Six fragments returned to archaeological park, some after being illegally trafficked in 1970sSix fragments of wall frescoes stolen from the ruins of ancient Roman villas have been returned to Pompeii’s archaeological park, after an investigation by Italy’s cultural protection police squad.Three of the relics, which date back to the first century AD, are believed to have been cut off the walls...

From deep in the bush just outside Bathurst in Australia, Rodney Watters and Niall MacNeill bring the darkness of space into the light.Using an alchemy of high-speed cameras, telescopes and computer processors, the images created for their new book overcome the multitude of challenges involved in capturing celestial bodies light years away Continue...

UK study of 25,000 people finds even moderate drinking is linked to lower grey matter densityThere is no safe amount of alcohol consumption for the brain, with even “moderate” drinking adversely affecting nearly every part of it, a study of more than 25,000 people in the UK has found.The study, which is still to be peer-reviewed, suggests that the more alcohol consumed, the lower the brain...

One-of-a-kind digital collectables, known as non-fungible tokens (NFTs), have boomed in areas ranging from music, sport and art. As the focus is on digital artists to seize this opportunity to potentially make millions for their work, the Guardian’s technology correspondent, Alex Hern, talks to Shivani Dave about the pros and cons of this emerging technology Continue...

Self-portraits by ultra-realistic android go on show at Design Museum in LondonShe, if it can be called a she, began her career with abstract art but has now moved to self, if they can be called self, portraits and they are alarmingly good.“She is getting better all of the time,” said Aidan Meller, the force behind Ai-Da, the world’s first ultra-realistic robot artist, who is the subject of...

Environment secretary George Eustice said he could not rule out restrictions in India variant hotspotsCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe return of local lockdowns in England would trigger a huge public backlash and inflame community tensions, MPs have warned, as ministers said restrictions could remain in Covid hotspots next month.George Eustice, the environment...

Science has got us much closer to getting back to how things were, but if we don’t remember patience and kindness it will count for very littleWith the gradual easing of restrictions, we are all being faced with questions of “how”. How are we going to manage the “new normal”? How are we going to navigate the months ahead? How are we going to feel in all these unfamiliar situations?These...

Nigel Topping acknowledges world is running out of time as he lobbies businesses and lawmakers in lead-up to Cop26 summitThe UK’s climate champion, Nigel Topping, says he is stubbornly optimistic that the world will converge on an agreement to forge a transition to a net zero future at the UN climate talks later this year.Topping’s role in the run-up to the UN Cop26 climate summit, to be held...