Deborah Bloomfield

In a move right out of a sci-fi movie set in a grim and corrupt dystopia, San Francisco is on the cusp of authorizing the use of killer robots by the police. On Tuesday, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted in favor of approving a policy that allows police to use robots with lethal […]

Taking a single pill of an anti-inflammatory drug immediately after a traumatic event could help people in the process of forgetting intrusive memories, according to a new trial at University College London (UCL). It’s still extremely early days for the research, but the team behind the project suggests that this treatment has some potential to […]

Gravity could be the culprit behind irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), according to a new hypothesis. Yes, the force that keeps our feet planted firmly on the surface of the Earth could be responsible for a condition that is thought to affect up to 10 percent of the world’s population. It may seem out-there, but to […]

When the Viking 1 lander arrived on Mars it carried high hopes for a golden era in space exploration. What it found was puzzling, and the weak evidence for life disappointing. However, a new analysis suggests it may have been sitting in the aftermath of one of the most dramatic events in Solar System history.  […]

Space elevators – yes, literal elevators that will carry us into orbit – may not be as far from reality as we think, says one aerospace engineer and physics professor. According to his ideas, such a crazy concept could be realistic relatively soon – or, in his wise words: “We’ll know we are close when […]

Elon Musk has said he is confident that his brain chip Neuralink is ready for humans, and can begin human trials once it has approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In a “show and tell” of the company’s progress on the brain implant, Musk made a number of bold claims about the […]

Kids’ owl-drawing abilities don’t appear to have progressed much over the past five millennia, according to the findings of a new investigation into Copper Age animal engravings. Previously, these ancient owlish depictions had been interpreted as ritualistic artefacts, yet the “cartoonlike” nature of the etchings implies that they may actually have been toys created by […]

Back in October, JWST delighted us with two new images of the famous Pillars of Creation, a cosmic feature of dust and gas rendered famous by Hubble. The images were taken by two different instruments on JWST: the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and the Mid-Infrared Camera (MIRI), which look at the universe in slightly different lights. […]

A new mechanism that enables bacteria to form resistance to antibiotics has been discovered in a recent study conducted by researchers in Perth, Australia. In a process currently undetectable using traditional laboratory testing methods, the team observed the bacteria group A Streptococcus – the cause of strep throat – absorbing nutrients from the host organism that, in […]

Space tourism is looking to boom in the next decade, but frankly, companies have some work to do to make the journey interesting. Yes, you are leaving the planet and entering space at around  28,000 kilometers per hour (17,000 miles per hour) on a hydrogen-powered fireball, but the trip can take a while and humans […]

When Amelia Earhart disappeared attempting to circumnavigate the world, plastics were so rare their waste was a minor problem, even in major cities. In the central Pacific, where Earhart was last seen, the idea of plastic pollution probably seemed unimaginable. Yet reanalysis of one of the possible clues to Earhart’s last location has had a […]

Arming cows with “smartwatches” could prove to be an ideal way to make “smart farms” healthier, happier, and greener, according to a team of scientists from China. In a new theoretical study, researchers from Southwest Jiaotong University in China proposed the idea of fitting cattle with “smartwatch-style sensors” that are powered by their own steps. […]

Before we get into the Flynn effect and the steady increase (and possible subsequent decrease) in IQ scores across the world, we should probably talk about the elephant in the room: there are all kinds of problems with IQ tests. The tests, created in 1905 by psychologists Alfred Binet and Théodore Simon, were originally intended […]

Researchers report the positive results from a Phase 1 clinical trial focused on a vaccine against the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The pathogen does not usually produce an immune response large enough to stop it, which has made it a dangerous and deadly virus. One of the goals in the creation of a vaccine is […]

Almost three years into the pandemic, myths and misinformation remain widespread. Here we, a virologist and a public health researcher, debunk some common misconceptions about COVID. Myth 1: The virus is becoming milder There’s a prevailing myth in the omicron era that SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) is becoming “milder”. Advertisement It’s true that […]

Getting busy in the bedroom may be a risk factor for asthma attacks, say the authors of a new study. However, while sport and other forms of physical exercise are well recognized as triggers for asthma-related exacerbations, post-coital flare-ups have gone underreported, as patients are often too shy to discuss such intimate incidents with doctors. […]

The Wolf-Lundmark-Melotte (WLM) is a small dwarf galaxy at the edge of the Local Group, the name for the family of galaxies that include the Milky Way and Andromeda. This galaxy sits away from the major players of the Local Group, and it is an interesting object of study. New JWST observations show just how […]

Many animals spend their days munching on grass, so why don’t you see humans in a field on all fours enjoying some of that good green stuff? Well, there are a few good reasons why you shouldn’t eat grass (aside from the social stigma thrown your way). Grass is technically non-toxic, but it holds little-to-no […]

Astronomers finally have the tools to search for signs of life on other worlds. One team of scientists think their best shot lies with methyl bromide (CH4Br), in the hope alien vegetation has a similar waste removal scheme to the one widespread on Earth. The capacity of telescopes like the JWST and future giant Earth-based […]