Thursday 15 October
A few good things to read before sleep.
Astronomers have used NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory to break down the cause of a remarkable formation of radio waves they have nicknamed the “Treble Clef” because its distinct shape strongly resembles the musical symbol.
Sunset 18:04 · fully dark from 19:25
No evening passes this week; at the moment it's only visible before dawn (next: Sat 17 Oct, 05:53).
Times are local to Amman. Away from city lights you’ll see much more.
Evolutionary biologist Toby Kiers explains how fungal networks in soil trade nutrients with plants, help keep carbon underground, and strike bargains without having a brain. The post How Do Fungi Keep the Planet Healthy? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
This systematic review provides a comprehensive synthesis of evidence from randomised controlled trials assessing the effects of a wide variety arts-based interventions on the mental health of CYP. Although the strength of any conclusions is limited by…
Fall meteor season has begun. Late October not only sees dusk falling ever earlier as ghouls and goblins walk the Earth on Halloween, but it also sees the peak of two fine annual meteor showers kicking off Halloween season: the Orionid and Taurid meteor…
Astronomers have used NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory to break down the cause of a remarkable formation of radio waves they have nicknamed the "Treble Clef" because its distinct shape strongly resembles the musical symbol.
Brown dwarfs are the black (or brown?) sheep of astronomy. They’re too big to be considered a traditional gas planet, but they are too small to have started nuclear fusion and made the full transition to star-hood. They also change dramatically over time…
Expanding plume of fuel exhaust crystalized in the sky and reflected sunlight off frozen particles after Florida launch A SpaceX rocket provided a stunning pre-dawn display over Florida as a egiant, luminescent “jellyfish cloud” spread for miles, caused by an…
“even though I only met her briefly at random meetings..”
The cowards and sycophants who enabled, promoted, and normalized MAHA in any way are collectively to blame for its attempt to do Tuskegee 2.0. The post I Used to Wonder How the Tuskegee Experiment Could Have Happened. No More. first appeared on Science-Based…
The two groups study the same behavioral phenomena yet rarely interact or read each other's work—a mutual blind spot that weakens both fields. New technologies offer a chance to bring them together.
Science Translational Medicine has issued an expression of concern over “a series” of data concerns in a paper lauded by MD Anderson Cancer Center last year for identifying “a new driver” of bone metastasis. The article, published in May 2025, has been the…
Let’s take a look at a little-discussed aspect of using AI for scientific research. I will admit that these results don’t surprise me very much, but I’m glad that the authors have brought this issue out into the daylight. One of the hopes for sufficiently…
Temporary PVE using an absorbable embolic agent is feasible, safe, and capable of inducing clinically meaningful liver hypertrophy before major hepatectomy, supporting the concept that transient portal vein occlusion may be sufficient to stimulate liver…
This cross-sectional study describes health outcomes attributed to recent use of psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), ibogaine, and 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) in a nationally representative survey of US adults.
Conclusions: This systematic review and bayesian meta-analysis found that cefepime was associated with higher odds of all-cause mortality compared with other β-lactams. These findings support a nuanced discussion of cefepime's safety in guidance statements.
Physicists at Auburn University have used flashes of laser light to bring order to tiny electrically charged "islands" inside a crystal. The discovery helps answer a decades-old question about how the material organizes itself and shows how light could be…
The Large-Sized Telescope will provide new insights into the early universe
Author(s): Ryan Wilkinson Photoelectron interference can reveal otherwise hidden properties of quantum light through an apparent attosecond time shift. [Physics 19, s125] Published Tue Oct 13, 2026
One of the singular features of Baotou, an industrial city of 2 million people in Inner Mongolia, is a 10-square-kilometer (4-square-mile) lake that is among the most polluted in the world. The artificial lake, referred to by the name of the dam associated…
Chip makers and tech investors such as Samsung and SoftBank plunge as potential interest rate hikes spook markets Business news – live updates Larry Elliott: the global economy is muddling through. But a storm is coming An accelerating sell-off of AI-linked…
A new launch trailer for Grand Theft Auto VI reveals more details about what's set to be the biggest game of the year.
What we claim as ‘true’ is not a ceiling we are forever failing to reach but something that changes as we climb toward it - by Alexander V Gheorghiu Read on Aeon
The research is rolling in, and the answer is yes. It’s possible to turn tedious work gatherings into more effective and enjoyable experiences.
International delegates agree leap second no longer tenable, but first leap hour not likely to happen for thousands of years After decades of discussion, quibbling and worrying about clocks in computer systems, the world’s official timekeepers have voted to…
Seabirds, native plants, and healthy reefs can help atolls build as seas rise.
Governments have voted to abolish the leap second immediately and replace it with a leap hour.
Every year between February and May, when mahua flowers begin to fall, Mamta Tigga collects them. Mamta comes from a village in Gumla in the Indian state of Jharkhand and has been collecting mahua (a flower from Madhuca longifolia), gethi kanda (or air…
How can we to compete against a natural force with the power of 25 atomic bombs?
While anglers cannot take endangered sand tiger sharks, a loophole lets private firms catch the fish to sell abroad, profiting from Delaware Bay’s conservation success Shortly after 12.45pm, what remains of a 300-metre line goes taut. Somewhere beneath the…
Stefan Milicevic is given a 24-year suspension from tennis - one of the most severe punishments outside of a lifetime ban - for match-fixing.
Britain's Sonay Kartal thumped two-time Grand Slam finalist Jasmine Paolini to reach the quarter-finals of the Wuhan Open.
Maja Chwalinska is into the last eight in Wuhan.