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The extraordinary life of Alfred Nobel

The Nobel prizes may be one of the most famous and prestigious awards in the world—but who was the man behind them? As I explain in my lectures about Alfred Nobel, the inventor and entrepreneur has left a lasting legacy ...

Winning the Nobel 'an earthquake', says Ruvkun

US scientist Gary Ruvkun, who on Monday won the Nobel Prize in Medicine with fellow American Victor Ambros for their discovery of microRNA, said winning the honor was like "an earthquake".

Publisher Springer Nature makes stock market debut

Leading academic publisher Springer Nature made its stock market debut Friday, one of the few initial public offerings in Frankfurt this year despite the exchange's strong performance.

2024 Nobels offer glimmer of hope as global crises mount

Next week's Nobel Prize announcements will crown achievements that made the world a better place, a glimmer of optimism amid a spiraling Middle East conflict, war in Ukraine, famine in Sudan and a collapsing climate.

Will AI one day win a Nobel Prize?

Artificial intelligence is already disrupting industries from banking and finance to film and journalism, and scientists are investigating how AI might revolutionize their field—or even win a Nobel Prize.

Researchers unpack sign language's visual advantage

Linguists have long known that sign languages are as grammatically and logically sophisticated as spoken languages—and also make greater use of "iconicity," the property by which some words refer to things by resembling ...

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Records show that churches monitored multilingual gossip in Elizabethan London
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The 'publish or perish' mentality is fueling research paper retractions—and undermining science
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Scientists become a source of hope and information on TikTok, Instagram
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Global crises are multiplying: Here's how science can help our public decision-makers
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Saturday Citations: Football metaphors in physics; vets treat adorable baby rhino's broken leg
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'The data on extreme human aging is rotten from the inside out,' says Ig Nobel winner
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Study looks at funded partnerships between nonprofit organizations and researchers
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Saturday Citations: Permian-Triassic mystery solved; cute baby sighted; the nine-day 2023 seismic event
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Backside breathing and pigeon bombers studies win Ig Nobel prizes
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Studies on pigeon-guided missiles, swimming abilities of dead fish among Ig Nobels winners
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First publication of J.R.R. Tolkien's collected poems offers new insights into author's personality
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This year's $890,000 Balzan Prizes awarded for research on aging, restorative justice, climate crisis
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Saturday Citations: Teen seals photobomb research site; cell phones are safe; serotonin and emotional resilience
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A mural honoring scientists hung in Pfizer's NYC lobby for 60 years. Now it's up for grabs
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US disinformation researcher laments 'incredible witch hunt'
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Researchers propose framework for contextual metadata
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First Nations people are three times more likely to die on the road. Here's how to fix Australia's transport injustice
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Saturday Citations: Corn sweat! Nanoplastics! Plus: Massive objects in your area are dragging spacetime
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Claw machine games are Rio de Janeiro's new public enemy
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Best of Last Week—How humans really killed mammoths, making AI systems smarter, mitochondria fling their DNA

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Plants & Animals
Bumblebee queens choose to hibernate in pesticide-contaminated soil, scientists discover
Earth Sciences
Could injecting diamond dust into the atmosphere help cool the planet?
Astronomy
Physicists show that neutron stars may be shrouded in clouds of axions
Earth Sciences
Scientists identify potential deep-ocean greenhouse gas storage solution
Cell & Microbiology
Single-molecule imaging reveals aberrant DNA-binding dynamics of cancer-linked chromatin remodelers
Condensed Matter
Key role of structural defects in amorphous solid deformation uncovered
Nanomaterials
New fabrication strategy enhances graphene aerogel sensitivity and durability for human-machine interfaces
Biotechnology
Molecular 'cut and sew' process could accelerate drug design
Astronomy
First results from the Axion Dark-Matter Birefringent Cavity experiment establish a new technique for axion search
Cell & Microbiology
Researchers find new role for protein in combating age-related diseases
Environment
Global study reveals people, including those most affected by climate change, do not understand climate justice
Optics & Photonics
Image-guided computational holographic wavefront shaping: Fast, versatile solutions for complex imaging challenges
Cell & Microbiology
Scientists show how sperm and egg come together like a key in a lock
Nanophysics
Fast-responding colorimetric sensor for real-time monitoring has expanded color gamut
Evolution
Extremely well-preserved fossil sawfly sheds new light on co-evolution of insects and toxic plants
Plants & Animals
Scientists create new overwintering sites for monarch butterflies on a warming planet
Economics & Business
Philosopher finds glitch in worldwide patent laws
Astronomy
Astronomers detect ancient lonely quasars with murky origins
Astronomy
Rare ultra-luminous nova spotted in the Small Magellanic Cloud
Astronomy
A near-Earth microquasar emerges as a source of powerful radiation

A song's structure can be linked to its popularity

Think of your favourite pop song. Can you explain why you like it so much? It might remind you of a memorable event, or move you in a way that makes you feel happy or sad. A new study, published in the open-access journal ...

Mayweather will beat McGregor, neuroscience predicts

In Las Vegas, on August 26, the unbeaten American boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr and the immensely popular Irishman Conor McGregor will face off in a boxing ring, where only striking with hands while standing is allowed. It would ...

Justice Dept. tries to shore up forensic science, testimony

The Justice Department is trying to shore up faltering confidence in forensic science and how its experts describe their findings in court, a push that comes months after similar efforts dating to the Obama administration ...