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Latest story• Jan 7, 2026

Leonardo da Vinci's DNA may be embedded in his art — and scientists think they've managed to extract some

Scientists have extracted DNA from a Renaissance drawing called "Holy Child" that may have been created by Leonardo da Vinci, finding genetic similarities to material from a 1400s letter written by da Vinci's relative. However, experts debate whether da Vinci actually drew the sketch, making it uncertain whose DNA was recovered. Researchers hope to reconstruct da Vinci's complete genetic profile to authenticate his...

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Computer scientist Yann LeCun: “Intelligence really is about learning”

AI pioneer Yann LeCun is leaving Meta after over a decade to launch Advanced Machine Intelligence Labs, driven by his belief that large language models are a "dead end" for achieving superintelligence. His new startup will focus...

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New carbon capture tech could save us from datacenter doom

Finnish researchers created TBN-BA, a carbon capture compound that absorbs CO₂ more efficiently and releases it at only 70°C versus 900°C for current technologies. The compound retains 75% effectiveness after 50 cycles and costs...

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Hubble observes Cloud-9, a failed galaxy dominated by dark matter

Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope have discovered Cloud-9, the first observed "failed galaxy" dominated by dark matter that never formed stars despite containing gas with one million solar masses. This spherical cloud,...

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NASA telescope combines 100 maps of the universe into one: 'every astronomer is going to find something of value here'

NASA's SPHEREx telescope has created its first complete map of the universe by combining over 100 individual images, splitting light into 102 different infrared wavelengths to reveal unprecedented cosmic details. The $488 million...

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New battery idea gets lots of power out of unusual sulfur chemistry

Researchers developed a new battery using unusual sulfur chemistry that achieves over 2,000 Watt-hours per kilogram energy density by forming sulfur tetrachloride at the cathode while sodium plates onto aluminum at the anode. The...

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Betelgeuse’s buddy leaves a wake in the giant star’s atmosphere

Astronomers have discovered the strongest evidence yet for Betelgeuse's companion star by detecting a wake it creates while orbiting through the red supergiant's atmosphere. Using eight years of Hubble telescope data, researchers...

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Building materials are getting closer to doubling as batteries

About five cubic meters of concrete—roughly the size of a basement wall—could soon power your entire home for a day. MIT researchers have dramatically boosted the energy storage capacity of their revolutionary...

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Wearable health devices could generate a million tons of e-waste by 2050

Wearable health devices showcased at CES 2026 could create a massive environmental crisis, with demand potentially reaching 2 billion units annually by 2050—42 times current levels. This surge could generate over a million tons...

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The invisible energy cost that keeps life from falling apart

Living systems spend hidden energy to maintain biochemical pathways and block unwanted reactions. Researchers created a framework measuring these costs by calculating how improbable spontaneous pathway operation would be.

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SETI watched a pulsar flicker for months and found space keeps shifting

SETI Institute researchers monitored pulsar PSR J0332+5434 for nearly a year using the Allen Telescope Array, tracking how its radio signals "twinkle" as they pass through interstellar gas clouds. The team observed that this...

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Astronomers Witness Star Exploding at the Edge of the Universe

The James Webb Space Telescope detected the most distant supernova ever observed, occurring when the universe was only 730 million years old. Surprisingly, the ancient star's explosion produced radiation similar to modern...

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Under 10% of an earthquake’s energy makes the ground shake

MIT researchers used miniature laboratory earthquakes to discover that only 1% to 10% of an earthquake's energy actually causes ground shaking, while the vast majority generates heat that can melt surrounding rock material. The...

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Dennis Whyte’s fusion quest

MIT's Dennis Whyte and his students revolutionized fusion energy by designing a compact reactor using revolutionary superconducting tape called ReBCO, creating magnets 40 times smaller than existing designs but vastly more...

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The moon has been secretly feasting on Earth's atmosphere for billions of years

For billions of years, the moon has been absorbing particles from Earth's atmosphere through a process researchers now understand differently than previously thought. New research reveals that Earth's magnetic field actually...

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Chinese Fusion Reactor Achieves Plasma Density Previously Thought to Be Impossible

Chinese scientists broke the Greenwald limit in their EAST reactor by creating high gas pressure and adding extra energy during heating, achieving stable plasma densities previously thought impossible for fusion.

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'How can all of this be happening?': Scientists spot massive group of ancient galaxies so hot they shouldn't exist

Astronomers discovered an unexpectedly hot galaxy cluster that existed just 1.4 billion years after the Big Bang, challenging current theories about galaxy cluster formation. The cluster, SPT2349-56, contains over 30 active...

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The South Pole Just Moved. Here’s Why

Scientists at Antarctica's South Pole Station moved the geographic South Pole marker on New Year's Day because Antarctica's ice sheet flows approximately 10 meters annually, requiring the marker to be repositioned to maintain...

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Astronomers May Have Unlocked the Reason for Betelgeuse’s Bizarre Dimming

Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope discovered that Betelgeuse's mysterious brightness changes are likely caused by an unseen companion star creating ripples in its atmosphere every six years. This finding explains the...

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The Amateur Archaeologist Who Found the Wrong Troy

German businessman Heinrich Schliemann partnered with British archaeologist Frank Calvert in 1870 to excavate Hissarlik hill in Turkey, believing they would find Homer's legendary Troy from the Iliad. Though they discovered...

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First maps of the sun’s outer boundary may help predict solar storms

The sun's outer atmosphere looks like a pufferfish, according to new maps created from NASA's Parker Solar Probe that ventured where no spacecraft had gone before. Scientists have produced the first verified images of the Alfvén...

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Milky Way’s Twin Causes Rethink of Galactic Evolution

Astronomers discovered a galaxy called Alaknanda that challenges our understanding of galactic evolution by displaying mature spiral arms just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang, when the universe was only one-tenth its current...

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NASA’s science budget won’t be a train wreck after all

Congress approved NASA's science budget, maintaining key missions while officially ending the troubled $10 billion Mars Sample Return program. The budget preserves future missions including DAVINCI Venus probe and funds for...

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Chances are you have fallen for at least one of 10 quantum myths

Common misconceptions about quantum physics persist despite over a century of scientific understanding, including false beliefs that quantum effects only occur at small scales, that entanglement enables faster-than-light...

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