The Latest Breaking News from Nature

Is long COVID a ticking time bomb?

Long COVID isn't novel: other viruses in history have had similar “long” arcs — with devastating repercussions

Salon · Apr 24, 2023

Commentary: Did COVID-19 cause pediatric hepatitis? Skepticism helped find an answer

Two qualities a first-class science journalist and a first-class physician must have are patience and a skeptical nature. If a new disease appears somewhere, the journalist and the physician need the skepticism to reject easy explanations of the source. As it has been said of war, first impressions are often…

Chicago Tribune · Apr 24, 2023

Why elephants, otters and whales are nature’s secret weapons against climate breakdown

New research shows how species boost the amount of carbon stored in their ecosystems – and why protecting them is vital, says Matthew Gould, CEO of the Zoological Society of London

The Guardian - UK · Apr 19, 2023

Morning Mail: SUV epidemic blamed on tax perks, Etihad accused of greenwashing, Trump indictment delay

Tax incentives lie behind Australia’s love affair with heavy-polluting vehicles, experts say

The Guardian - AU · Mar 22, 2023

15 Years Ago, Astronomers Made a Breakthrough in the Hunt for Life

Detecting methane on a distant exoplanet paved the way for the hunt for organic chemistry in the cosmos.

Inverse · Mar 20, 2023

Should Scientists Use "Race" as a Proxy for Genetics?

Nature, last month (paywall): The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will soon require [based on new federal legislation] researchers and companies seeking approval for late-stage clinical trials to submit a plan for ensuring diversity among trial participants…. The diversity requirement arrives in the wake of a 2022 report from…

Reason · Mar 15, 2023

Melbourne scientists find enzyme that can make electricity out of tiny amounts of hydrogen

Scientists have isolated an enzyme from soil bacteria that can convert air into electricity, which they say could be developed into a renewable power source for small devices.

ABC News · Mar 9, 2023

Smoke from Australian bushfires depleted ozone layer by up to 5% in 2020, study finds

Lead researcher says destruction was similar to process of Antarctic ozone hole forming each spring ‘but at much warmer temperatures’

The Guardian - AU · Mar 8, 2023

Fossils thought to be ancient marine creatures may be seaweed, study suggests

New twist in debate over whether bryozoans cropped up during Cambrian explosion or later

The Guardian - UK · Mar 8, 2023

We thought the first hunter-gatherers in Europe went missing during the last ice age. Now, ancient DNA analysis says otherwise

Hunter-gatherers took shelter from the ice age in Southwestern Europe, but were replaced on the Italian Peninsula according to two new studies, published in Nature and Nature Ecology Evolution today.

The Conversation · Mar 1, 2023