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A low-fat vegan diet—without cutting calories or carbs—may help people with type 1 diabetes significantly reduce how much insulin they need, and how much they spend on it. In a new analysis published in BMC Nutrition, participants following the plant-based plan lowered their daily insulin use by 28%, while those on a portion-controlled diet saw no meaningful change.View the full article

Scientists at HKUST have unveiled a major leap forward in calcium-ion battery technology, potentially opening the door to safer, more sustainable energy storage for everything from renewable power grids to electric vehicles. By designing a novel quasi-solid-state electrolyte made from redox-active covalent organic frameworks, the team solved long-standing issues that have held calcium batteries back—namely poor ion transport and limited stability.View the full article

A robotic arm that moves too quickly can feel creepy. One that moves too slowly feels awkward and unhelpful. In a VR study, researchers found that AI-powered prosthetic arms were best accepted when they moved at a natural, human-like speed—about one second per reach. That sweet spot boosted feelings of control, comfort, and even trust in the robot.View the full article

A protein called HIF1 may be the missing link behind painful tendon injuries like jumper’s knee and tennis elbow. Researchers showed that high levels of HIF1 actually cause harmful changes that make tendons brittle and prone to pain. In experiments, turning the protein off protected tendons — even under heavy strain.View the full article

Sixty thousand years ago, humans in southern Africa were already mastering nature’s chemistry. Scientists have discovered chemical traces of poison from the deadly gifbol plant on ancient quartz arrowheads found in South Africa — the oldest direct evidence of arrow poison ever identified. The find reveals that these early hunters didn’t just invent the bow and arrow earlier than once believed — they also knew how to enhance their weapons with toxic plant compounds to make hunts more effective.View the full article

Dust from asteroid Bennu is revealing a surprising origin story for life’s building blocks. New research suggests some amino acids formed in frozen ice exposed to radiation, not warm liquid water as scientists long believed. Isotopic clues show Bennu’s chemistry differs sharply from well-studied meteorites, pointing to multiple pathways for creating life’s ingredients.View the full article

Scientists have uncovered evidence of a massive underground lava tube hidden beneath the surface of Venus, revealing a new layer of the planet’s volcanic history. By reexamining radar data from NASA’s Magellan spacecraft, researchers identified what appears to be a huge empty conduit near the volcanic region Nyx Mons. The structure could be nearly a kilometer wide and extend for dozens of kilometers below the surface.View the full article

A newly identified protein may hold the key to rejuvenating aging brain cells. Researchers found that boosting DMTF1 can restore the ability of neural stem cells to regenerate, even when age-related damage has set in. Without it, these cells struggle to renew and support memory and learning. The findings raise hopes for treatments that could slow or even reverse aspects of brain aging.View the full article

Long before agriculture, humans were transforming Europe’s wild landscapes. Advanced simulations show that hunting and fire use by Neanderthals and Mesolithic hunter-gatherers reshaped forests and grasslands in measurable ways. By reducing populations of giant herbivores, people indirectly altered how dense vegetation became. The findings challenge the idea that prehistoric Europe was an untouched natural world.View the full article

A new scientific review challenges the headline-grabbing claim that Yellowstone’s returning wolves triggered one of the strongest trophic cascades on Earth. Researchers found that the reported 1,500% surge in willow growth was based on circular calculations and questionable comparisons. After correcting for modeling and sampling flaws, the supposed ecosystem-wide boom largely disappears.View the full article

A newly identified planet candidate, HD 137010 b, looks strikingly Earth-like in size and orbit — but it may be colder than Mars due to its dimmer star. If it has a thick enough atmosphere, though, this icy world could still surprise us.View the full article

Scientists studying a rock sample collected by NASA’s Curiosity rover have uncovered something tantalizing: the largest organic molecules ever detected on Mars. The compounds — decane, undecane, and dodecane — may be fragments of fatty acids, which on Earth are most often linked to life. While non-living processes like meteorite impacts can also create such molecules, researchers found those sources couldn’t fully explain the amounts detected.View the full article

Coral reefs, worth an estimated $9.8 trillion a year to humanity, are in far worse shape than previously realized. A massive international study found that during the 2014–2017 global marine heatwave, more than half of the world’s reefs suffered significant bleaching, and many experienced large-scale coral death.View the full article

Even when Earth was locked in its most extreme deep freeze, the planet’s climate may not have been as silent and still as once believed. New research from ancient Scottish rocks reveals that during Snowball Earth — when ice sheets reached the tropics and the planet resembled a giant snowball from space — climate rhythms similar to today’s seasons, solar cycles, and even El Niño–like patterns were still pulsing beneath the ice.View the full article

Swapping just an hour of TV a day for something more active could significantly lower the risk of developing major depression—especially in middle age. A large Dutch study tracking more than 65,000 adults over four years found that replacing 60 minutes of TV with other activities cut depression risk by 11% overall, and by nearly 19% in middle-aged adults. The more time people reallocated—up to two hours—the greater the benefit, with risk dropping as much as 43% in midlife.View the full article

For the first time, deadly H5N1 bird flu has been confirmed as the cause of a wildlife die-off in Antarctica, killing more than 50 skuas during the 2023–2024 summers. Researchers on an Antarctic expedition found the virus ravaging these powerful seabirds, with some suffering severe neurological symptoms—twisted necks, circling behavior, and even falling from the sky. While penguins and fur seals were examined, skuas emerged as the primary victims, especially on Beak Island, where a mass die-off occurred.View the full article

Deep inside a nearby galaxy cloaked in thick clouds of gas and dust, astronomers have uncovered a surprising treasure trove of organic molecules using the James Webb Space Telescope. Peering through the cosmic veil in infrared light, researchers detected an extraordinary mix of carbon-rich compounds — including benzene, methane, and even the highly reactive methyl radical, never before seen outside the Milky Way.View the full article

A six-week study from the University of Nottingham suggests that pairing fermented kefir with a diverse prebiotic fiber mix may deliver a powerful anti-inflammatory boost. This “synbiotic” combination outperformed omega-3 supplements and fiber alone, leading to the broadest drop in inflammation-related proteins in healthy adults. By feeding beneficial microbes and helping them produce compounds like butyrate, the combo appeared to improve overall immune balance and metabolic health.View the full article

A simple brain-training program that sharpens how quickly older adults process visual information may have a surprisingly powerful long-term payoff. In a major 20-year study of adults 65 and older, those who completed five to six weeks of adaptive “speed of processing” training — along with a few booster sessions — were significantly less likely to develop dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, even two decades later. Participants who received the boosted speed training had a 25% lower dementia risk compared to those who received no training, making it the only intervention in the trial to show such a lasting protective effect.View the full article

A new clinical trial suggests that changing when you eat could make a meaningful difference for people living with Crohn’s disease. Researchers found that time-restricted feeding, a form of intermittent fasting that limits meals to an 8-hour daily window, reduced disease activity by 40% and cut abdominal discomfort in half over 12 weeks. Participants also lost weight and showed healthier inflammation and immune markers, even though they did not reduce calories or change what they ate.View the full article

Three major reviews commissioned by the World Health Organization find that GLP-1 drugs including tirzepatide (sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound), semaglutide (Ozempic and Wegovy), and liraglutide (Victoza and Saxenda) can lead to substantial weight loss in people with obesity. But while the results are impressive, researchers caution that most trials were funded by drugmakers, long term safety data are still limited, and side effects such as nausea are common.View the full article

Life may have started in sticky, rock-hugging gels rather than inside cells. Researchers suggest these primitive, biofilm-like materials could trap and concentrate molecules, giving early chemistry a protected space to grow more complex. Within these gels, the first hints of metabolism and self-replication may have emerged.View the full article

For millions of years, a frozen wanderer drifted between the stars before slipping into our solar system as 3I/ATLAS—only the third known interstellar comet ever spotted. When scientists turned NASA’s Swift Observatory toward it, they caught the first-ever hint of water from such an object, detected through a faint ultraviolet glow of hydroxyl gas. Even more surprising, the comet was blasting out water at a rate of about 40 kilograms per second while still far from the Sun—much farther than where most comets “switch on.”View the full article

Avian malaria is spreading across Hawaiʻi in a way scientists didn’t fully grasp until now: nearly every forest bird species can help keep the disease alive. Researchers found the parasite at 63 of 64 sites statewide, revealing that both native honeycreepers and introduced birds can quietly pass the infection to mosquitoes—even when carrying only tiny amounts of it. Because infected birds can remain contagious for months or even years, transmission keeps simmering almost everywhere mosquitoes exist.View the full article

A distant star system with four super-sized gas giants has revealed a surprise. Thanks to JWST’s powerful vision, astronomers detected sulfur in their atmospheres — a chemical clue that they formed like Jupiter, by slowly building solid cores. That’s unexpected because these planets are far bigger and orbit much farther from their star than models once allowed.View the full article