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Thursday, Sep 10

22

Climate hazards disrupted schooling for more than 171 million students in 2025

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More than 171 million students globally—or 1 in 10—from preprimary to upper secondary age had their schooling disrupted by climate hazards in 2025, according to a new analysis released by UNICEF today.

Kids' brains are built for distraction. Sometimes that's a good thing.

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Parents often learn the hard way that to make it anywhere on time, they should calculate how much time they think they need to get ready—and double it.

Tightly guided atoms could enable low-power quantum navigation when GPS fails

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Within tiny halos of light clinging to a vanishingly thin wisp of optical fiber, scientist Jongmin Lee guides atoms like marbles through a narrow pipe. Rock the fiber and the atoms shift side by side; they just don't fall off. But don't be…

Two previously unknown saucer bugs species discovered

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An entomologist at the University of Missouri has discovered two saucer bug species previously unknown to science, adding to our understanding of Earth's biodiversity.

First PLP-dependent enzyme that influences bacterial protein production discovered

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Researchers from the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research & Technology's (SMART) Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) interdisciplinary research group, alongside collaborators from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Nanyang…

A cellular threshold can determine whether herpesvirus becomes active or lies dormant

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, we wore masks and kept 2 meters (6.6 feet) apart in an effort to reduce the spread of the tiny droplets we release into the air with every breath, conversation or cough. The main goal was to reduce the number…

Muscovite identified as a low-index building block for ultrathin van der Waals photonic components

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Researchers have demonstrated that a naturally occurring mineral can serve as a low-loss optical material for next-generation broadband all–van der Waals nanophotonic components.

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Ultrathin silicon structures can tune mid-IR light in billionths of a second

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Light in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) portion of the electromagnetic spectrum plays a key role in modern sensing. Because molecules interact with this kind of light in specific ways, researchers use technologies like mid-IR spectroscopy to…

Focus on biodiversity conservation may offer a less divisive path to climate action in Japan

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If you want to drum up support for environmental action, putting climate change front and center may not always be the best strategy. A new study by Aya Takagi and Ryosuke Nakadai of Yokohama National University suggests that support for…

Gondwana really was a supercontinent—and it may have helped kickstart life on Earth

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Some 550 million years ago, Earth looked very different than it does today. The Southern Hemisphere was dominated by an enormous single continent known as Gondwana.

River erosion explains uneven crustal uplift across Basque-Cantabrian Range

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A University of the Basque Country-EHU research group has determined the causes of a 255 m (837 feet) crustal uplift of the Atlantic slope and a 167 m (548 feet) uplift of the Mediterranean slope, as well as the development of rivers in…

Fear-based education around porn is failing young people, study suggests

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England's approach to teaching young people about pornography may be doing more harm than good, according to new research from the University of Surrey. A new study argues that fear-based education is failing to reflect how teenagers…

New pulse-train method aims to improve precision in quantum control

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Quantum technologies are poised to transform fields ranging from medicine and sensing to computing and communications by manipulating the energy states of atoms and molecules. These manipulations are achieved by controlling quantum states…

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1,000 times faster operations bring reliable quantum computing a step closer

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So far, quantum computers have been held back by their extreme sensitivity to errors and external disturbances. The longer a quantum operation takes, the greater the risk of computational errors.

Dead or alive, plankton support marine ecosystems

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As tiny as they are, marine plankton play pivotal roles in biogeochemical cycles and sustaining aquatic ecosystems, producing around half of the oxygen on Earth and also acting as carbon sinks. When they die, their decomposing cells…

Rewetting peatlands may curb warming-driven CO₂ emissions

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Peatlands store large amounts of carbon. However, when they are drained, they can become substantial sources of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO₂).

Navigating the social dynamics of sustainability

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In the transformation toward sustainability, the interests of societal, economic and political actors often clash, making conflict inevitable. Understanding these dynamics and learning how to engage with them constructively is therefore…

Bringing hidden optical imperfections to light

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Tiny manufacturing imperfections in optical components normally go unnoticed. Yet they can alter light in surprisingly significant ways. An international research team led by TU Darmstadt has shown that such imperfections can affect not…

Large protected areas help northern bird species cope with climate change

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A recent study coordinated by the University of Helsinki tracked the populations of 100 bird species across Finnish protected areas. Cold-dwelling species fared better in large protected areas, while the same species saw much steeper…

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Continuous video of black hole radio observations challenges shock wave theory

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For years, scientists have relied primarily on radio imaging from techniques like very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) to study jets from the active galactic nuclei of supermassive black holes. This allows for the detection of broad,…

Injectable nanodevices could provide effective treatment for drug-resistant glioblastoma

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Glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive and treatment-resistant brain cancers known to medicine, carrying a median survival of just 12–15 months, even with the best available care.

Detecting 'pressure anisotropy' using zirconia nanoparticles

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Researchers at University of Tsukuba have discovered that the crystal structure of zirconia nanoparticles remains stable under uniform pressure applied from all directions but changes under anisotropic pressure. This unique property is…

Interviewing with AI? Try not to let the robot affect your behavior

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A firm handshake used to be all a job candidate needed to make a good first impression, but today a growing number of firms are relying on artificial intelligence to screen applicants.

Northern map turtles leave Lake Erie before algal blooms peak, tracking finds

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Harmful algal blooms pose serious threats to people, animals and the environment. The University of Toledo's Dr. Jeanine Refsnider counts it as a positive discovery that northern map turtles tend to steer clear, as she and an undergraduate…

Disposable vapes pose hidden environmental threat, researchers warn

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Vaping isn't just annoying to passersby who have to walk through clouds of vapor but may be actively harmful to the environment, a new study says. Discarded nicotine vapes contain extremely high levels of lead and other heavy metals in…

'White graphene' reshaped at the atomic scale with tailor-made nanopores

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A research team at the University of Vienna led by physicist Jani Kotakoski demonstrates how the shape of nanopores in hexagonal boron nitride—the electrically insulating counterpart to graphene, also known as "white graphene"—can be…

AI is reshaping workplace, not replacing jobs, new research finds

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Artificial intelligence is changing work in Ireland for the better, according to a new study led by Taha Yasseri, Workday Professor of Technology and Society at Trinity's School of Social Sciences & Philosophy.

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How atmospheric events at the top of the world could have triggered two devastating California floods

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In early 2017 and 2023, California experienced two catastrophic and record-breaking floods that caused billions of dollars in damage, triggered mudslides and forced thousands of people to evacuate. Why this happened left scientists…

Sun's largest sunspots may have potential to trigger superflares

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The sun is capable of great things. In massive eruptions, it repeatedly hurls particles and radiation into space. This solar bombardment can be dangerous for technical infrastructure on Earth: For example, satellites and transformers in…

There's nothing irrational about resisting AI

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If you read about AI, you'll find a widespread belief: When people don't want to use AI, it's because they're afraid or just don't understand it. They're afraid of losing their jobs or of change generally. Or they don't understand the…