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Drug discovery Is changing. Drug development must change too.

In this New Scientist CoLab podcast, experts from global life sciences leader Cytiva explain the hidden, high-stakes science of purification that is required to close …

Congolese monkey with mask-like face and strong BO is new to science

A black colobus monkey from a remote part of the Congo Basin rainforest, known locally as likweli, is thought to be severely threatened by poaching

Best treatment for multiple sclerosis may be antivirals

Low levels of replicating Epstein-Barr viruses might be the main driver of the autoimmune condition multiple sclerosis. This may mean that targeting them would be …

How do fish recognise others of their own species?

Some expert weigh in on this issue, which turns out to be much more complicated than it looks

How many known elements could we delete without ill effect? Part 2

This week’s new questions

Why don’t dogs look up when a low-flying plane or helicopter passes overhead? I’ve never seen one do this. And what changes will occur on …

Can you guess the origin of 7 tiny species on a fictional …

Feedback has been spending far too much time reading the latest output of entirely made-up research studies from the Journal of Imaginary Research

Tom Gauld on immersive bat research

Tom Gauld's weekly cartoon

TwistedDoodles on science podcast demographics

This week's cartoon from Twisteddoodles

It is vital we understand heat and humidity’s differing effects on us

The impact of high humidity on top of high temperatures is often underappreciated, but most of us aren't prepared for such extreme conditions, which will …

Can consciousness be quantum? We may now have an answer

A mathematical analysis suggests that the notion of agency, which is a prerequisite for consciousness, cannot be purely quantum in nature

Nicotine pouches may cause receding gums

Nicotine pouches aren't typically associated with the same health harms as similar products that also contain tobacco, but they have now been linked to receding …

We’re finally learning what happens to gifted children in adulthood

A spate of new studies is revealing the lifelong impact of being marked as exceptional during childhood – and the results suggest we may need …

Queen’s powerful smell suppresses rivals in naked mole rat colonies

In naked mole rat colonies, only the queen can breed – and now we have found out how she maintains control

Can everyone live a ‘good life’ without destroying the planet?

Cutting back on our use of energy and materials so that we live within Earth’s means can seem like an insurmountable challenge. But after a …

Hard but lightweight ‘bio-metal’ material discovered in sea worm jaws

Marine bristle worms have jaws made from a mix of proteins and metal ions that may constitute a whole new kind of material, with possible …

Why praying for rain appears to work – but only in some …

In some parts of the world, the probability of rain rises with every day it doesn’t rain, and communities in these places are more likely …

The US-China AI arms race has taken an unexpected turn

Powerful artificial intelligence models built by Chinese companies have gone from inducing widespread panic to being met with a shrug of the shoulders – what …

Do we owe our existence to weird ‘virtual’ particles?

When considering what makes up a human body, a physicist drills down beyond the atomic level. Columnist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein explores the not-exactly-real particles that allow …

Maya mathematician’s name decoded alongside astronomical formula

Hieroglyphs on the wall of a Maya building record calculations concerning the orbits of Earth, Mars and Venus, as well as the name of a …

How humans evolved to be twice as big as our ancestors

Artistic representations of ancient humans often show large men with bulging muscles – but our ancestors were actually smaller than us, in both height and …

Sugar molecules found in interstellar space for the first time

Researchers have long suspected early life may have been helped by sugars brought to Earth by asteroids – now a sugar found in raspberries has …

Alzheimer’s, stroke, depression: The preventative power of sauna

Sustained heat stress is bad for our health and can be deadly. But we’re discovering that heat therapies like sauna, when used in the right …

Shifts in the jet stream are behind Europe’s long heatwaves

Two types of jet stream patterns seem to be causing persistent heat domes over Europe, with big questions for the future