Science

In 2003, Nasa researchers reported that freshwater snails carried into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle had mated and reproduced during their mission, allowing their gravity-sensing organs to develop entirely under microgravity. According to the study published in PubMed, tittled ‘Otoliths developed in microgravity‘ formed part of the results of the STS-90 Neurolab Spacelab mission, a…

In 2005, five thick-toed geckos left Earth aboard the unmanned Russian spacecraft Foton-M2, embarking on a 16-day orbital flight with no access to food or water. The mission, a joint undertaking between Nasa and the Russian Academy of Sciences, was designed to test whether a reptile species could serve as a viable model for studying…

Wolf spider on white background. Image Credit: Philip N. Cohen/Wikipedia A study published in ‘Experimental and Applied Entomology’ has explored how spiders could tell what animals are living around them by examining traces of prey DNA left inside their bodies. The research tested how ‘reliable prey DNA’ could be found in wolf spiders after feeding…

In January 1960, Nasa launched the rhesus monkey Miss Sam aboard a Little Joe rocket from Wallops Island, Virginia, to test the launch escape system built for Project Mercury. The flight was designed to confirm that the escape tower could pull the capsule clear of its booster during an abort, a safeguard critical to any…

Engineers in Switzerland have worked out how to make miniature robots fly and steer without a single motor, magnet or battery on board. Researchers at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne have built hollow structures that turn sound waves directly into thrust, drawing on Helmholtz resonance, the same physics behind the low hum produced by…

Representative Image of Chosha praecursor, an early insect with paddle-like abdominal appendages in a prehistoric landscape (AI-generated image) Today, insects occupy nearly every terrestrial environment on Earth and account for more described species than any other animal group, yet the earliest stages of their evolutionary history remain poorly documented. A newly described species from western…

The universe has fascinated humanity for centuries, but understanding it requires more than simply looking at the stars and planets. Galileo Galilei, one of history’s most influential astronomers and scientists, offered a powerful way of thinking about nature, arguing that the universe could be understood only by learning the language in which it was written….

Representative Image (AI-generated) What happens when waste from a coal-fired power station is placed beneath the sea? In 1989, researchers in the UK built an experimental artificial reef from 50 tons of stabilised coal-fired power station waste, and marine life began moving in almost immediately. The unusual experiment took place in Poole Bay, off the…

Quote of the day by Neil deGrasse Tyson (Image: Wikipedia) Neil deGrasse Tyson‘s words present education as something considerably bigger than simply memorising facts. “As an educator, it’s my duty to empower you to think,” he said. “So that you can go forth and think accurate thoughts about how the world is put together.” He…

Diamond has long been regarded as a nonpiezoelectric material. Now, researchers have identified a piezoelectric effect in ultrathin, ultraflexible polycrystalline diamond membranes. Piezoelectric materials produce an electrical response when they are mechanically pressed, bent, or stretched. In the study, the researchers found that the effect in diamond membranes varies with their thickness, with the strongest…