Researchers hope scaled-up version could one day generate oxygen to sustain humans on MarsAn instrument the size of a lunchbox has been successfully generating breathable oxygen on Mars, doing the work of a small tree.Since February last year the Mars oxygen in-situ resource utilisation experiment, or Moxie, has been successfully making oxygen from the red planet’s carbon dioxide-rich...

Romanian research shows ‘micro-breaks’ of up to 10 minutes may help to reduce fatigueIt may not be long enough to pop to the shops or head out for a run, but taking a work break of less than 10 minutes could still boost wellbeing, research suggests.The team behind the analysis say “micro-breaks” appear to reduce fatigue and help workers feel more vigorous. Continue...

Exchanging pleasantries can leave lasting impression and affect future social interactions, research suggestsThe British may be mocked for their weather-related small talk but exchanging idle pleasantries can leave a lasting impression and affect future social interactions, research suggests.The study found just four minutes of chit-chat can give away aspects of our personality, such as whether we...

Chief medical officers said the wave of Omicron variants was ‘subsiding’, although ‘further surges are likely’The UK’s Covid-19 alert level has been downgraded to level 2, meaning the virus is in “general circulation” but healthcare pressures and transmission are “declining or stable”.The chief medical officers of the UK nations and the national medical director of the NHS in...

Palaeontologists studied growth lines and elements preserved in fossil teeth to reconstruct the day-to-day life of Pantolambda bathmodon, one of our early cousinsPalaeontologists have identified the earliest example of a placental mammal in the fossil record to date, which could provide new insights into how our furry ancestors came to dominate Earth following the extinction of the dinosaurs.They...

Psychologists have suggested imagining yourself as an impenetrable grey rock when confronted with overbearing and manipulative people. The trick is to appear as uninterested, and uninteresting, as humanly possibleName: Grey rocking.Age: Relatively new. Continue...

Biosecurity expert, recycling pioneer and nanomaterials engineer among other Australian scientists recognised with awardsGet our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcastA motor neurone disease researcher living with the disease, a nanomaterials engineer and a recycling pioneer were among those awarded Eureka prizes at the Australian Museum on Wednesday night.Established in 1990,...

On the frontline of Britain’s energy bills crisis. Plus: Visions of outer space Get the Guardian Weekly magazine delivered to your home addressThe spiralling cost of living has been an increasingly urgent problem in the UK. But for many people, huge rises in energy bills are about to turn a difficult situation into an impossible one.The squeeze on European gas supplies, largely as a consequence...

UK cases are falling – and scientists around the world are getting closer to being able to define and treat long CovidAs a scientist who works every day on the immunology of Covid-19 and long Covid, I’m well aware that, heading into autumn and the return to school, the UK faces yet more Covid confusion and disharmony. Where are we headed next? Isn’t it over? And why keep harping on about...

Revolutionary treatment for C diff infections that transfers gut bacteria from healthy faeces given the green light by NiceHundreds of patients struggling to ward off superbugs are to be treated with poo transplants on the NHS using gut bacteria taken from healthy donors’ faeces.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), the health regulator, has given the green light for a...

One of largest donations in Australian history to go towards therapeutic treatments for global pandemicsFollow our Australia news live blog for the latest updatesGet our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcastLittle-known Canadian-born businessman Geoffrey Cumming has made one of the largest single philanthropic donations in Australian history, providing $250m for the creation...

The vital industrial cities of Shenzhen and Dalian are under curbs again, amid protests and unusual plea from thinktank to relax policyChina has placed millions of its citizens under renewed lockdown after fresh outbreaks of Covid-19, authorities have reported, as the government persists in its hardline policy on containing the virus.The measures affected cities from the southern tech hub of...

Second attempt comes after engine issue foiled effort on MondayNasa will make a second attempt at launching its Space Launch System moon rocket this Saturday, the agency has said, five days after technical issues foiled an initial attempt.The US space agency made the decision on Monday to delay its first attempt to put astronauts on the moon in 50 years due to engine issues. Continue...

History-rich communcation centre in Lizard peninsula will track the rocket using its Merlin antennaNaturally, mission control in Houston and the Kennedy Space Center in Florida are the places most closely associated with Nasa’s Artemis 1 moon adventure but a lesser-known spot on a remote heath in the far south-west of Britain is also playing a crucial part.When the mission does blast off,...

The BBC’s superb adaptation of Sartre’s story of love, shame and France’s fall is a stark reminder that self-reproach has gone from British public life. Why, asks playwright David Hare, do we tolerate a ruling class that can’t confess fault?In the late 1970s, I was part of a raucous lobby to liberate television drama from the confines of the studio and progress it to film. Ken Loach had...

Advances in DNA analysis enabled researchers to identify victims and sequence oldest genomes from Jewish individualsThe remains of children and adults found in a disused well in Norwich have been identified as victims of a bloody medieval pogrom, researchers have revealed.The team said the discovery not only underscored the horror of the antisemitic atrocity, but provided new insights into when...

Holidaymakers heading to British beaches and rivers were faced with a very unpleasant problem this summer – raw sewage. The sewage system usually carries rainwater and dirty wastewater from bathrooms and kitchens to treatment works but during ‘exceptional events’ such as heavy rainfall, when it is likely to be overwhelmed, raw sewage can be diverted and discharged into rivers and...

Data from UK Biobank suggests people who drink two or more cups of black tea a day have lower risk of mortalityIt is a welcome piece of research for those who regard having a cup of tea as one of life’s everyday pleasures.A study has suggested that having a brew could be associated with a lower risk of mortality. When compared with those who do not have tea, people who consumed two or more cups...

A dispute over who should fund the free kits will leave test sites or insurance reimbursement as the available options The US government is suspending its program of free home tests for Covid-19 this week amid disagreements over who should pay for the initiative.The free home tests, which have provided up to 16 tests for each household, are scheduled to come to a halt Friday. In the future, people...

In behaviour only previously seen in humans, ‘social brain’ helps dolphins form complex alliances to see off their rivals for femalesDolphins form decade-long social bonds, and cooperate among and between cliques, to help one another find mates and fight off competitors, new research has found – behaviour not previously confirmed among animals.“These dolphins have long-term stable...

US space agency technicians working against the clock to correct ‘engine bleed’ in time for possible rescheduled lift-off on FridayNasa scrubbed the first launch attempt of Artemis 1, the US space agency’s first human-rated moon rocket in 50 years, on Monday because of an “engine bleed” that halted the countdown 40 minutes before lift-off.Engineers at Nasa’s launch complex in Cape...

An article in the Nature Climate Change journal argues that non-violent direct action taken by experts is effectiveScientists should commit acts of civil disobedience to show the public how seriously they regard the threat posed by the climate crisis, a group of leading scientists has argued.“Civil disobedience by scientists has the potential to cut through the myriad complexities and confusion...

Oversight review into US research on newborn piglets led by Prof William Armstead, which has been called ‘utterly reprehensible’The federal Office of Research Integrity (ORI) has begun an investigation into alleged misconduct after the retraction of five papers involving animal experiments on newborn piglets led by a now retired professor at the University of Pennsylvania.The ORI confirmed...

Benefits of cholesterol-lowering drug taken by 8 million people in UK outweigh low risk of side-effects, study findsStatins do not commonly cause muscle pain, the world’s most comprehensive study of their risks has found, prompting health experts to reassure millions of patients that taking the pills is safe.The drugs are widely prescribed to prevent heart disease, but there have been concerns...