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Interstellar objects like 3I/ATLAS are exciting, but there is no reason to claim that they are evidence of alien spacecraft – sometimes a comet is just comet, says Robin George Andrews

Standard techniques for removing kidney stones often require repeated surgery, but a magnetic gel seems to make the process more efficient

President Donald Trump appears to have ordered a return to nuclear testing after decades of uneasy but effective treaties banning the practice – but will it actually happen?

Palaeontologists have argued for decades over whether certain fossils are young Tyrannosaurus rex or another species entirely – now they have strong evidence that the diminutive Nanotyrannus really existed

The US government's decision to stop supporting a telescope facility that would have given us unprecedented insight into the early universe is calamitous, says Chanda Prescod-Weinstein

Feedback comes across a YouTuber's efforts to build a large language model in Minecraft and is impressed at the scale of it – even if it doesn't quite live up to its promise to blow your mind "in spectacular fashion"

A new type of germanium superconductor could allow classical and quantum chips to be built into one device, creating better and more reliable quantum computers.

COP's negotiations this month will focus on money for climate change adaptation. While more money is essential, even a big increase won't be enough on its own and we need to face up to this, warns Susannah Fisher

It took a long time for zero to be recognised as a number at all, let alone one of the most powerful ones – but now it’s clear that every number is made up of zeroes, says Jacob Aron

Can sea slugs form abstract thoughts? Do we dare to see any "purpose" in evolution? Is the subjective just a complicated form of the objective? Nikolay Kukushkin's One Hand Clapping is a bold voyage around the mysteries of the human mind, finds Thomas Lewton

People who receive stem cell therapy within a week of their first heart attack have nearly a 60 per cent lower risk of developing heart failure years later

One of the Milky Way’s smallest galactic neighbours seems to have a supermassive black hole at its centre, upending assumptions that it was dominated by dark matter

Ochre artefacts found in Crimea show signs of having been used for drawing, adding to evidence that Neanderthals used pigments in symbolic ways

The man who invented the web is aware of the many issues it faces, from problematic social media use to the rise of unfettered AI. He also has a plan to remedy the situation

Computers built with analogue circuits promise huge speed and efficiency gains over ordinary computers, but normally at the cost of accuracy. Now, an analogue computer designed to carry out calculations that are key to AI training could fix that

During sleep, your brain cleans itself by flushing through cerebrospinal fluid to prevent damage to brain cells. If you're lacking in sleep, this happens when you are awake – and seems to cause momentary lapses in attention

Combining a quantum-inspired algorithm and quantum information processing technologies could enable researchers to measure masses of cosmic objects that bend light almost imperceptibly

The Trump administration has laid off government workers integral to major public health surveys, meaning the country will lack crucial information on births, deaths and illnesses nationwide

Plague, leprosy, smallpox and other diseases didn't jump from animals to humans when we thought. Ancient DNA is revealing where they come from and how they changed history

The monster hurricane pummelling Jamaica is powered by abnormal sea surface temperatures in the Caribbean, which were made at least 500 times more likely by global warming

Among over-50s, women seem to require less exercise than men to get the same reduction in heart disease risk, suggesting health guidelines need to be updated

If we admit that quantum numbers are the true essence of reality – not particles, space or time – then a surprising and beautiful new vision of reality opens up to us

There is nothing stopping the wealthiest people from attempting to alter the world's atmosphere – this must not be allowed to happen

Solar electricity is growing rapidly, but can it really dominate the global energy system? Here is what it will take for us to power the planet on sunshine

Fibromyalgia, which causes chronic pain all over the body, is poorly understood, but two studies – made up of millions of participants – are helping us get to the roots of the condition

When it comes to boosting mental health and even improving performance, team sports and group exercise come out on top, finds Grace Wade

Many of the signs of perimenopause can also be symptoms of other conditions, and some of these get increasingly dangerous if they’re misdiagnosed

The White House Effect is a distressing look back at how President George H. W. Bush came to abandon his climate ambitions. It is essential viewing and a glimpse at a world that could have been, says Bethan Ackerley

There are hundreds of coherent theories attempting to explain the origins of experience. Robert Lawrence Kuhn explores what they reveal about free will, artificial intelligence and life after death

The microbes that take hold in our bodies during early life have long-term effects on our brain health. Helen Thomson investigates how to get kids’ microbiomes off to the best start.

We have more satellites than ever before, but when they burn up they create a new kind of air pollution. Evidence is now revealing what effects this could have and how to tackle it

Human embryos formed with in vitro fertilisation can develop genetic abnormalities in the time between genetic testing and implantation – though this may not affect their viability

A four-fingered robotic hand built from Lego Mindstorms pieces can push, pull and grip with almost as much force as a leading 3D-printed hand

Birds all over the world break into a dawn chorus every morning – now experiments in zebra finches suggest both a mechanistic and a functional explanation for this phenomenon

An exclusive New Scientist survey of leading scientists reveals widespread concern that schemes to tweak Earth’s atmosphere could launch within decades in a risky bid to cool the planet

A growing body of research suggests testosterone replacement therapy can alleviate menopausal symptoms such as a decrease in libido, mood swings and brain fog. But some in the field are sceptical

It has remained mysterious for millennia, but we’re finally uncovering the profound role the lymphatic system plays in everything from preventing dementia to fighting cancer

Scientists are finding out how coffee beans are transformed when they pass through the guts of Asian palm civets in the hope of replicating the process without using animals

Buried underground near the surface, frozen regions of Mars could have tiny hidden channels full of liquid water, which could be a habitable environment for microscopic organisms

Future Chronicles is our regular speculative look at inventions yet to come. In this latest installment, we journey to 2050, when technology had been developed so that criminals could be monitored at home. It led to a drop in crime, writes Rowan Hooper

Microbes high in Earth’s stratosphere produce pigments to protect them from UV light – so similar molecules could be biosignatures of life elsewhere in the galaxy

Feedback delights in a 2018 paper that takes care to warn us it reveals “nothing like super interesting”, and embarks on a quest to find more examples of disarming honesty

The prevailing wisdom is that horror fans lack empathy and are addicted to adrenaline. My research shows otherwise, says Coltan Scrivner

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week

Lithium-ion batteries are prone to catching fire when damaged, but a simple change of electrolyte material can put a stop to the vicious chemical cycle that causes the problem

In the run-up to this year's COP in Brazil, Madeleine Cuff explores The Climate Diplomat, a poignant account by the late Peter Betts, a negotiator who showed what diplomacy can achieve

So far, immune cells that have been engineered to kill cancers, known as CAR T-cells, haven’t worked well against solid cancers - but a study in mice suggests that could soon change

Studies have suggested that Wegovy directly boosts heart health, beyond just the benefits of losing weight, and now that has been demonstrated in a robust trial in people

Classical swine fever reduces productivity and harms animal welfare, but pigs have now been genetically edited to make them completely resistant to the disease

Skin irritation, such as through eczema, promotes hair growth in mice, which prompted scientists to create a treatment that works via similar pathways, with no discomfort required

A new quantum computing protocol may be able to augment a standard technique for understanding molecules in chemistry, biomedicine and materials science

Future smartphones and other devices could have colour e-paper displays, thanks to a new technique that lets such screens display video while minimising energy usage

Antidepressants can be very effective, but they also come with side effects that vary from one drug to the next, supporting the idea of more personalised prescriptions

Confining and rotating extremely cold atoms or molecules within atomic “Ferris wheels” made from laser light could test relativity’s predictions on the quantum scale

When Homo sapiens and Neanderthals interbred, a genetic variation affecting red blood cells may have hindered reproduction in women who were hybrids, and this might have played a part in Neanderthals’ demise

The comet-like object Chiron has been caught in the process of forming new rings, which could help us understand how these complex systems work

Breastfeeding seems to cause specialised immune cells to flood into the breasts and stay there for years or even decades, reducing the risk of cancer

Age-related macular degeneration is a common cause of vision loss, with existing treatments only able to slow its progression. But now an implant in the back of the eye and a pair of high-tech glasses have enabled people with the condition to read again

Turning the crank on a simple device filled with nanoparticles can remove serious pathogens from water in seconds, making it suitable for areas without electricity

An analysis of patient records suggests that mRNA covid-19 vaccines boost the immune response to cancerous tumours when given soon after people start a type of immunotherapy, extending their lives

A report on the state of the climate has concluded coral reefs are on a knife-edge, even as the world shifts away from making good on net zero

A whole library’s worth of papyri owned by Julius Caesar’s father-in-law were turned to charcoal by the eruption of Vesuvius. Nearly 2000 years later, we can at last read these lost treasures

Claims that one quantum computer is better than another rest on terms like quantum advantage or quantum supremacy, fault-tolerance or qubits with better coherence – what does it all mean? Karmela Padavic-Callaghan sifts through the noise

As ancient humans left Africa, they encountered many harsh environments including the Sahara and the high Arctic, but one of the last places they inhabited was Britain, likely due to the relentless cold and damp climate

Chilli powder is touted as a cheap, easy, safe option to protect your garden from foxes and squirrels. James Wong casts a scientific eye on this popular remedy

In Ken Liu's All That We See or Seem, a once-famous hacker must find a missing dream-weaver. One for AI fans, but it didn't quite work for Emily H. Wilson

What you eat has a surprising impact on the pH of your body with wide ranging impacts on your health. But getting the balance right isn’t as simple as eating fewer acidic foods

Quantum computers hold great potential for solving many problems more quickly or efficiently than conventional computers, but researchers are starting to identify where they could falter

One of the longest trials of artificial sweeteners to date found that they may increase beneficial gut bacteria, though the boost may also be related to weight loss

Physicists have tried so many different ways to find dark matter, but none has been successful. Now an unexpected contender has entered the arena - ordinary table sugar.

Experiencing severe hardship in childhood can have a lasting impact. Understanding this better could open the door to more effective treatments

A new chip design includes 41 vertical layers of semiconductor and insulator materials, which allow it to outrun the limits of miniaturisation

mRNA vaccines are quick and easy to make, while virus-like nanoparticles produce a stronger immune response. Now, the two approaches are being combined to give us the best of both worlds

Our bond with cats – which has seen them go from hunter to house pet – may be more diverse than with any other animal. And Jerry D. Moore's Cat Tales: A history rounds up the lot, says Bethan Ackerley

A mysterious excess of gamma rays in the middle of the Milky Way may come from dark matter particles smashing into one another and annihilating

If users chose the most efficient model each time they performed a task with AI, researchers calculate it would slash energy consumption by more than a quarter

The rush to grow more biofuels continues, despite the fact they increase CO2 emissions rather than lower them, raise food prices and devastate nature. It has to stop, says Michael Le Page

The British government isn't the only one looking to introduce digital ID cards. There is so much to worry about here, not least the threat of hacks, says Annalee Newitz

The evidence to support phone bans in schools has been inconclusive, and now it seems that the move could harm some students' mental health in a particular way

Mathematicians thought that they understood how rotation works, but now a new proof has revealed a surprising twist that makes it possible to reset even a complex sequence of motion

Feedback isn't entirely convinced by a new piece of research that claims by 2339 "there will be no humans", even though the authors used three methods to make their calculation

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week

Our experiments have revealed that we're getting it wrong when it comes to crime and punishment. This is undermining society, say Raihan Alam and Tage Rai

With enthralling visuals and intense performances, this version of Mary Shelley's sci-fi tale reminds us to ask not only if we can create life, but if we can live with our creations, says Davide Abbatescianni

Lead poisoning isn't just a modern phenomenon: fossil teeth show signs that it affected ancient hominids, and Homo sapiens may have coped better than our close relatives

A 230-million-year-old fossil found in Argentina shows that the evolution of sauropod dinosaurs’ long necks began earlier than previously thought

In 1992, three physicists began an argument about how many numbers we need to fully describe the universe. Their surprisingly long-running quarrel takes us to the heart of what’s truly real

The global average concentration of CO2 surged by 3.5 parts per million to reach 423.9 ppm last year, fuelling worries that the planet’s ability to soak up excess carbon is weakening

Economists, bankers and even the boss of OpenAI are warning of a rapidly inflating AI bubble. If and when it bursts, what will happen to the technological breakthroughs of the past few years?

Keith Thomas, a man in his 40s with no sensation or movement in his hands, is able to feel and move objects by controlling another person's hand via a brain implant. The technique might one day even allow us to experience another person's body over long distances.

The equatorial regions of Mars are home to unexpectedly enormous layers of ice, and they may have been put there by dramatic volcanic eruptions billions of years ago

Progesterone, oestrogen and testosterone can be detected in skeletons over 1000 years old, offering a way to identify individuals who died while pregnant or soon after giving birth

Babies born too soon seem to have stronger connections in one of the major brain areas that supports language processing if they regularly heard their mother read them a story while in intensive care

Are you terse and informal when speaking to an AI chatbot? If so, you might be getting worse answers than if you used more formal language

Stars often fall into black holes, and now it seems the opposite can also occur, producing an extra long-lasting explosion as the star is consumed from within

Applying a daily serum that contains extracts of a tropical plant improved hair density and strand thickness in just 56 days

Record-breaking ocean temperatures have caused widespread bleaching and death among warm-water corals, which could have far-reaching consequences

How did cooperation emerge in a cut-throat world? There are clues in the prisoner's dilemma experiment, says Peter Rowlett

Brian Cory Dobbs's documentary promotes the baseless idea that Mars was once inhabited by an advanced civilisation. But there's some value in how it inadvertently documents a generation of otherwise-sensible scientists, says Simon Ings

The strong nuclear force may abruptly loosen its grip on the fundamental particles that make up matter at a special “critical point” – researchers are now getting a clearer picture of when that point is reached