Science | The Guardian.

"Study finds strongest evidence yet that shingles vaccine helps prevent dementia."

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

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Study finds strongest evidence yet that shingles vaccine helps cut dementia risk

Shingles vaccine reduces dementia risk

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1KScience | The Guardian / 2d

Older adults in Wales who had the jab were 20% less likely to be diagnosed with dementia that those not vaccinated Researchers who tracked cases of dementia in Welsh adults have uncovered the strongest evidence yet that the shingles vaccination reduces the risk of developing the devastating brain disease. Health records of more than 280,000 older adults revealed that those who received a largely

More than 1,900 scientists write letter in ‘SOS’ over Trump’s attacks on science

Scientists warn of Trump’s anti-science policies

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1KScience | The Guardian / 3d

Members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine warned Americans of ‘real danger in this moment’ More than 1,900 members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine signed an open letter warning Americans about the “danger” of the Trump administration’s attacks on science. The letter comes amid the administration’s relentless assault on US scientific in

From burger wrappers to masks, bird nests tell story of throwaway culture

Science | The Guardian / 4h

Nests on Amsterdam canals provide archive of plastic waste and show how the material ‘is really here to stay’ One day in 1996, someone ate a McDonald’s McChicken burger in Amsterdam. Perhaps it was a quick bite after work? A leisurely stroll down the canals? A family outing? These details are lost to time, but others are hard to erase completely. Continue reading...

Yesterday

Are rising lower respiratory infection hospital admissions linked to dirty air?

45Science | The Guardian / 10h

As LRIs put pressure on health services, a Spanish-led study examines what role exposure to air pollution may play The Covid crisis highlighted gaps in our understanding of the role that air pollution plays in infections. A flurry of studies carried out during and after the crisis allowed a UK government advisory group to conclude that long-term exposure to air pollution may contribute to worse c

It came from outer space: the meteorite that landed in a Cotswolds cul-de-sac – podcast

Science | The Guardian / 11h

Meteorite falls are extremely rare and offer a glimpse of the processes that formed our world billions of years ago. When a space rock came to an English market town in 2021, scientists raced to find as much out as they could By Helen Gordon. Read by Sasha Frost Continue reading...

Bonobos may combine words in ways previously thought unique to humans

Bonobos exhibit complex communication patterns

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Science | The Guardian / 21h

Phrases used to smooth over tense social situations have meanings beyond the sum of their parts, study suggests Bonobos use a combination of calls to encourage peace with their partner during mating rituals, research suggests. The discovery is part of a study that suggests our close evolutionary cousins can string together vocalisations to produce phrases with meanings that go beyond the sum of t

Our lives depend on seeds. Trump’s cuts put our vast reserves at risk | Thor Hanson

100+Science | The Guardian / 1d

Maintaining seed diversity and abundance is essential – and requires constant work. It’s time for Congress to return to the seed business From 1862 until 1923, US senators and members of Congress provided vast numbers of seeds to constituents. At its peak, the congressional seed distribution program delivered over 60m seed packets directly to farmers and market gardeners every year, helping intro

Top genome scientists to map DNA sequence of invertebrate winner 2025

Science | The Guardian / 1d

Sanger Institute’s Tree of Life team say genomes offer invaluable insight into how species will fare under climate crisis Voting is now open! Vote for your favourite here “We are following the ‘invertebrate of the year’ series with bated breath,” began the email that arrived in the Guardian’s inbox last week. Mark Blaxter leads the Sanger Institute ’s Tree of Life programme, a project that sequen

Roman-era battlefield mass grave discovered under Vienna football pitch

Mass grave of 150 Roman soldiers

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Science | The Guardian / 1d

Archaeologists say ‘catastrophic military event’ took place at site where 129 bodies have been found so far As construction crews churned up dirt to renovate a football pitch in Vienna last October, they happened upon an unprecedented find: a heap of intertwined skeletal remains in a mass grave dating to the first-century Roman empire, most likely the bodies of warriors killed in a battle involvi

Apr 2, 2025

Newborns treated with antibiotics respond less well to vaccines, study shows

Antibiotics weaken infants' vaccine response

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Science | The Guardian / 1d

An Australian study found that babies with early exposure to antibiotics had lower levels of antibodies against jabs in later infancy Babies who are treated with antibiotics as newborns have reduced immune responses to vaccines in later infancy, likely due to changes in the gut microbiome, new research suggests. The Australian study tracked 191 healthy babies from birth, finding that those who re

‘Parasites should get more fame’: the nominees for world’s finest invertebrate – podcast

Science | The Guardian / 1d

Invertebrates don’t get the attention lavished on cute pets or apex predators, but these unsung heroes are some of the most impressive and resilient creatures on the planet. So when the Guardian opened its poll to find the world’s finest invertebrate, readers got in touch in their droves. A dazzling array of nominations have flown in for insects, arachnids, snails, crustaceans, corals and many mo

I put the Married at First Sight ‘experiment’ to the test. The results are stark | Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz

Science | The Guardian / 1d

I’ve become addicted to the show. But as a scientist I wonder: how many couples actually stay together? It has finally happened. After a decade of avoiding the show, my wife and I decided that we would try out the new season of Married at First Sight. We consume quite a bit of reality TV, so it’s not that we avoided it precisely , but something about the idea of watching people struggle to build

Doctors urge government to fight poverty after rise in patients with Victorian diseases

Science | The Guardian / 1d

Survey finds vast majority of doctors are concerned at impact of health inequalities on their patients Doctors have reported a rise in the number of patients with Victorian diseases such as scabies, as the Royal College of Physicians urged the government to do more to fight poverty. The survey of 882 doctors found 89% were concerned about the impact of health inequalities on their patients, while

NIH sued over ‘ideological purge’ of DEI, Covid and vaccine research

Science | The Guardian / 1d

Agency canceled billions in grants in move that went beyond Trump’s orders targeting diversity, suit alleges US politics live – latest updates A group of public health experts and major labor organizations are suing the National Institutes of Health (NIH) over what they call an “ongoing ideological purge” of scientific research. In a legal complaint filed on Wednesday, the American Public Health

Dinosaur tracks uncovered at site of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s refuge

Dinosaur footprints found in Scotland

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Science | The Guardian / 1d

Jacobite leader was unknowingly ‘following the footprints’ of megalosaurs after escaping to the Isle of Skye in 1746 When Bonnie Prince Charlie fled the Scottish Highlands after defeat at the Battle of Culloden, his route may have crossed the fossilised footsteps of massive meat-eating dinosaurs, researchers say. Newly discovered impressions at Prince Charles’s Point on the Isle of Skye, where th

Could antibiotics stop working? Yes – but the biggest danger isn’t prescription-happy GPs | Devi Sridhar

Science | The Guardian / 2d

To prevent a catastrophic failure of the drugs modern medicine relies on, look to animal farming in middle-income countries If the antibiotics we use to treat infections ever stopped working, the consequences would be catastrophic. It is estimated that the use of antibiotics adds about 20 years of life expectancy for every person worldwide (on average). As the King’s Fund put it, if we lose antib

Apr 1, 2025

Lowering bad cholesterol may cut risk of dementia by 26%, study suggests

Low LDL cholesterol reduces dementia risk

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20Science | The Guardian / 2d

Research highlights link between low LDL cholesterol and reduced dementia risk, with statins offering additional protection Lowering your levels of bad cholesterol could reduce the risk of dementia by 26%, a study suggests. People with low levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in their blood have a lower overall risk of dementia, and a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease specifica

Mar 31, 2025

Average person will be 40% poorer if world warms by 4C, new research shows

UNSW study warns 40% GDP loss

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Science | The Guardian / 3d

Experts say previous economic models underestimated impact of global heating – as well as likely ‘cascading supply chain disruptions’ Economic models have systematically underestimated how global heating will affect people’s wealth, according to a new study that finds 4C warming will make the average person 40% poorer – an almost four-fold increase on some estimates. The study by Australian scien

Nasa astronauts Butch and Suni say they would fly on Boeing's Starliner capsule again – video

NASA astronauts return to Earth

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Science | The Guardian / 3d

In his first news conference since returning home, Nasa astronaut Butch Wilmore said he holds himself partly responsible for what went wrong on the space sprint-turned-marathon and – along with Suni Williams – said he would strap into Boeing's Starliner again. SpaceX recently ferried the duo home after more than nine months at the International Space Station following their bungled mission. The a

Keto: what’s the science behind the diet? – podcast

Science | The Guardian / 3d

While other diet fads come and go, the ultra low carbohydrate Keto diet seems to endure. But as scientists begin to understand how the diet works, more is also being discovered about its risks. To find out more, Madeleine Finlay speaks to Javier Gonzalez, professor in the department of health at the University of Bath, with a special interest in personal nutrition. He explains how the diet works,

‘We weren’t stuck’: Nasa astronauts tell of space odyssey and reject claims of neglect

NASA astronauts discuss space ordeal

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200+Science | The Guardian / 3d

Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams’ story markedly at odds with abandonment narrative painted by Trump and Musk In the end, whatever Elon Musk and Donald Trump liked to insist , astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Sunita Williams were never stuck, nor stranded in space, and definitely not abandoned or marooned. The world heard on Monday, for the first time since their return to Earth two weeks ag

Did you solve it? The pals that broke the internet, ten years on

Science | The Guardian / 3d

The answer to today’s puzzle Earlier today I set you the following problem featuring Albert, Bernard and Cheryl, the protagonists in a viral puzzle from a decade ago . Here it is again with the solution. Cheryl’s house number problem Continue reading...

New blood test checks for Alzheimer’s and assesses progression, study says

Accurate blood test diagnoses Alzheimer's

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33Science | The Guardian / 4d

Procedure for patients with thinking and memory problems could help medics decide which drugs are most suitable Researchers have developed a blood test for patients with thinking and memory problems to check if they have Alzheimer’s and to see how far it has progressed. The team behind the work say the test could help medics decide which drugs would be most suitable for patients. For example, new

Changes to ARC grants will make it harder for Australia to combat Trump chaos, researchers warn

Science | The Guardian / 4d

Plan to cut most standalone positions in favour of shorter fellowships will hurt international recruitment, critics say Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast It will be tough to attract international research talent if prestigious Australian Research Council fellowships are axed under proposed changes, researchers say, with lack of funding making the nation not “match fit”

The big idea: should you trust your gut?

75Science | The Guardian / 4d

‘Follow your instincts’ has become a modern mantra. But what if they lead you astray? ‘What should I do?” Whether openly stated or implicit, this is the question a new client usually raises in their first therapy session. People come to see me for many reasons: relationship problems, addiction and mental health difficulties, such as anxiety. Increasingly, I have found that beneath all of these di

Trump makes sweeping HIV research and grant cuts: ‘Setting us back decades’

Trump administration cuts threaten HIV prevention

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400+Science | The Guardian / 4d

Termination of at least 145 grants will decimate progress toward eliminating epidemic, scientists say The federal government has cancelled dozens of grants to study how to prevent new HIV infections and expand access to care, decimating progress toward eliminating the epidemic in the United States, scientists say. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) terminated at least 145 grants related to r

Mar 30, 2025

Can you solve it? The pals that broke the internet, ten years on

Science | The Guardian / 4d

Albert, Bernard and Cheryl return Ten years ago I published a maths olympiad question from Singapore on the Guardian website, and it changed my life. ‘Cheryl’s birthday problem’ went viral. Its unexpected success led to the birth of this column in May 2015. And here we are, almost 250 puzzles later. May 15, May 16, May 19 June 17, June 18 July 14, July 16 August 14, August 15, August 17 Continue

Spain’s wild horses in peril – in pictures

200+Science | The Guardian / 4d

By grazing between trees and removing potential wildfire fuel, wild horses help protect Galicia’s delicate ecosystems, but Europe’s largest herd has declined to just 10,000 Continue reading...

Dazzling planet, moon and stars tableau to usher in April

Super Pink Moon April 2025

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Science | The Guardian / 4d

The pinnacle of this celestial display will be the waxing crescent moon cruising past the Pleiades star cluster We start April with a glorious tableau of planet, moon and stars. The chart shows the view looking west-south-west from London at 2030 BST on 1 April. The last of the twilight will still be visible in the west, but in the rest of the sky the night will be nearly fully gathered. The star

Australia’s best photos of the month – March 2025

Science | The Guardian / 5d

Cyclone Alfred drives wild seas, a seagull eclipses the moon, and our Kylie performs on a trapeze: Guardian Australia looks at some of the month’s best images Continue reading...

First orbital rocket launched from Europe falls to the ground and explodes – video report

Spectrum rocket crashes after launch

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Science | The Guardian / 5d

An uncrewed test rocket intended to kickstart satellite launches from Europe fell to the ground and exploded less than a minute after takeoff from the Andøya spaceport in Norway. The German startup Isar Aerospace, which had warned the launch could end prematurely, said the test produced extensive data that its team could learn from First orbital rocket launched from Europe crashes after takeoff C

The death of my friend inspired me to follow my standup dreams

Science | The Guardian / 5d

For one writer, tragedy led to comedy, the sudden loss of a colleague giving her the nudge she needed There’s nothing funny about your co-worker being assassinated. But it was the death of my beloved colleague and friend Hisham al-Hashimi that led me into the world of standup comedy. I knew it would trash my hard-won career in international security, but I didn’t care any more. Hisham had run a w

First orbital rocket launched from mainland Europe crashes after takeoff

Spectrum rocket crashes after launch

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500+Science | The Guardian / 5d

Uncrewed Spectrum test rocket’s failure seconds after blast-off said to have produced extensive data nonetheless A test rocket intended to kickstart satellite launches from Europe fell to the ground and exploded less than a minute after takeoff from Norway o