New research says it’s not just humans who go through midlife crises: Chimps and orangutans also experience a dip in happiness around the middle of their lives, and these ruts may act as natural motivators. “There may be different things going on at the surface, but underneath it all, there’s something common in all three…
The first farmers who swept into Europe 6000 to 7000 years ago may have grown too big for their britches—or animal skins—too fast. A new study of archaeological sites across Western Europe highlights a strikingly consistent pattern in Neolithic farmers’ communities: Their populations grew too big, too quickly, and crashed right after they peaked. “We…
The World Bank is urging stepped-up efforts to meet world carbon reduction goals after looking at what it says would be the catastrophic consequences if average world temperatures rise more than 4 degrees Celsius (7.2 degrees Fahrenheit) by the end of the century. In what World Bank President Jim Yong Kim acknowledged was a “doomsday…
Scientists and ethicists call for public debate about the future use of drugs or other enhancements in the workplace
An ambitious plan to provide 15% of Europe’s power needs from solar plants in North Africa has run into trouble. The Desertec initiative hoped to deliver electricity from a network of renewable energy sources to Europe via cables under the sea. But in recent weeks, two big industrial backers have pulled out. And the Spanish…
Fully fledged quantum computers are still a long way off. But devices that can simulate quantum systems are proving uniquely useful.
Meanings of words can be hard to locate when they are on the tip of your tongue, let alone in the brain. Now, for the first time, patterns of brain activity have been matched with the meanings of specific words. The discovery is a step forward in our attempts to read thoughts from brain activity…
For years, scientists and engineers have been juggling various combinations of acids, steam, bacteria, catalysts and the digestive juices of microorganisms to convert agricultural waste and even household garbage into motor fuel. So far, such alternative fuels have not moved beyond small pilot plants, despite federal incentives to encourage companies to develop them. But that…
As many as two thirds of the species living in our oceans may still be unknown to science, say researchers, despite the fact that their calculations indicate that there are many fewer species than previously thought. The University of Auckland researchers reckon there are actually fewer than a million marine species, of which around 226,000…
Obama wants to invest in science and technology, but a divided Congress and looming budget cuts could make it difficult to keep his promises.