2020, it’s fair to say, was an odd year. With a pandemic moving across the world and all the life changes that involved, it’s easy to forget smaller stories, like that weird few months when monoliths started popping up around the world like Starbucks, sometimes containing cryptic messages. Well, good news if you missed it, […]
Stonehenge Is Going To Stream The Exciting Lunar Standstill Live
Stonehenge is one of those iconic monuments that has captured the imaginations of people. Its alignment with the Sun at the solstices is as clear as day, although the function of the monument remains uncertain. But researchers will be spending the next several months looking at a different type of alignment – some stones might […]
When Did Our Ancient Ancestors Start To Build On The Knowledge Of Others?
Our technology and knowledge, just as much as our values and beliefs, have all been shaped by thousands of generations of people stretching back in an unbroken chain. But when did this process of accumulation begin? Or, to put it another way, when did our earliest ancestors start to build on the knowledge of others […]
People Are Just Now Learning “Goodbye” Is A Contraction Of A Religious Phrase
Every day is a learning day on the Internet. Last week, people learned what “Google” actually means, and yesterday people learned there’s a single word for “the day after tomorrow“. Today, people are learning that just as “bye” is a contraction of “goodbye”, “goodbye” is a contraction too. In its original form, the word was […]
Don’t Kiss Your Pet Dragon, Unless You Fancy A Week On The Toilet
As tempting as it is to give our pets a lil’ smooch when we see them, it’s probably not a great idea if that pet happens to be a bearded dragon. That’s because there’s currently a multistate Salmonella outbreak in the US and it’s been linked back to the otherwise lovely lizards. Advertisement The outbreak […]
Supermassive Black Hole Seen Waking Up In Real Time In World First
Astronomers have witnessed a supermassive black hole turning itself on. The object sits at the center of galaxy SDSS1335+0728, which had been unremarkable until December 2019. But then, the brightness of this object began to increase significantly, and researchers believe that they have witnessed the awakening of this giant. Advertisement Supermassive black holes can be […]
Pet Cats Can Catch Bird Flu And Could Spread It To Us, Concludes 20 Years Of Data
Pet cats could be an important carrier of infection in a human pandemic of avian flu, a review of 20 years of research data has found. The study, which has been released as a preprint whilst awaiting peer review, suggests that cat owners should remain vigilant for signs of illness in their pets, which could […]
NASA Is Using Its Fancy New Laser System To Send Astronauts Videos Of Pets
NASA has built its first two-way end-to-end relay system to send messages to and from the International Space Station (ISS). It used the 1.2 gigabits per second capacity (that’s faster than your home internet) to send the astronauts currently aboard the station photos and videos of cats, dogs, and the occasional parrot. Advertisement Space communication […]
National Parks Free On Juneteenth – But Be Safe In Death Valley’s Heat, Officials Advise
As part of this year’s Juneteenth celebrations, the US National Park Service is offering free entrance to all of its parks. This includes Death Valley, where the day is set to be an absolute scorcher. Advertisement California recently experienced a record-breaking heatwave, and the high temperatures seem set to continue. Death Valley National Park currently […]
People Are Just Now Learning There’s A Word For The Day After Tomorrow
Saying “the day after tomorrow” when making arrangements is on par in terms of annoyance as having to say the second cous in cous cous. If only there was a simpler way to convey you are talking about the day after tomorrow without having to say such a mouthful. Advertisement Well good news, because there […]
How We Could Turn The Earth Into A Giant Telescope
Last month, NASA announced development progress of the Pulsed Plasma Rocket, a new type of thruster that could help enable one of the coolest astronomy projects ever dreamt up. Advertisement First proposed by Einstein (somewhat reluctantly), the idea is actually fairly simple, and based on a concept we use fairly frequently in astronomy these days […]
Why The 2024 Summer Solstice Will Be The Earliest For 228 Years
On June 20, 2024, the summer solstice will occur at its earliest point in 228 years – but this is just the start. Over the next 72 years, the annual event will get progressively earlier every four years. So what’s going on? Advertisement The summer solstice tends to occur on June 21 every year. This […]
Most Distant Pair Of Merging Quasars Spotted Just 900 Million Years After The Big Bang
Astronomers have found a pair of quasars in the process of merging during the final periods of Cosmic Dawn, around 900 million years after the Big Bang. This is the most distant (and so, earliest) pair of interacting quasars yet found, and it is also the first one that comes from Cosmic Dawn. Advertisement Cosmic […]
Quantum Entanglement Used To Measure Earth’s Rotation For The First Time
A group of physicists was able to produce a measurement of the Earth’s rotation employing photons – the particles of light – experiencing a peculiar quantum phenomenon called entanglement. This allows them to push the precision of the measurement up 1,000 times, and it could be used to explore questions of fundamental physics. Advertisement You […]
The World’s Last Living Wild Horse Species Has Its Genome Successfully Mapped
After going extinct in the wild in the 1960s, Przewalski’s horses are now beginning to make a comeback to their native home of the plains of Central Asia. In order to help with conservation efforts, researchers from the University of Minnesota have successfully mapped the entirety of the species’ genome. Advertisement Genomics, the study of […]
Right Now The Earth Is Technically *Not* Orbiting The Sun
Diagrams and animations showing the orbits of the planets are lying to you a little bit. Or to put it more accurately, they are simplifying the orbits of the planets so that teachers don’t have to explain barycenters to children who are still coming to grips with Earth not being the only planet that exists. […]
126 Bird Species Declared “Lost” – Could You Help Scientists Find Them?
There are 126 species of birds that have been lost to science according to a new analysis. “Lost” species are defined by not having had a confirmed sighting in at least a decade, but you could help find some of them as researchers are calling on citizen scientists to be their eyes and ears. Advertisement […]
Long COVID Risk Factors Revealed In Data From Nearly 5,000 People
Analysis of data from 4,700 people recovering from a bout of COVID-19 has revealed more insights into who may be most at risk from lingering chronic illness. Referred to as long COVID, scientists are still not clear on exactly what causes the debilitating symptoms – with possibilities numbering into the hundreds – but this new […]
Meet The Sei Whales: Speedy And Sizeable, But Somehow Forgotten
In the whale world, a few species get all the glory; the blue whale is the world’s largest, and then there are humpbacks, leaping out of the ocean to the delight of film crews and tourists. Beluga whales might be famous for their unusual appearance and killer whales for sinking yachts (and not actually being […]
There Are 6 Kinds Of Depression That Can Be Identified With Brain Scans
Treatment for depression has historically taken a “one-size-fits-all” approach, but this may be about to change as new research has found six kinds of depression that are identifiable through brain scans. The different kinds, or “biotypes”, respond better to some treatments than others, and could aid us in delivering more effective care for people living […]
