this momentous journey using  DNA sequence data from 1,537 people from 139 […]

A startup high-speed flight company from Houston, Texas, has successfully tested its Rotating Detonation Rocket Engine (RDRE) ultimately aimed at allowing travel at four to six times the speed of sound taking off from a conventional runway. RDRE has been talked about as an alternative propulsion mechanism since the 1980s, providing theoretical advantages over traditional […]

Forty years ago today, a trio of UK scientists reported that something strange and very unexpected was occurring over Antarctica. They didn’t know it at the time, but they had “accidentally” (their words, not ours) made one of the greatest geophysical discoveries of the 20th century and started one of the most important scientific stories […]

On the border of two South American countries, miners have discovered a hoard of valuable metals that’s been described as “one of the world’s largest copper, gold, and silver resources.” A new survey estimates that the Vicuña Mineral Resource in the San Juan Province in Argentina and the Atacama Region of Chile contains up to […]

When new rules or measures are introduced, they often spark resistance in people who feel like their personal freedoms are being eroded. This type of resistance, referred to as reactance, can be so severe that it actually discourages policymakers from making important decisions, especially concerning delicate subjects. However, new research suggests reactance is short-lived and […]

Richmond, a small port city in California’s Bay Area, is currently at the center of a bizarre phenomenon that’s baffling both residents and officials alike: an unexplained spate of exploding birds. First reported by ABC7 News, residents told the outlet that they first noticed birds turning up dead several months ago, and have since witnessed […]

Brain fog has become one of the most familiar, and most feared, symptoms associated with long COVID. In a new study, scientists say they’ve identified two biomarkers that are altered in people with long COVID compared with people who recovered fully from the infection, indicating that there may be more we can do to identify […]

An experiment has visualized a prediction about objects traveling at the speed of light known as the Penrose-Terrell Effect, first made over 60 years ago. When objects approach the speed of light (let’s call it a spaceship, for ease) a number of strange things take place. According to our best classical model of the universe, […]

Orange cat lovers rejoice! Scientists might not be convinced that “orange behavior” is really a thing, but after over a century of suspicion, they’ve finally pinpointed the genetic mutation that makes our favorite Garfield-lookalikes so delightfully ginger. Researchers already had a rough idea of where in the cat genome to look: the X chromosome. That’s […]

The film Limitless introduced many to the concept of nootropics: pop a pill and, just like magic, your brain can suddenly work unimaginably quickly and efficiently. It’s an enticing idea that such a drug could exist in real life – and now, some are claiming that it does, although perhaps not quite to the same […]

You might have heard of the three-body problem, how there is no exact solution to predicting the behavior of three interacting gravitational celestial bodies under Newton’s laws. The best you can do is to have solutions for specific cases or work with numerical solutions and approximations. But if you are working in general relativity, not […]

Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, is the only other world in the Solar System with rivers, lakes, and seas on its surface. They are not made of water, as it is far too cold there, but hydrocarbons, mostly methane. Earth has a water cycle that moves the liquid around between the ground and the […]

Tokyo is often called the largest city in the world because of its gigantic population, with over 37 million inhabitants within its grasp – that’s almost one-third of Japan’s entire population and around the entire population of Canada. While the Japanese capital is undoubtedly an urban giant, these statistics may be a little bit misleading. […]

NASA engineers have just performed an incredible feat. Voyager 1 is now almost 25 billion kilometers (15 billion miles) from Earth, but the mission team was able to fix the spacecraft’s thrusters even though they have not worked since 2004. They managed to do it before the antenna we communicate with it and its twin, […]

Losing a loved one, either through a breakup, divorce, or death, is a pretty traumatic experience for most people. However, in some cases the loss can result in actual health problems. This can include experiencing chest pain and shortness of breath. Although most people recover quickly, a small number can actually die from these symptoms […]

A “copy” of Magna Carta bought for under $30 has been found to be a genuine surviving artifact from 1300 CE by British historians who happened upon it. In 1946, the Harvard Law School Library spent $27.50 (around $440 in today’s money) on a document known as “HLS MS 172”. According to the auction catalogue […]

It is undoubtedly true in conservation circles that things that are cute and fluffy get the most attention. After all, who can resist something as adorable as Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur? The slimier inhabitants of Earth typically have to do something a little more interesting than just looking cute to get headlines. Enter Powelliphanta augusta, […]

In the days before television (anyone remember that?) and TikTok, being a radio announcer was one of the most sought-after jobs in the analog world. But landing the role wasn’t easy. Applicants had to prove they had the voice, clarity, and command of language to carry a broadcast. One of the ways stations tested them […]

In his first Congressional hearing since his confirmation, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr has avoided sharing his beliefs and defended deep cuts to health institutes. Specifically, Democrat members have been pushing for answers on the impact of the Trump budget on health as well as what Kennedy really believes in terms […]

A tiger at Melbourne Zoo has received three root canals on damaged teeth in a dental procedure that started challenging and ended up extravagant. Fortunately, Hutan, the tiger in question, has awoken no worse for wear, and the vet and keeper have all their limbs intact. Teeth are important for most of the animals that […]