New Scientist

In this week’s issue: A tiny particle, a massive breakthrough, and a whole new understanding of reality. Grab a copy in shops now or download our app for digital editions. www.newscientist.com/issue/3618/

It's now possible to convert a handful of smells into electronic signals that can be sent through the internet

The controversial discovery that our brains can generate new neurons surprisingly late in life is now prompting a rethink of adult brain health, pointing the way to better treatments for stroke, dementia and depression. Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

An AMOC weakened by climate change can be revived by cooling global temperatures, but we don't have the technology to remove huge quantities of CO2 and drive that cooling

We now know that cells exchanged during pregnancy can take up residency in our brain. Could they influence our development, health or even behaviour? Columnist Helen Thomson explores this mysterious cellular legacy

Northern bottlenose whales are more likely to stick together when individuals are poorly or emaciated

Acne could be caused by our immune systems overreacting to proteins released by skin bacteria. Columnist Michael Le Page looks into the experimental treatments aiming to block this process and prevent or reduce acne

Minds I've Met review: Primatologist Frans de Waal's final book is a rich mix of memoir and science

Levels of carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide in the atmosphere continued to rise in 2025, along with a lesser-known gas with a more powerful warming effect

The glymphatic system flushes toxins out of the brain, but this seems to be disrupted in Alzheimer's disease, and cholesterol may be involved

Simon Baron-Cohen’s influential research helped pin autism as a particularly male condition. As studies increasingly broaden our view of autism, has his perspective changed?

Questions abound about dinosaurs’ brains, behaviour and lives. James Woodford finds some answers in Jean Le Loeuff's book What Did Dinosaurs Think About?

Starting in January, students attending Skyview High School in Virginia will learn about the building blocks and principles underlying quantum computers by working with one directly

Audrey Niffenegger’s Life Out of Order, a follow-up to her bestselling novel The Time Traveler’s Wife, is an intricate and thoughtful vision of a frightening future, says Alison Flood

Feedback enters into some back and forth about the slothful nature of cats, but remains convinced they're pretty idle

A time traveller must fight for love in Claire North’s As We Fall Through Time, while a single-celled alien is perplexed by Earth’s biology in Annalee Newitz’s A Wall Is Also a Road. Sci-fi columnist Emily H. Wilson recommends both

Popular conceptions of AI differ drastically between the US and China. Columnist Annalee Newitz dives into the cultural, religious and sci-fi factors driving our impressions of its power

Co-Existence by Ethan Mollick is an excellent practical guide to effectively collaborating with AI without relinquishing our most valuable human cognitive capabilities, says Daniel Cossins

Feedback learns of an unexpected new partnership for Star Trek, and of an even more unexpected promotional stunt

This question was posed as part of New Scientist’s Last Word series, in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions. Here’s what our readers had to say

Terence Tao, one of the world's great mathematicians, urges us to find empowerment in numbers in his new book Six Maths Essentials. Karmela Padavic-Callaghan is convinced

A dinosaur that is new to science has features of both subfamilies of the tyrannosaur group, complicating our understanding of how they evolved

Wilderness Songs review: Hidden sounds of nature brought to life in fascinating new book

Life Out of Order is the long-awaited sequel to Audrey Niffenegger's bestselling science-fiction novel The Time Traveler's Wife. She spoke to Alison Flood about future-building, time loops – and the value of art

This question was posed as part of New Scientist’s Last Word series, in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions. Here’s what our readers had to say

For decades, we believed our ancestors survived because they were smarter, stronger or better adapted. But what if the real secret to our success was something far more unexpected? What if we survived because we were friendlier?

Introducing our new columnist, professor Hannah Fry. Read on for Hannah's take on the "existential crisis" engulfing maths, and come back every fortnight for her latest column.

This question was posed as part of New Scientist’s Last Word series, in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions. Here’s what our readers had to say

We know that this monster El Niño will bring floods, droughts, cyclones and wildfires, but some governments aren’t putting in the necessary resources to prepare for disaster

A start-up has controlled a robot with a biological computer powered using stem cells from human blood. Cortical Labs says its C1 computer is potentially less energy-hungry than a standard computer. Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

Nearly 19 million bats are estimated to have been killed by wind turbines in the US between 1981 and 2024, but measures can be taken to make them less deadly

AI has taken huge strides in computer programming and mathematics – physics could be next

Terence Tao, one of the world's great mathematicians, urges us to find empowerment in numbers in his new book Six Maths Essentials. Karmela Padavic-Callaghan is convinced. Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

Compared with humans, macaques are more likely to miss the bigger picture, but are also less confused by flipped images

This question was posed as part of New Scientist’s Last Word series, in which readers give scientific answers to each other’s questions. Here’s what our readers had to say

El Niño has already raised sea levels in part of the eastern Pacific by 40 centimetres and as it continues to strengthen, there could be coastal flooding from Alaska to Chile

Locals on Corvo in the Azores are protecting Cory's shearwaters from disorientating light pollution. Photographer Andrea Zanenga learned how the remote community rescues and releases young birds

The controversial discovery that our brains can generate new neurons surprisingly late in life is now prompting a rethink of adult brain health, pointing the way to better treatments for stroke, dementia and depression

Until now, it was thought that the squishy, permeable skin of amphibians was unsuited for marine life because it would absorb too much salt from sea water – but a fossil found in China upends that view

Cells from your mother can take up residency in your brain – what are they doing there? Columnist Helen Thomson explores how microchimerism can influence brain development and health even in later life. Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

A start-up has already used a biological computer to play Pong, and now the firm says the technology can be used to control robots

Two preprints find the AMOC has weakened 14-15% in just the past 30 years. The satellite imagery used is "some of the strongest evidence yet" Europe is heading toward the "ice age" winters of an AMOC collapse/slowdown www.newscientist.com/article/2595...

Nausea and vomiting are common after surgery, which may be partly related to the noises patients are exposed to, even under general anaesthetic. Wearing noise-cancelling headphones while on the operating table reduces the risk

The crucial Atlantic current system that brings warmth to Europe has slowed 18 per cent in 40 years, according to an analysis of how much heat the ocean is releasing to the atmosphere

Autoimmune conditions are much more common in women than men, which could partly be due to the fluctuating body temperatures that occur during the menstrual cycle and menopause

Feedback enters into some back and forth about the slothful nature of cats, but remains convinced they're pretty idle. Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

The Drake equation provides a way to guess how many aliens we might be able to communicate with, but it’s also a prime example of the importance of scientific guessing, says columnist Leah Crane

Questions abound about dinosaurs’ brains, behaviour and lives. James Woodford finds some answers in Jean Le Loeuff's delightful and informative book What Did Dinosaurs Think About? Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

A 75,000-year-old skeleton offers a glimpse into the violent world in which Neanderthals lived, but also offers hints that they cared for one another

Autoimmune conditions are much more common in women than men, which could be partly due to the frequent fluctuations in body temperature during the menstrual cycle and menopause. Read more: www.newscientist.com/articl...

The Monte Verde sites in Chile have been the source of arguments among archaeologists for decades. Columnist Michael Marshall finds the row is heating up again – and could change our understanding of the first peoples in the Americas