Scientists at Natural History Museum honour teenager’s ‘outstanding contribution’A tiny species of beetle discovered more than 50 years ago has been named after environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg.Scientists at the Natural History Museum in London have officially called the insect Nelloptodes gretae to honour the 16-year-old Swedish activist’s “outstanding contribution” in raising...

Study finds pose makes waist-to-hip ratio seem lower on one side and looks more appealing Dancers do it, Instagrammers do it, even the Venus de Milo does it. When it comes to striking a pose, it seems the only way is contrapposto. Now research has shed light on why the attitude is so appealing.Experts say the pose, which involves standing with weight predominantly on one foot with a slight twist...

‘Total surprise’ discovery overturns conventional understanding of riversIn the turbid, frigid waters roaring from the glaciers of Canada’s high Arctic, researchers have made a surprising discovery: for decades, the northern rivers secretly pulled carbon dioxide from the atmosphere at a rate faster than the Amazon rainforest.The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy...

Climate deniers often accuse scientists of exaggerating the threats associated with the climate crisis, but if anything they’re often too conservativeAlthough the results of climate research have been consistent for decades, climate scientists have struggled to convey the gravity of the situation to laypeople outside their field. If anything, the wider public only recently seems to have awakened...

Researchers say figures are often inflated and rush for antibiotics may fuel resistanceThe public is being misled by scare stories about sepsis, say experts, warning that hype and misunderstandings about the so-called “hidden killer” have generated “an unhealthy climate of fear and retribution” in the UK and the US.The health secretary, Matt Hancock, has contributed to the mythology, they...