Tag Archives: Nature Magazine

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Oct 19, 2023

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nature Magazine – October 19, 2023: The latest issue features how humans develop in the very early stages when a newly formed embryo is implanted in the wall of the uterus, largely because of the physical and ethical challenges that are presented by studying early human embryos. 

Carl Sagan’s audacious search for life on Earth has lessons for science today

The test 30 years ago of what remote sensing could tell us about our own planet shows the value of looking with unbiased eyes at what we think we already know.

Runes on Viking stones speak to an ancient queen’s power

Analysis of carved inscriptions more than 1,000 years old suggests the prominence of the Viking queen Thyra.

‘Incredible’ asteroid sample ferried to Earth is rich in the building blocks of life

Samples of asteroid Bennu delivered by the OSIRIS-REx mission contain carbon, water and other ingredients from the primordial Solar System.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Oct 12, 2023

Volume 622 Issue 7982

nature Magazine – October 12, 2023: The latest issue features  the results of a comprehensive re-evaluation of the conservation status of amphibians since 2004.

AI’s potential to accelerate drug discovery needs a reality check

Companies say the technology will contribute to faster drug development. Independent verification and clinical trials will determine whether this claim holds up.

Summer storms launch water high into the stratosphere

Thunderstorms can increase the levels of water vapour in the atmosphere, at altitudes as high as 19 km.

How ChatGPT and other AI tools could disrupt scientific publishing

A world of AI-assisted writing and reviewing might transform the nature of the scientific paper.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – October 5, 2023

Volume 622 Issue 7981

nature Magazine – October 5, 2023: The latest issue features a composite near-infrared image of Herbig-Haro 211, a striking interstellar jet emanating from a young star in the Perseus Molecular Cloud, captured by Tom Ray and his colleagues using the James Webb Space Telescope.

The ozone layer’s comeback brings a chill to Antarctica’s ocean

Ozone recovery is predicted to shift westerly winds, which will reduce the amount of warm water flowing into the Southern Ocean.

Why rings of RNA could be the next blockbuster drug

The commercial success of RNA vaccines for COVID-19 has revved up interest in circular RNAs as the next generation of therapies.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Sept 28, 2023

Volume 621 Issue 7980

nature Magazine – September 28, 2023: The latest issue features  takes a deep dive into how AI is helping to reshape the scientific enterprise. In this week’s issue, we look at why researchers are so excited about the burgeoning technology — and we also probe the risks posed by AI-generated disinformation

Super-precise CRISPR tool enters US clinical trials for the first time

Base editing, which makes specific changes to a cell’s genome, is put to the test in CAR-T-cell treatments for leukaemia.

How to stop AI deepfakes from sinking society — and science

Deceptive videos and images created using generative AI could sway elections, crash stock markets and ruin reputations. Researchers are developing methods to limit their harm.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Sept 21, 2023

Volume 621 Issue 7979

nature Magazine – September 21, 2023:  In this week’s issue, an estimate of global human exposure to air pollution from landscape fires (dominated by wildfires, but also including planned or controlled open land fires) between 2000 and 2019.

COVID boosters are back: what scientists say about whether to get one

As many countries head into autumn, they are targeting vaccinations at people in high-risk categories, leaving those at lower risk uncertain about what to do.

Libya floods: how climate change intensified the death and devastation

Climate change, civil war and international sanctions all contributed to the devastation caused by some of Libya’s worst flooding ever, researchers say.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Sept 14, 2023

Volume 621 Issue 7978

nature Magazine – September 14, 2023:  In this week’s issue, 193 countries agreed to work towards 17 goals aimed at improving the lives of people around the world. From eliminating poverty and reducing hunger to tackling global warming and taking care of biodiversity, the Sustainable Development Goals have since taken their place in corporate plans and government policy.

An ‘alien meteorite’ probably didn’t slam into Earth — how will we know if one does?

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope captured comet 2I/Borisov as a blue glow in dark space.

Nature looks at the detective work required to confirm a controversial claim of finding interstellar debris.

A research team made headlines last week when it claimed to have scooped up from the sea floor fragments of a meteorite that came from beyond our Solar System1. Finding such an interstellar sample on Earth would be exciting because it might shed light on how planets and stars beyond our own form. But a number of scientists say that the evidence that the material came from another planetary system is not convincing so far.

AI detects eye disease and risk of Parkinson’s from retinal images
Researchers have developed a model trained similarly to ChatGPT that can be adapted to evaluate multiple health conditions.
Mariana Lenharo
Ancient-human fossils sent to space: scientists slam ‘publicity stunt’
The decision to send hominin bones on a commercial spaceflight has raised eyebrows among human-evolution researchers.
Ewen Callaway

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – Sept 7, 2023

Volume 621 Issue 7977

nature Magazine – September 7, 2023 issue:  In this week’s issue, Christopher Doughty and his colleagues reveal that a small percentage of leaves in tropical forest tree canopies might be approaching a critical temperature of 46.7 °C, above which photosynthesis begins to fail.

How would room-temperature superconductors change science?

A large-bore, full-scale high-temperature superconducting magnet built by Commonwealth Fusion Systems and MIT’s PSFC.

The prized materials could be transformative for research — but only if they have other essential qualities.

The wave of excitement caused by LK-99 — the purple crystal that was going to change the world — has now died down after studies showed it wasn’t a superconductor. But a question remains: would a true room-temperature superconductor be revolutionary?

With the arrival of El Niño, prepare for stronger marine heatwaves

A wide view of a snorkeler floating above major bleaching on a coral reef in French Polynesia

Record-high ocean temperatures, combined with a confluence of extreme climate and weather patterns, are pushing the world into uncharted waters. Researchers must help communities to plan how best to reduce the risks.

Oceans are warming up, and dangerously so. Since April this year, the average global sea surface temperature has been unusually high and rising; by August, oceans in the Northern Hemisphere had reached record-high temperatures, even surpassing 38 °C in one area around Florida.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – August 31, 2023

Volume 620 Issue 7976

nature Magazine – August 31, 2023 issue: In this week’s issue, AI pilot beats human champions in aerial contest – Artificial intelligence has taken on and beaten human competitors in many games, including chess, StarCraft and Gran Turismo. 

India’s Moon landing is a stellar achievement — and a win for science

A mother along with her daughter arrives to watch landing of Chandrayaan-3's Vikram lander on Moon.

When Chandrayaan-3 touched down, India pulled off a huge win for its own space programme and for international efforts to understand the Moon.

It’s hard to land on the Moon and keep your spacecraft intact. Just days ago, Russia’s Luna-25 mission crashed, dashing hopes for the country’s first trip to the Moon since 1976, when it was part of the Soviet Union. In April, a private Japanese effort also crash-landed on the lunar surface. That is one of the reasons the successful landing of the Chandrayaan-3 mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is so special.

The causes of wildfires are clear. How they burn through communities is not

Events in Hawaii show how much we have to learn about wildfire spread — but simple research steps can help to build resilience.

An aerial photo from August 10 shows destroyed buildings burned to the ground due to wildfires in western Maui, Hawaii.

Driven by drought, high winds and extreme heat, fires in recent years have caused destruction and losses on a scale bigger than anyone is used to. The average annual global cost of wildfires is around US$50 billion, the World Economic Forum said in January. And by the end of the century, climate change might make catastrophic conflagrations 50% more common, according to the United Nations Environment Programme. Given the surge in urban development in and near forested areas, something has to be done to protect communities. As Maui’s experience shows, little is in place.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – August 24, 2023

Volume 620 Issue 7975

nature Magazine – August 24, 2023 issue: In this week’s issue, Jedediah Brodie and his colleagues examine protected areas in mega-diverse southeast Asia to assess their effects on tropical biodiversity. 

Want a sustainable future? Then look to the world’s cities

In a rapidly urbanizing world, what happens in cities matters — and sustainability success stories show what can be achieved when researchers and policymakers work together.

A person rides a bicycle as heat waves shimmer, causing visual distortion, as people walk in the 'The Zone', Phoenix'.

More than half of the world’s population lives in cities, and that proportion is set to grow. By 2050, another two billion people will be urban dwellers, the United Nations estimates. Cities lie at the nexus of all aspects of human development, from building thriving economies to coping with climate change.

Earth’s hottest month: these charts show what happened in July and what comes next

A damaged saguaro cactus stands with a recently fallen arm resting on the sidewalk in Mesa, Arizona.

The planet has warmed 1.2 ºC on average, but that’s enough to produce big extremes.

From wilting saguaros in Arizona and hot-tub-like temperatures off the coast of Florida to increased heat-related hospitalizations in Europe and agricultural losses in China, last month felt unusually hot. It was: several teams have now confirmed that July 2023 was the hottest month in recorded history. And there’s more to come.

July is typically the hottest month of the year, and this July shattered records going back as far as 1850 by around 0.25 °C. Overall, the average global temperature was 1.54 °C above the preindustrial average for July, according to Berkeley Earth, a non-profit group in California that is one of several organizations tracking global warming. It’s a seemingly small increase, but what many people across the world actually experienced was a bout of long and often brutal heat waves.

Research Preview: Nature Magazine – August 17, 2023

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nature Magazine – August 17, 2023 issue: The cover shows an artist’s impression of Venetoraptor gassenae, a species of ancient reptile that lived some 230 million years ago. Dinosaurs and pterosaurs dominated land and air, respectively, around 70 million to 200 million years ago, but their evolutionary precursors are not that well known. 

Anti-obesity drug also protects against heart disease — what happens next?

Clinical-trial data suggest that semaglutide, sold under the name Wegovy, slashes risk of heart attacks and other cardiovascular incidents.

Can oyster farming help save the planet?

Ecologist Elena Tamburini hopes to show that shellfish farming efficiently absorbs carbon.