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A chemical produced by the fungus Cordyceps militaris has been widely researched as a potential cancer medicine. Commonly known as the caterpillar fungus, C. militaris forms 1-8cm club-shaped fruiting bodies which grow out of dead underground caterpillar pupae. A new study has finally confirmed that the chemical behind its therapeutic effects, cordycepin, works by interrupting […]

Researchers studying how the brain responds to watching movies are now able to show it’s anything but a mindless way to wind down at the end of a busy week. Scientists mapped the brains of participants who watched clips from cinematic favourites like Inception (2010), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Home Alone (1990) to […]

A series of experiments has shown that neurons are not the only brain cells involved in memory recall. The study, published in Nature, could inform research into diseases of memory loss, like Alzheimer’s, as well as diseases where memories cannot be suppressed, like post-traumatic stress disorder. The brain’s remarkable adaptability, or plasticity, allows us to […]

Nations are not doing enough to address the rising impacts of climate change the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP) latest Adaptation Gap Report 2024: Come hell and high water has found. The report recommends a dramatic scale up of adaptation efforts this decade, starting with a commitment to act on finance at COP29. Global average […]

The DNA of people killed during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius at Pompeii has turned traditional ideas of the victims’ identities and relationships on their head. Located just outside of modern-day Naples, Italy, the Roman town of Pompeii was buried under volcanic material in 79 CE. The ash, which compacted around the bodies of many […]

Frogs are thriving in the area around the destroyed Chornobyl Nuclear Plant, with radiation levels causing negligible effects on their health. More than 30 years after the disaster, researchers have found Eastern tree frogs (Hyla orientalis) collected in and around the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone show only minor differences in health markers. The study is published […]

Scientists have found the first geochemical evidence of the slushy planet – the period when high carbon dioxide levels led to rapid melting after “snowball Earth”. More than 700 million years ago, ice covered our planet even reaching the equator. This snowball phase lasted nearly 70 million years, known as the Sturtian glaciation (717–660 million […]

As part of the Ultramarine project we are diving into our archives and republishing some paid content for free. Compact and easily overlooked, bar-tailed godwits make the longest known nonstop flight of any animal on Earth. In the June 2023 Cosmos Print Magazine, Drew Rooke reported on the research that led to the amazing feat’s discovery […]

An Australian researcher has been awarded $60,000 to build more complex models of the human lung, with the hope to discover new therapies for respiratory diseases. Dr Rhiannon Werder, team leader at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI), was awarded the National Stem Cell Foundation of Australia’s 2024 Metcalf Prize for her work using stem […]

A common mineral and earthquake and avalanche statistics can be used to measure the impact of hostile environmental events on materials. Such studies would provide important information about the degradation and failure of materials used for advanced solar panels, geological carbon capture and infrastructure such as buildings, roads and bridges. Muscovite is the most common […]

New research describes how sheets of carbon dioxide ice protected rivers of water flowing into a lake the size of the Mediterranean Sea on ancient Mars. The study, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets explains how an icy, cold Mars could have had flowing water more than 3 billion years ago. “This model […]

With an experimental setup worthy of a reality game show, scientists put the balance of healthy mice to the test and discovered new insights into how they use their tails. The results could inform research into neurogenerative diseases in humans despite our tail-lessness. Laboratory mice (Mus musculus) provide valuable models for human health and disease […]

Larvae of the mosquito responsible for spreading diseases such as dengue, yellow fever and Zika grow faster when exposed to a certain kind of bacteria, according to new research in the Journal of Applied Microbiology. The finding has important implications for improving programmes to control mosquito populations some of which involve the breeding and mass […]

Two new studies published in the past week have presented new tools to help cities across the globe adapt to the increasing threat of dangerous heat. The first, published in the journal Proceedings of the of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), offers a tool to determine how the cooling efficiency of tree cover varies […]

Researchers have found a way to turn CO2 into ethanol, using cobalt and copper. The method, which works at a lab scale, is another potential way to use carbon dioxide captured from the atmosphere and industrial processes – although capturing that carbon is still a difficult task. The team has published their discovery in ACS […]

Archaeologists have identified the precursors of writing in the designs of ancient seals dating back about 6,000 years ago in Mesopotamia. Proto-cuneiform is one of the earliest written languages, developed at the end of the fourth millennium BCE in the influential Mesopotamian city of Uruk, located in what is now southern Iraq. The script consists […]

Researchers have made a material capable of cooling substances down to -253°C – enough to liquefy hydrogen – using magnets. They say their research, published in Nature Communications, could provide a cheaper and more sustainable way to supercool hydrogen fuel for storage and transport. The researchers tapped into the “magnetocaloric effect”: applying magnetic fields to […]

As part of the Ultramarine project we are republishing some paid content for free. This long read was originally published in issue 99 of Cosmos print magazine, in July 2023. You can read more amazing long reads if you subscribe now. Compact and easily overlooked, bar-tailed godwits make the longest known nonstop flight of any animal on Earth. Drew […]

Shrub cover across southeastern Australia halved after the arrival of Indigenous populations, according to a new study. The study, published in Science, attributes the change to cultural burning practices, suggesting that these changes reduced the risk of high-intensity bushfires. Shrubs, which fill out the middle layer of a forest between grasses and trees, can be […]

Following months of campaigning ahead of the US election, political scientists are suggesting that professional campaigners may not be getting the results they expect. A study published in PNAS showsAmerican political staffers and professionals are no better than laypeople at spotting the efficacy of a political message. The researchers also found that neither group could […]

Scientists have observed an “association” between the use of 22 pesticides and prostate cancer incidents in the US, 4 of which were also potentially linked to prostate cancer mortality. The research is published in the journal Cancer and comes as debate about the safety of the use of the herbicide paraquat heats up in Australia. […]

The 12-million-year-old fossil of an extinct, giant, carnivorous bird found in Colombia’s Tatacoa Desert could be the largest member of its kind. But it was probably killed by something much bigger. Ancient South America was home to a group of birds known as “terror birds”. These ferocious, feathered hunters belong to the phorusrhacid (FOR-us-RAH-kid) family. […]

Chemistry is littered with rules that, on closer inspection, are alarmingly brittle. Researchers are calling for a 100-year-old rule to be thrown out, after they’ve made molecules that defy it. They’ve published their finding in Science. “We shouldn’t have rules like this – or if we have them, they should only exist with the constant […]

Holding a hallowed place at the top of search engine results, Wikipedia has become a profound influence on the information age. With articles written and edited by millions of volunteers around the world, it’s been hailed as “the last best place on the Internet”, and is often the first port of call for anyone learning […]