An illustration of CAR T-cell therapy treating tumour cells Brain light/Alamy Immune cells that have been genetically engineered to kill cancerous cells, known as CAR T-cells, have transformed the treatment of blood cancers such as leukaemia, but have proved largely ineffective against solid tumours. But now, “weaponised” CAR T-cells have eradicated large solid prostate tumours…
October 22, 2025 2 min read Zoo Lunch Mishap Reveals Lizards’ Hidden Fire Detector Australian “sleepy” lizards are not so sleepy when it comes to fire By Clarissa Brincat edited by Sarah Lewin Frasier The smell of smoke activates this otherwise “sleepy” lizard Tiliqua rugosa, also known as the shingleback skink or bobtail lizard. A…
Consciousness is the ultimate question of existence. Nothing is more essential than our experience. Yet we have no consensus, and perhaps no clue, about what it actually is. The trouble, in part, is that experts usually become invested in one theory, blinding themselves to alternative explanations that could aid progress. Instead, I embrace the diversity…
Painful experience has taught Erika Moore that benign doesn’t always mean harmless. Moore, a biomedical engineer at the University of Maryland in College Park, lives with noncancerous tumors in the uterus called uterine fibroids. “That’s what drew me in to wanting to understand these diseases and try to make not only my life better, but…
The 35-year-old saga of Kryptos, an enigmatic sculpture containing four encrypted messages outside the CIA headquarters, just took a bizarre twist. Though cryptographers broke the first three passages in the 1990s, just a few years after artist Jim Sanborn erected the copper monolith, the fourth, known as K4, remained a 97-character fortress—that is, until September…
Eczema-like irritation prompted hair to grow back on shaved mice over 20 days (bottom row), compared with much less visible growth on shaved mice without this irritation (top row) Tai et al. 2025 Skin irritation promotes hair growth on mice by stimulating their fat cells – and a serum could bring about the same effects…
Google says its quantum computer achieved a verifiable calculation that classic computers cannot. The work could point to future applications.
October 22, 2025 4 min read Google Explores Quantum Chaos on Its Most Powerful Quantum Computer Chip “Quantum echoes” rippling through Google’s quantum computer chip Willow could lead to advances in molecular chemistry and the physics of black holes By Dan Garisto edited by Lee Billings Google’s Willow quantum computer chip. Quantum computers are still…
Families who garden together have more diverse microbiomes Halfpoint Images/Getty Images New parents have plenty to fret about – sleeping, feeding, the colour of their newborn’s poo – but their baby’s microbiome probably isn’t high on the list. According to experts, it should be. “The first 1000 days of life are incredibly important for seeding…
The vessel rolled in the swell as fishers pulled huge nets bursting with tuna onto the deck then poured the catch down a loading hatch. But Melissa Cronin wasn’t there for the tuna. She was looking for ways to save manta and devil rays caught by accident. The marine ecologist at Duke University cofounded the…
