"Why I regret using 23andMMe:  I gave up my DNA just to find out I'm British."

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Russ Roberts (https://hawaiisciencejournal.blogspot.com).

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Why I regret using 23andMe: I gave up my DNA just to find out I’m British

20by Kari Paul / 6h

I gave away my genetic information to a now imploding company for results that inspired nothing but ambivalence 23andMe is facing implosion. As the once-promising genetic testing company flounders – losing 98% of its $6bn value, all its independent board members, nearly half its staff – many of its 15 million customers are scrambling to delete their DNA data from the company’s archives. I am one

‘Photographs did not do it justice’: King Louis XV’s magnificent rhino is star of new London exhibition

by Vanessa Thorpe / 7h

After wowing the court of Versailles over 200 years ago, the jet-black beast is back in the spotlight at the Science Museum King Louis XV’s rhinoceros was the star of the court of Versailles. Fed on a diet of bread, its tough hide was regularly massaged with oil. But it proved not an easy pet to keep and unfortunately killed two people who entered its enclosure. Now, the magnificent beast, since

If AI can provide a better diagnosis than a doctor, what’s the prognosis for medics? | John Naughton

by John Naughton / 7h

Studies in which ChatGPT outperformed scientists and GPs raise troubling questions for the future of professional work AI means too many (different) things to too many people. We need better ways of talking – and thinking – about it. Cue, Drew Breunig , a gifted geek and cultural anthropologist, who has come up with a neat categorisation of the technology into three use cases: gods, interns and c

Today

The big idea: on Remembrance Day for Lost Species, here’s why it matters

by Tom Lathan / 11h

A way to personally connect with wildlife is vital when statistics alone can’t convey the scale of the loss Sixty-six million years ago, an asteroid struck Earth, causing the extinction of around 75% of all species. This event was so significant that we now use it to define the boundary between the Mesozoic and Cenozoic eras. There had only been four extinction events of this magnitude up until t

Can goats predict earthquakes? Can dogs forecast volcanic eruptions? These scientists think so

by Robin McKie Science Editor / 12h

Tracking the behaviour of tagged animals from space could transform the research into a host of natural phenomena Scientists are enlisting some unusual recruits in their efforts to forecast earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other natural phenomena. They are enrolling thousands of dogs, goats, and other farmyard animals – as well as a wide range of wildlife – in studies that will monitor their m

Yesterday

Landmark space mission set to create artificial solar eclipses using satellites

ISRO to launch Proba-3 satellite

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by Ian Sample Science editor / 17h

Two satellites in Proba-3 mission expected to be launched on Wednesday in India and will work in tandem to study sun’s corona Final preparations have begun for a landmark space mission that will use satellites flying in close formation to create artificial solar eclipses high above the Earth. The Proba-3 mission is the European Space Agency’s first attempt at precise formation flying in orbit and

New powder that captures carbon could be ‘quantum leap’ for industry

by Katharine Gammon / 1d

A ‘covalent organic framework’ can be used to capture carbon to store it or convert it for industrial use An innocuous yellow powder, created in a lab, could be a new way to combat the climate crisis by absorbing carbon from the air. Just half a pound of the stuff may remove as much carbon dioxide as a tree can, according to early tests. Once the carbon is absorbed by the powder, it can be releas

Nov 28, 2024

Nano-scale dinosaur made by Australian researchers from DNA building blocks

DNA origami advances nanostructure robotics

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65by Petra Stock / 1d

Structures thousands of times narrower than a human hair suggest future uses for nanobot technology Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australian researchers have created building blocks out of DNA to construct a series of nano-scale objects and shapes, from a rod and a square to an infinitesimally small dinosaur. The approach turns DNA into a modular material for buildi

Footprints in Kenya ‘show distant relatives of modern humans coexisted’

Ancient human relatives coexisted in Kenya

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85by Nicola Davis Science correspondent / 2d

Researchers say fossilised marks were apparently made in same place within days of each other about 1.5m years ago About 1.5m years ago a big-toothed cousin of prehistoric humans walked quickly along a lakeside in Kenya, footprints marking the muddy ground. But they were not our only distant relative on the scene: treading the same ground was the early human Homo erectus . Researchers say an anal

The Guardian view on Nasa’s next frontier: exploring the hidden oceans of Uranus is worth it | Editorial

NASA to explore Uranus's moons

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by Editorial / 2d

What lies beneath this ice giant’s surface might be the potential for life – but not as we know it For nearly 40 years, Uranus and its five largest moons have been dismissed as frozen and lifeless. This view was formed by humanity’s only close encounter with the Uranian system at the edge of our cosmic neighbourhood. Data sent back by Voyager 2 in 1986 indicated that the distant ice giant was ste

‘Holding space’: Wicked has made the term famous. But what does it mean?

Cynthia Erivo shines in Wicked

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by Kate McCusker / 2d

In the earnest press tour for the film, actor Cynthia Erivo was in tears at the idea that fans were ‘holding space’ for the song Defying Gravity. But is it more self-help jargon or something more powerful? The journalist Tracy E Gilchrist had just four minutes with the Wicked actors Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande – and she had to make them count. She just didn’t bargain on becoming part of one o

Nov 27, 2024

What’s going on with fluoride? – podcast

by Presented by Ian Sample, produced by Ellie Sans and Joshan Chana, sound design by Joel Cox, the executive producer was Ellie Bury / 2d

The conversation about fluoride’s health benefits has exploded recently after a US federal toxicology report, court ruling and independent scientific review all called for updated risk-benefit analysis. Ian Sample hears from Catherine Carstairs, professor of history at the University of Guelph in Canada, about how attitudes to fluoridation have evolved, and Oliver Jones, professor of chemistry at

Doctors hail first breakthrough in asthma and COPD treatment in 50 years

New asthma treatment reduces steroid use

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1Kby Andrew Gregory Health editor / 3d

Results of trial of benralizumab injection could be ‘gamechanger’ for millions of people around the world Doctors are hailing a new way to treat serious asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease attacks that marks the first breakthrough for 50 years and could be a “gamechanger” for patients. A trial found offering patients an injection was more effective than the current care of steroid ta

‘The science of fluoride is starting to evolve’: behind the risks and benefits of the mineral

Florida Surgeon General opposes water fluoridation

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by Jessica Glenza / 3d

With RFK Jr and a court ruling, conversation on fluoride, in about 72% of US community water supplies, has exploded A national conversation about fluoride’s health benefits exploded this fall after a federal toxicology report, court ruling and independent scientific review all called for updated risk-benefit analysis. Fluoride, a naturally occurring mineral in some regions, has been added to comm

An Improbable Psychiatrist by Rebecca Lawrence review – doctor turned patient

by Horatio Clare / 3d

A brave memoir from a psychiatrist with severe mental illness that describes a failing system from within This brave memoir by a psychiatrist who has severe mental illness shows how lost and confused psychiatry and its patients have become. Future readers will be amazed, we must hope, by how poorly we understood and how ineffectively we treated the troubled mind. Rebecca Lawrence has experienced

Nov 26, 2024

Dead Sea ‘white smokers’ provide early sinkhole warning, say scientists

by Kate Ravilious / 3d

Underwater chimney structures spewing jets of brine can help alert to dangerous regional issue, research shows Venting chimneys have been discovered on the floor of the Dead Sea. These previously unknown “white smokers” spew out salty water and provide early warning of sinkhole formation on nearby land. The Dead Sea is sinking fast. Over the past 50 years, intense evaporation has resulted in it d

Trump pick for US health agency proposed ‘herd immunity’ during Covid

Trump nominates Bhattacharya for NIH

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by Melody Schreiber / 3d

Choosing Jay Bhattacharya to lead NIH signals return to controversial and scientifically questionable health policies US politics – live updates Jay Bhattacharya, an unofficial Covid adviser in Donald Trump ’s first administration, has been selected as the director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one of the leading biomedical research institutions in the world. The choice of Bhattacha

Irregular sleep pattern raises risk of stroke and heart attack, study finds

Irregular sleep increases stroke risk

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62by Andrew Gregory Health editor / 4d

Variations in time a person goes to sleep and wakes up ‘strongly associated’ with higher risk of negative impacts Failing to stick to a regular time for going to bed and waking up increases the risk of stroke, heart attack and heart failure by 26%, even for those who get a full night’s sleep, the most comprehensive study of its kind suggests. Previous studies have focused on the links between sle

Nov 25, 2024

‘Portal to space’: the place where astronauts take off and land – in pictures

81by Guardian Staff / 4d

Every three months in Kazakhstan, a trio of cosmonauts and astronauts head off to the International Space Station – then return in small capsules. What do the locals make of it? Continue reading...

Weight-loss drugs can improve kidney health, study finds

GLP-1 drugs improve kidney health

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by Andrew Gregory Health editor / 5d

Analysis involving more than 85,000 people showed risk of worsening function was reduced by 22% Weight-loss drugs can reduce the risk of worsening kidney function, kidney failure and dying from kidney disease by a fifth, according to a study. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are a family of medications that help people shed the pounds, manage blood sugar in patients with type 2 d

Female astronaut goes to space but can’t escape online sexism by ‘small men’

Blue Origin deletes astronaut's video

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by Erum Salam / 5d

Video posted by Emily Calandrelli about awesome view of Earth was flooded with hateful, objectifying comments There isn’t a galaxy far, far away enough where women can escape sexist online trolls. Emily Calandrelli became the 100th woman to go to space when she joined a group of six space tourists in a launch led by Blue Origin, the aerospace company owned by the billionaire Jeff Bezos. Continue

‘Travesty of justice’: Cop29’s controversial deal – podcast

by Presented and produced by Madeleine Finlay with Damian Carrington. Sound design by Joel Cox and the executive producer is Ellie Bury / 5d

Madeleine Finlay hears from the Guardian’s environment editor, Damian Carrington, about the controversial climate finance deal that brought Cop29 negotiations to a close in the early hours on Sunday morning in Baku, Azerbaijan. Developing countries asked rich countries to provide them with $1.3tn a year to help them decarbonise their economies and cope with the effects of the climate crisis. But

Oxford scientist resigns from Royal Society over Elon Musk’s continuing fellowship

2Kby Nicola Davis Science correspondent / 5d

Prof Dorothy Bishop said fellowship was ‘a contradiction of all the values’ of UK’s national academy of sciences A leading scientist at the University of Oxford has resigned from the UK’s national academy of sciences over concerns about Elon Musk’s continuing fellowship. Prof Dorothy Bishop, emeritus professor of developmental neuropsychology and a leading expert on children’s communication disor

Did you solve it? Brain training for Martians

by Alex Bellos / 5d

The answers to today’s puzzles Earlier today I set you three problems from a maths competition for Martian schoolchildren. By Martian, I mean Hungarian. In the mid-twentieth century, a generation of outstanding mathematicians and physicists from Hungary were humorously called Martians, as their intelligence was from another planet. Continue reading...

PFAS and microplastics become more toxic when combined, research shows

100+by Tom Perkins / 5d

Study detects synergistic effect making substances more dangerous, raising alarm since humans are exposed to both Few human-made substances are as individually ubiquitous and dangerous as PFAS and microplastics , and when they join forces there is a synergistic effect that makes them even more toxic and pernicious, new research suggests. The study’s authors exposed water fleas to mixtures of the

Earth’s ‘mini moon’ which may be chunk of actual moon set to disappear

Earth's mini moon disappearing soon

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by Richard Luscombe and agency / 5d

School-bus-sized asteroid known as 2024 PT5 and currently 2m miles from Earth will begin journey towards sun A so-called mini-moon of Earth that has been lingering in the heavens since September will begin a journey towards the sun on Monday as it prepares to disappear until 2055. The school-bus-sized asteroid known as 2024 PT5 might actually be a huge boulder that broke from the moon after anoth

Nov 24, 2024

Can you solve it? Brain-training for Martians

by Alex Bellos / 5d

Do you have alien intelligence? UPDATE: Solutions can be read here Hungary acquired a reputation for brilliance in maths and physics in the middle of last century, thanks to scientists like John von Neumann, Edward Teller and Eugene Wigner. The stellar cohort become known as the Martians. The Hungarians, so the joke went, were evidence that superior alien intelligence had already landed on Earth.

Starwatch: Waning crescent moon and bright star Spica offer early birds a treat

by Stuart Clark / 5d

The moon will have just 14% of its visible surface illuminated and Spica will be shining a brilliant white light On these cold wintry mornings it can often take a lot of effort or the promise of something good to drag us out of bed. On 27 November, nature will provide a beautiful sight that will reward the early risers: an exquisitely thin waning crescent moon will be sitting next to the bright s

A cool flame: how Gaia theory was born out of a secret love affair – podcast

by Written by Jonathan Watts and read by Simon Vance. Produced by Nicola Alexandrou. The executive producer was Ellie Bury / 5d

Scientist James Lovelock gave humanity new ways to think about our home planet – but some of his biggest ideas were the fruit of a passionate collaboration. By Jonathan Watts Continue reading...

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