Since the end of the long-running conflict in Colombia, large areas of forest have been rapidly converted to agricultural uses, suggesting the peace agreement presents a threat to conservation the country's rainforest.

In a study of healthy volunteers, researchers have mapped out the brain activity that flows when we learn a new skill, such as playing a new song on the piano, and discovered why taking short breaks from practice is a key to learning.

The promotion and marketing of unproven stem cell therapies is a global problem that needs a global solution, say experts. The authors of the paper call for the World Health Organization (WHO) to establish an advisory committee on regenerative medicine to tackle this issue and provide guidance for countries around the world.

The spectacularly colorful aurora borealis -- or northern lights -- that fills the sky in high-latitude regions has fascinated people for thousands of years. Now, a team of scientists has resolved one of the final mysteries surrounding its origin.

A team of astronomers has completed the first census of molecular clouds in the nearby universe. The study produced the first images of nearby galaxies with the same sharpness and quality as optical imaging and revealed that stellar nurseries do not all look and act the same. In fact, they're as diverse as the people, homes, neighborhoods, and regions that make up our own world.

Astronomers have taken a big step forward in understanding the dark and violent places where stars are born. Over the past five years, an international team of researchers has conducted the first systematic survey of 'stellar nurseries' across our part of the universe, charting the more than 100,000 of these nurseries across more than 90 nearby galaxies and providing new insights into the origins...

High-value chemicals used in biofuels and pharmaceuticals can be made from bacteria by switching their chemistry to produce novel products. Researchers have found a way to drastically cut the cost of turning on these switches.

Archaeology team is now fairly confident they have located the lost Indigenous northeast Florida community of Sarabay, a settlement mentioned in both French and Spanish documents dating to the 1560s but had not been discovered until now.

A simple chemical process creates light and highly absorbent aerogels for environmental remediation or as membranes for batteries and other applications.

Scientists have identified a novel gene, Per2AS, that controls the sleep/wake cycle in mice. Per2AS appears to be a new type of gene, known as a non-coding gene. Unlike most other genes, Per2AS is not translated from RNA into a subsequent protein, thus making its function unclear until now.

Researchers have shown that even after lung tissue has been damaged, it may be possible to reverse fibrosis and promote tissue repair through treatment with microgel-coated mesenchymal stromal cells.

Researchers found monarchs raised in captivity can successfully migrate if given time to orient themselves. They discovered this by equipping the butterflies with tiny radio transmitters and monitoring them for 200 km, debunking previous research that found the butterflies couldn't orient themselves. Monarchs released into the wild flew in the proper direction because they were exposed to natural...

Scientists have pioneered a new approach to help biological engineers both harness and design the evolutionary potential of new biosystems. Their concept of the 'evotype' lays a foundation for the next generation of stable, safe and self-improving biotechnologies.

Last year a physicist proposed an experiment that could conclusively prove whether gravity is a quantum phenomenon. In a new article, he describes how two types of noise could be reduced and suggests that quantum interference could be applied in the production of a sensitive instrument that could detect movements of objects ranging from butterflies to burglars and black holes.

Mining involves moving a lot of rock, so some mess is expected. However, mining operations can continue to affect ecosystems long after activity has ended. Heavy metals and corrosive substances leach into the environment, preventing wildlife and vegetation from returning to the area.

Researchers have developed a novel multi-well, continuous-flow microfluidic device that may help scientists and pharmaceutical companies more effectively study drug compounds and their crystalline shapes and structures, which are key components for drug stability.

Produced in a sustainable way, synthetic fuels contribute to switching mobility to renewable energy and to achieving the climate goals in road traffic. In Empa's mobility demonstrator, move, researchers are investigating the production of synthetic methane from an energy, technical and economic perspective - a project with global potential.

An algorithm based on 20,000 nights of sleep that can improve the diagnosis, treatment and our overall understanding of sleep disorders has been developed.

Astrophysicists have developed a new method for pinpointing the whereabouts of extremely rare extragalactic objects. They hope their technique for finding 'changing-look quasars' will take scientists one step closer to unraveling one of greatest mysteries of the universe - how supermassive black holes grow. Quasars are believed to be responsible for regulating the growth of supermassive black...

Decisions made now will determine whether economies win or lose money as the coal industry changes over the next couple of decades.

Researchers now report a high-throughput target and drug discovery platform using motor neurons made from ALS patients. Using the platform, they confirmed two known targets and identified an existing class of drugs -- agonists to the dopamine D2 receptor -- as potential novel treatments.

New research reveals a possible new approach to preventing death and severe disease in elderly people infected with SARS-CoV-2. Researchers demonstrated in a preclinical study that senolytic drugs significantly reduced mortality upon infection from a beta-coronavirus closely related to SARS-CoV-2 in older mice.

The detailed structure of glass has always been a mystery in science. A research team has now discovered that the amorphous and crystalline metallic glass have the same structural building blocks. And it is the connectivity between these blocks that distinguishes the crystalline and amorphous states of the material.

Supermassive black holes (SMBH) occupy the center of galaxies, with masses ranging from one million to 10 billion solar masses. Some SMBHs are in a bright phase called active galactic nuclei (AGN).