Science Illustrated

In 2024, NASA aims to send the first people around the Moon in more than 50 years, with four astronauts on the Artemis 2 mission travelling to the Moon and back in a large figure of eight. The pictured 5m-wide heat shield will protect the crew when t

Only some half of all spider species use a web to capture prey. Others hunt or ambush prey, like this Australian spider (Arkys curtulus), which has developed a unique kind of predatory camouflage. The spider lies flat on a leaf, pulling its legs in c

1 Cold seawater seeps toward Enceladus' warm core. The ocean blankets the entire moon and is thought to reachs a depth of 10km at the south pole. 2 The water heats up and then rises outward again. Geochemical reactions between the warm water and the

HEALTH Chronic pain can be very difficult to treat, even though it has such great implications for those who live their lives with it. One of the problems is understanding how chronic pain is communicated to the brain, especially in those patients wh

CLIMATE The risk of a flight across the Atlantic being influenced by severe turbulence is 55% higher today than four decades ago, according to a new report, and the scientists behind it claim that rising global temperatures are to blame for the extra

NATURE A major new study published by the journal Biological Reviews has reached the conclusion that the global loss of wild animals is “much more alarming” than previously anticipated. According to the study, almost half of the planet’s species are

TECHNOLOGY Solar energy is considered the most promising player in green energy transition, although the International Energy Agency estimates only 6.2% of global energy to have been generated by solar in 2022. Scientists are still seeking solutions

HUMANS “Research into prehistoric gender has triggered a lively debate in recent decades, the main point of disagreement being whether prehistoric gender perception was binary and to what extent,” say scientists from the University of Göttingen in Ge

NATURE Bowhead whales can live for longer than 200 years, making them probably the world’s longest-living mammals. So scientists have long been interested in the possible reasons behind their remarkable ages. Now, a team of American scientists has fo

PHYSICS If you like your beer cold during a summer festival on a warm day, do not despair, even if you have neither power nor a fridge at your disposal. One of the simplest cooling methods is to dampen old newspapers or kitchen roll and wrap it aroun

ANIMALS Fluorescence is the process by which a chemical on the surface of an organism absorbs light and then emits the light at longer and lower-energy wavelengths. Among mammals, the first published reports of fluorescence were in rabbits and humans

NATURE A microscopic parasite believed to be dormant in millions of people worldwide is affecting the behaviour of wolves. This conclusion stems from research published in scientific journal Nature by scientists who have been tracking wolves in Yello

ENERGY If you do the dishes manually in cold water, then your energy consumption is about as low as it gets. However, the results are rarely good, as fat and bits of food are harder to remove using water around 10ºC. If cutlery and plates are to emer

HUMAN BODY Sleepless nights, constant worries, and screaming kids make parenting extremely demanding and exhausting. So it may not be surprising that small children accelerate the ageing process – at least in mothers. Our DNA provides a good indicato

HUMANS Scientists have recorded that women averagely spend 178 seconds in public lavatories, whereas men spend 118 seconds. So, women use the bathroom 50% longer – but this is for several different reasons. Public lavatories for men and women typical

ANIMALS The trunk is not only an elephant’s most iconic body part, it is also one of its most versatile and important. Elephants use their trunks for sucking, drinking and spraying water – as well as to grab things and to lift heavy objects To learn

HUMAN BODY Temporary memory loss is common after a heavy blow to the head. The memory loss can reach back in time, so it is suddenly not possible to recall one’s own name, or into the future, making it difficult to store new memories. Often the memor

September’s arrival of dust and gravel from the asteroid Bennu is just the latest in a series of space missions that will bring back bits of other worlds. They should reveal more about our galaxy; they might show whether we are alone in space. In Aus

Analyses of dust and rock from the Moon demonstrate that Earth and the Moon have similar compositions. Scientists now believe that both worlds are the results of a collision between the original Earth and another protoplanet. ◼ MISSIONS: Apollo 11-12

Sequencing human DNA took 13 years. Now scientists aim to bank the genetic material of all animals, fungi and plants in just 10 years, in a project that could help save endangered species – and uncover new patterns in the evolution of life. The 2003

1 Scientists from 22 nations travel the world to collect tissue samples from all known eukaryote species. Each organism’s DNA is extracted and isolated before being amplified using the PCR method. 2 The DNA is then placed in a sequencing device, in w

YEARS AGO The first eukaryotes originated 2.7 billion years ago. Small cells began to exist inside big ones, converting cell waste into energy. Today, the small cells are known as mitochondria, which generate energy in all eukaryotes. Mitochondria re

1 ChatGPT has been fed millions of texts and converted all the words into a numerical system. Words often used in the same context or close to each other have been given the same numbers in specific places of the system. QUESTION: What is the name of

In finance, employees analyse financial statement data and prepare investment proposals. Artificial intelligence is highly suitable for such jobs, as the computer can quickly identify patterns in complex data, indicating how markets and companies may

Australia has the bluebottle or ‘Pacific man o’war’, which causes around 10,000 sting cases each year on the east coast of Australia. Many other tropical and subtropical seas host the closely-related Portuguese man o’war, which is slightly larger and

In early 2009, fish started disappearing from the main tank at Newquay Aquarium in the UK. With only a few loose scales remaining on the floor of the tank, staff thought the fish were being stolen by thieves, and installed surveillance cameras. After

1 The sensation of love begins when the brain’s neurotransmitters are put out of balance. The quantity of the dopamine neuro-transmitter begins to rise in one nerve cell network (orange) while the quantity of serotonin is reduced in another (red). 2

GUIDE A large social network makes you seem like a good choice. ? Your brain’s search for reward is the driver behind attraction, so if you want to improve your chances of capturing somebody’s attention, you should make yourself seem like a reward. A

Biochemist Janice Brahney is on one of her sample expeditions. She is out in the field, collecting dust from some highly remote wilderness locations in the western USA, as part of an investigation into how phosphorus might spread in nature via the ai

1 According to research, you eat and breathe about 50,000 plastic particles annually. They are everywhere around you and come from all kinds of sources: carpets, clothes, toothbrushes, food packaging, and hundreds of other things. 2 The particles we

Scientists from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University have developed genetically-modified bacteria that can capture microplastic in water. Named Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the bacteria combine to produce a greasy membrane around plastic particles, which

Opponents of offshore wind turbines have one thing right: they disturb wildlife. The noise from wind turbines and their huge spinning wings are a hazard to birdlife, while their installation often destroys ocean-floor ecosystems. It’s an acknowledged

1 The foundations and the rocks placed around them function as artificial reefs for semi-permanent creatures such as sea anemones, clams, and oysters. According to a study from 2018, the average wind turbine is home to some 4 tonnes of crustaceans. 2

I magine that you have met a very good-looking person – one who sets your pulse racing with such an attractive face and build. You put extra effort into your conversation and take pleasure in every glance and smile. But how would you feel if you knew

1 The brain’s blood vessels are surrounded by a barrier that keeps out parasites and allows the immune system’s cells to pass. But toxoplasma invades those immune cells, using them as Trojan horses to slip into the brain. 2 In the brain, the parasite

Learn about the forgottendrama, relentless races, and ‘aha’ moments that preceded the mostexceptional inventions andscientific breakthroughs. An atmosphere of excited anticipation spreads through the audience of a packed auditorium at the distinguish

CARDIFF COUNCIL FLAT HOLM PROJECT; ARCHIVE OF MARCONI CORPORATION; LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA/MCCLURES MAGAZINE ■

1 On 10 April 1912, when the Titanic set out on its fateful maiden voyage, Marconi’s wireless telegraph had been installed aboard the ship. The fact that the inventor was not also on the vessel was a case of chance. The White Star Line shipping compa

If you know someone who thinks the world revolves around them, well, they’re partly correct. Gravity is a powerful force of nature, and it influences everything. It keeps you seated in your chair, the Moon in its orbit around Earth, and Earth in its

In Japan, earthquake warnings may give one minute’s notice before a quake strikes. With major cities around the world under the threat of quakes, could science do better at predicting such natural disasters? According to one study, they’ve wiped out