The Parthenon’s architectural illusions are a myth
Optical illusions thought to have influenced the design of the Parthenon in ancient Greece are not backed up by evidence or are too small to have an effect
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We may finally have a way to rate a quantum computer’s usefulness
Determining how useful different quantum computers are has been a long running challenge – now researchers appear to have the answer
Roman roads weren’t so straight after all
Detailed data on the Roman Empire’s entire road network is offering fresh insight into how Romans built their infrastructure and how it influenced the future geography of Europe
How better ways of screening drugs could soon lead to thousands fewer animal tests
Scientists can now get more accurate safety data by testing drugs on organ-on-a-chip devices and organoids, meaning that there's increasingly less need to harm animals
LSD could be approved for anxiety in the US in 2027
The psychedelic drug LSD eased anxiety in a late-stage trial, paving the way for a probable approval in the US within the next two years
A new biography of Stephen Hawking gets to grips with a complicated man
Graham Farmelo has written the first authorised biography of the famous physicist. He should be applauded for digging into various controversies – but could have gone further, says Jacob Aron
How I made a slime mould the protagonist of my new sci-fi novel
How do you get the science right in a sci-fi book? Columnist Annalee Newitz started by asking many kinds of researchers lots of very strange questions – and ended up in love with slime moulds
One of the fundamental forces is stronger than we thought
The most precise calculation yet of the electroweak force could help fix cracks in the standard model of particle physics
Reading for pleasure boosts memory, empathy and mental health
Fewer people are reading for pleasure, but getting lost in a good book has repeatedly been linked to substantial cognitive benefits
Brain implant lets people with paralysis speak and gesture at the same time
Previous brain implants have enabled people with paralysis to either speak or move, but a new, larger one enabled them to do both simultaneously via an avatar
Jet-powered drones pose a new threat to Ukraine – can they be stopped?
Ukraine is racing to design faster, more capable interceptor drones to tackle Russia's new generation of jet-powered Shahed attack drones
We’ve long thought that time has only one dimension. What if we’re wrong?
A second dimension of time has long seemed wholly incompatible with reality. But fresh insights involving black holes and quantum mechanics suggest it deserves another look
Scientists call for ‘emergency’ measures to save sea life from El Niño
Reducing fishing quotas, rescuing endangered species from the water and testing geoengineering could help soften ocean heat impacts from the record El Niño, some oceanographers argue
Why is everyone suddenly worried about the risks of AI?
AI experts put the chance of models rising up and killing us all at greater than 10 per cent – but are the risks real? And can anything be done if they are?
Two bizarre new forms of ice discovered that could exist deep inside planets
Crushing water to pressures in the millions of atmospheres has revealed two strange types of ice, which may form deep inside Neptune and Uranus
The cosmic coincidences that made our universe – and us – possible
The sun and moon are positioned just right for us to see total solar eclipses, and the make-up of the universe is just right for life. Columnist Leah Crane wonders if it’s really all one big coincidence
SpaceXAI data centre may have led to Mississippi air pollution spike
Elon Musk firm’s Colossus 2 data centre – the largest in the US – has been spewing out nitrogen oxide emissions from trailer-mounted gas turbines, an analysis suggests
Earliest alligator flourished in the wake of the dinosaur extinction
Just a few hundred thousand years after an asteroid wiped out most dinosaurs, large alligators were thriving in North America
AI is both the best and worst thing to ever happen to mathematics
Mathematicians now have a formidable tool for breaking open challenging problems, but working out how best to use it isn't going to be easy
How to build powerful microhabits for your wellbeing – and keep them
Research shows that short practices of mindfulness are as good as, if not better than, long ones. Columnist David Robson takes a look at how we can incorporate these microhabits into our daily lives