Science and technology — lab innovations, scientific instruments, and emerging tech from research.
We may finally have a way to rate a quantum computer’s usefulness
# Researchers Develop Metric to Measure Quantum Computer Performance Quantum computers have stumped the tech industry for years with a deceptively si…
Why is everyone suddenly worried about the risks of AI?
# AI Existential Risk: What Experts Actually Fear and Why Skepticism Persists A striking consensus has emerged among artificial intelligence research…
Jet-powered drones pose a new threat to Ukraine – can they be stopped?
# Jet-Powered Drones Transform Ukraine's Aerial Defense Challenge Russia has introduced jet-powered variants of its Shahed attack drones into combat …
Scientists are building a microscope powered by a quantum computer
# Quantum-Powered Microscopy Could Revolutionize How Scientists See Delicate Samples Researchers have begun integrating quantum computers with electr…
NASA-backed scientists turn plastic waste into edible cookies
Scientists funded by NASA have engineered yeast to convert plastic waste and agricultural byproducts into edible cookies, a development that addresses…
The tourism industry is slowly waking up to solo travelers' needs
# Tourism Industry Responds to Boom in Solo Travelers Solo travel has exploded into a dominant travel trend, forcing the hospitality industry to reth…
AI could make holiday planning easier for overwhelmed travelers
# AI Travel Assistants Could Help Overwhelmed Travelers Complete Holiday Plans Generative artificial intelligence shows promise in helping travelers …
Tiny nanolaser could cut computer energy use in half
Researchers have engineered an ultra-compact nanolaser capable of dramatically reducing the energy footprint of computing systems. The breakthrough en…
Scientists just made quantum computer operations 1,000 times faster
# Quantum Computing Breakthrough Accelerates Operations by 1,000-Fold Researchers have discovered a method to execute specific quantum operations ove…
Scientists find a way to slash computer memory energy use by orders of magnitude
# Scientists Develop Ultra-Efficient Method to Switch Magnetic Computer Memory Researchers have discovered a technique to manipulate magnetic compute…
Here is how to understand OpenAI’s major mathematical breakthrough
# OpenAI Claims Mathematical Breakthrough on Millennium Prize Problem OpenAI has announced progress toward solving one of the seven Millennium Prize …
Devil’s Arrows: Ancient builders hauled 55,000-pound stones 11 miles for Britain’s tallest stone row
# Ancient Builders Transported 55,000-Pound Stones Across 11 Miles for Britain's Tallest Stone Row Archaeologists have solved a centuries-old mystery…
OpenAI has solved the Navier-Stokes Millennium problem using $15m of AI effort
OpenAI researchers have claimed a breakthrough in one of mathematics' most enduring puzzles: the Navier-Stokes existence and smoothness problem, one o…
As Star Trek turns 60, it’s not too late to discover the seminal series
Star Trek marks six decades of influence on science fiction and popular culture this year, and newcomers need not feel intimidated by the franchise's …
Major breakthrough made on famous Millennium maths problem
Researchers have made substantial progress on the Navier-Stokes equations, one of mathematics' most persistent unsolved problems, through a novel coll…
'The Last Starship' is 2026's most slept-on space game — you need to check out this 'FTL'-like shipbuilding strategy gem
# The Last Starship Emerges as 2026's Hidden Strategy Gem Introversion Software's "The Last Starship" positions itself as one of 2026's most overlook…
I made a free AI chatbot solve a decade-long maths problem in 13 minutes
# Free AI Chatbot Solves Ten-Year Mathematics Problem in 13 Minutes Matthew Sparkes, a reporter at New Scientist, tested a free artificial intelligen…
How algorithms are making our environments bland
# Algorithmic Homogenization: Why Our World Is Losing Color Pantone's selection of Cloud Dancer, a pale white, as its 2026 color of the year signals …
Extreme pressure turns blue pigment into record-long single-atom copper chains
# Extreme Pressure Transforms Blue Pigment into Record Single-Atom Copper Chains Scientists have squeezed a common blue pigment under extreme pressur…
80,000-year-old “arrowheads” rewrite human history
Archaeologists working in Uzbekistan have uncovered evidence that sophisticated projectile weapon technology emerged tens of thousands of years earlie…
Harvard scientists turn knitting into shape-shifting smart fabric
Harvard researchers have engineered shape-shifting textiles that can snap between stable configurations and perform electronic functions. The breakthr…
Nations and big tech to train AI using ‘gold dust’ data from Ukraine
# Nations and Tech Giants Race to Mine Ukraine War Data for AI Training Governments and major technology companies are aggressively collecting battle…
Adam Kucharski would like to point out he did not win big at a casino
# AI-Generated Misinformation About Epidemiologist Adam Kucharski Spreads Online Epidemiologist and mathematician Adam Kucharski found himself at the…
What is the optimal way to ice a cocktail? Part 2
# The Science Behind Cocktail Ice: What Bartenders and Drinkers Got Right The debate over cocktail ice has moved beyond bar-stool philosophy into ter…
IBM quantum computer solves classically intractable problem in 15 minutes
IBM and researchers from the University of Chicago have demonstrated that a quantum computer can solve a problem that classical supercomputers cannot …
AI searched 100 million possibilities and found a cheaper way to 3D-print a NASA rocket alloy
Researchers have used artificial intelligence to dramatically accelerate the development of 3D-printing techniques for GRCop-42, a high-performance co…
Driving data can predict crash black spots before accidents happen
# Driving Data Can Predict Road Crash Hotspots Before Accidents Happen Researchers analyzing behavioral patterns from hundreds of thousands of Austra…
Twisteddoodles on a brand-new type of robot
# New Robot Design Captures Artist's Imagination in Latest Twisteddoodles Cartoon Twisteddoodles, the popular science cartoon series, has released th…
Can ‘quantum musical agents’ really make a melody better?
# Quantum Musical Agents: A Promising Idea Facing Scrutiny Researchers have proposed using quantum computing to improve collaborative music compositi…
Plastic bottles can be turned into edible, vanilla-flavour cookies
# Researchers Transform Plastic Bottles Into Edible Vanilla Cookies Scientists have developed a method to convert plastic waste into food products, s…
The engineer racing to run the world’s most dangerous algorithm
# Engineer's Quantum Breakthrough Poses Both Promise and Peril Craig Gidney, a quantum computing researcher at Google, stands at the center of one of…
A tiny “rainbow on a chip” could help supercharge 6G networks
# Compact Light Chip Could Power Next-Generation 6G Communications Researchers have developed a miniaturized optical device that generates a stable s…
Scientists turn tiny “defects” into a 5.5x heat transfer boost
Researchers have engineered an ultrathin polymer coating that exploits microscopic surface defects to achieve a fivefold improvement in heat transfer …
The dental crown of the future could be 3D-printed while you wait
# Fast-Track Dentistry: 3D Printing Could Deliver Custom Crowns in Minutes, Not Days Dental patients could soon leave their appointments wearing perm…
AI-driven literature mining speeds discovery of heat-stable lead-free dielectric materials
Researchers deployed machine learning to mine scientific literature and identify promising lead-free dielectric materials that withstand high temperat…
Innovation enhances multiomics workflow, eliminates sample preparation
Researchers at Purdue University have developed a patent-pending method that removes sample preparation from multiomics workflows, addressing one of l…
'Beyond human intuition': AI designs chip components 500 times smaller than what engineers could ever imagine
Researchers have created three new chip components using artificial intelligence that measure just a few micrometers long, pushing far beyond the scal…
Scientists turn DNA into a memory device that uses 100x less power
Researchers have engineered a hybrid memory device that pairs synthetic DNA with semiconductor technology, achieving storage and data processing in a …
Elon Musk and Sam Altman claim we've reached the AI singularity. But how would we even know that happened?
Elon Musk and Sam Altman have claimed that artificial intelligence has reached or neared the "singularity," the theoretical point where AI surpasses h…