Huge smoke cloud turns day to night in Sydney harbour
The landmarks of Australia's biggest city are overshadowed by the smoke from nearby bushfires
Cosy quilts made of killer superbugs
Fascinated by germs and antibiotic resistance, artist Anna Dumitriu makes beautiful textiles from deadly bacteria
Beware of the yeti, and spurious science too
The announcement that the yeti mystery has been solved sets alarm bells ringing, says biologist William Laurance
Past blast: The lost volcano that set off an ice age
A volcano erupted so powerfully in the 13th century that it triggered global cooling, yet no one knew where it was. Have we cracked the puzzle at last?
Diving in Bermuda to find the coral reef survivors
Join a team of researchers underwater as they use a panoramic camera system, a remote-controlled robot and other high-tech tools to document coral bleaching
Neuroscience wrongs will make a right
The history of scientific discovery suggests that accepting most neuroscience is unsound is a big step towards a better understanding of the brain
Feedback: Well-trained electrons
Unruly electrons, an invitation to lie, multiple-choice encryption and more
Astrophile: Soggy bogs swallow craters on Titan
A lack of impact craters in the lowlands of Saturn's largest moon hint at extensive wetlands fed by underground springs of liquid hydrocarbons
School achievement isn't just in your genes
Anyone who asserts that educational attainment is in large part inherited needs a lesson in modern genetics, says biologist Steven Rose
For instant climate change, just add one large comet
Two geologists claim atmospheric CO2 levels more than doubled in a single year 55 million years ago – the speed makes a comet impact the likely culprit
Don't let nuclear renaissance bury carbon capture
While building new nuclear reactors, the UK must store carbon dioxide from fossil fuels, otherwise it will increase emissions just as it needs to cut them
Sleep boosts brain's self-cleaning system
The "glymphatic system", a network of pipes that removes pathogens and harmful molecules from the brain, is most active during sleep
Reprogrammed bacterium speaks new language of life
E. coli has had its cell machinery redesigned so that one of its genetic "words" – or codons – can now say whatever we want
Complete skull of 1.8-million-year-old hominin found
A full skull of a Homo erectus has been unearthed in Georgia, and it suggests a radical rethink of our evolutionary history
Virus-sabotaging protein may help people defy HIV
Extra 'saboteur' protein in the cytoplasm of blood cells may stop HIV from copying itself without the need for drugs
Universal law of urination found in mammals
Elephants, dogs and goats all take 21 seconds to empty full bladders. A law of urination explains the physics of what happens when you just gotta go
Matterhorn mapped by fleet of drones in just 6 hours
The imposing mountain in the Swiss Alps has been mapped by a fleet of autonomous, fixed-wing drones, launched from its peak
If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to.
Have your say
Only subscribers may leave comments on this article. Please log in.
Only personal subscribers may leave comments on this article
All comments should respect the New Scientist House Rules. If you think a particular comment breaks these rules then please use the "Report" link in that comment to report it to us.
If you are having a technical problem posting a comment, please contact technical support.
