One expert says findings by international experts represent ‘egregious abuse of evidence’New research that claims red and processed meat is probably not harmful to our health has caused controversy among experts who maintain people should cut down.The World Health Organization has classified red and processed meats as cancer-causing. Public health bodies worldwide urge people to limit their...

Study suggests climax may be an evolutionary hangover – but crucial questions remainA possible explanation for one of biology’s greatest mysteries, the female orgasm, has been bolstered by research showing that rabbits given antidepressants release fewer eggs during sex.The human female orgasm has long proved curious, having no obvious purpose besides being pleasurable. Continue...

Liberal leaders line up to praise her, yet their inaction on the climate crisis shows they are not really listening to her messageGreta Thunberg has made a lot of enemies. They are easy to recognise because their rage is so great they cannot help making themselves look ridiculous. Thunberg’s arrival in the US earlier this month set off rightwing pundits and then the president himself. The...

Look high in the sky to see the Greek hero who slew the sea serpent on his winged horseNow is a good time to find the constellations based on the Greek myth of Perseus. The chart shows the core of these constellations: Perseus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda and Pegasus. They can be found high in the sky looking south this week. Continue...

SpaceX spacecraft would carry passengers anywhere in solar system and land back on Earth perpendicularlyElon Musk has unveiled a SpaceX spacecraft designed to carry crew and cargo to the moon, Mars or anywhere else in the solar system and land back on Earth perpendicularly.In a live-streamed speech from SpaceX’s launch facility near the southern tip of Texas, Musk said on Saturday that the space...

A family festival, where children learn courageous feats, helped me break my over-protective habitsOne Saturday this summer I stood in a field and held my breath as I waited for my nine-year-old daughter Sofya to jump through a ring of fire. Despite her enthusiasm, the hours of practice she’d had with expert adults and the many fire marshals on duty, I could see she was in conflict: afraid of...

Google has built a super-fast computer, but whether it can break the encryption we take for granted is mootSomething intriguing happened last week. A paper about quantum computing by a Google researcher making a startling claim appeared on a Nasa website – and then disappeared shortly afterwards. Conspiracy theorists immediately suspected that something sinister involving the National Security...

British zoologists part of global project to release 15,000 endangered partula species vital to French PolynesiaThey are some of the smallest animals on our planet, measuring from 1cm to 2cm in length. But the recent return of thousands of tiny tropical tree snails to French Polynesia represents one of the biggest reintroduction programmes ever attempted by conservationists.More than 15,000...

Half of people live five years or more with combination immunotherapy treatment, study findsHalf of people diagnosed with advanced melanoma, which once had dismal survival rates, are now living for five years or more when they receive a combination immunotherapy treatment, a study has shown.A decade ago, only one in 20 patients were still alive after five years. Most died within six to nine...

The health secretary wants to introduce genetic screening to the NHS – but many firms are already selling cheap testing kitsThe buzz phrase among a small army of biotech companies looking to get a foothold in the ever-expanding health market is “personalised medicine” or, as it’s also known, “precision medicine”. At the core of this concept is the understanding that we are all...

Despite being something that will affect half the world’s population, the menopause, and how it can lead to things such as hot flushes, has historically been a bit of a ‘black box’ for scientists. But thanks to new insights from animal research, a much-needed alternative to hormone replacement therapy could be just around the corner. Hannah Devlin investigates Continue...

Review of 15 studies finds link between positive outlook and cardiovascular healthPeople who have an upbeat outlook on life have a lower risk of cardiovascular events and premature death, a review of studies has found.The review comes after research published last month suggested optimists had a greater chance of living to a ripe old age than those with a less sunny disposition. Continue...

An award-winning seal in a seaweed garden, a hippo in drought-hit Botswana and a sable Continue reading...

Amount is significantly higher than the estimated amount of microplastics particles consumed by a person in an entire yearTea drinkers could be getting more than they bargained for in their brew, as a new study has found that a single plastic tea bag can shed billions of particles of microplastics.The researchers from McGill University in Canada have found that when plastic tea bags are steeped in...

Infant mortality rate higher in babies exposed to pollutants such as sulphur dioxideBabies living in areas with high levels of air pollution have a greater risk of death than those surrounded by cleaner air, a study has found.It is not the first study to investigate the link between air pollution and infant mortality , but thestudydrew particular focus on different pollutants and its analysis at...

Remains of previously unknown military site include coins and French tablewareThe remains of a Roman fort have been discovered under a bus station in Exeter.Archaeologists have described the find, which occurred during redevelopment of the site in the Devon city, as important and unexpected. Continue...

It’s a race against time and one we are losing’, says Harry as he visits reforestation project in BotswanaPrince Harry has said the science on the climate crisis is undeniable as, led by Greta Thunberg, the “world’s children are striking” to force action.The Duke of Sussex is in Botswana helping to create a new forest habitat after decades of deforestation because of locals gathering...

The panel of researchers has plans to continue their studies revealing that 21 million Americans live with unacceptable air pollutionAn advisory panel of air pollution scientists disbanded by the Trump administration plans to continue their work with or without the US government.The researchers – from a group that reviewed the latest studies about how tiny particles of air pollution from fossil...

School climate strike activists call on theatre group to sever ties with oil firmSchool climate protesters who took to the streets in huge numbers across the UK last week are threatening to boycott the Royal Shakespeare Company over its sponsorship deal with BP.In a letter being sent to the RSC on Thursday, a group representing young people in towns and cities across the UK, says it will launch a...

Drinking vessels unearthed in Bavaria appear designed to be held by babies or toddlersBabies from prehistoric cultures were fed animal milk in small ceramic pots, according to a study that suggests bottle-feeding is not a modern phenomenon.The drinking vessels, which were excavated from children’s graves in Bavaria, date to between 450 and 1,200BC. They have teat-shaped spouts, appear designed...

Messages can only be seen under UV light and can be erased using a hairdryerForget lemon juice and hot irons, there is a new way to write and read invisible messages – and it can be used again and again.The approach, developed by researchers in China, involves using water to print messages on paper coated with manganese-containing chemicals. The message, invisible to the naked eye, can be read...

Data shows 13,170 centenarians in UK with five times more women of this age than menThey lived through the great depression, the second world war, the creation of the NHS and the social and civic transformation of the 1960s – and are still going strong, according to data showing that the number of people in the UK who are older than 105 has more than doubled since 2002, with five times more...

Research suggests AI able to interpret medical images using deep learning algorithm Artificial intelligence is on a par with human experts when it comes to making medical diagnoses based on images, a review has found. The potential for artificial intelligence in healthcare has caused excitement, with advocates saying it will ease the strain on resources, free up time for doctor-patient...

No one had any idea what to expect of a plan for people to meet in Rachel, Nevada, to see for themselves if the government was hiding aliensIn the middle of the Nevadan desert, outside a secretive US military airstrip, I found the world’s strangest social media convention.Dozens of young, good-looking, often costumed people were running around filming each other with semi-professional video...