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Moderate calorie restriction lowered an immune protein called C3 that appears to help drive chronic inflammation as the body ages. Blocking the same protein reduced age related inflammation in mice, raising the possibility that future treatments could mimic some benefits of calorie restriction without severe dieting.

A Manhattan-sized ice island has broken away from Greenland’s Petermann Glacier after years of growing fractures weakened its floating ice tongue. Scientists expect two more huge sections could soon detach, potentially removing about 22 percent of the remaining ice tongue.

DNA from a nearly 190-year-old museum specimen has helped scientists confirm a distinct Himalayan pangolin species hiding in plain sight in Nepal and northern India. The discovery could give conservationists a powerful new way to trace illegally traded pangolin scales back to the species and regions being targeted by poachers.

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope is now enclosed inside its Falcon Heavy fairing and nearly ready for launch. Its mission could uncover thousands of exoplanets while helping scientists investigate dark matter, dark energy, and the accelerating expansion of the universe.

Common medications may reshape the gut microbiome long after the last dose is taken. In a study of more than 2,500 people, researchers found lasting microbial changes linked not only to antibiotics, but also to antidepressants, beta-blockers, acid-reducing drugs, and benzodiazepines. Some effects were still detectable years later, suggesting past medication use may strongly influence the gut bacteria people carry today.

Scientists have created a highly efficient catalyst that breaks down stubborn lignin from plant waste into useful chemicals under relatively mild conditions. By revealing exactly how the catalyst works at the atomic level, the discovery could help turn forestry and agricultural waste into renewable building blocks for fuels, plastics, and other materials.

Three forgotten Assyrian kings may have been hiding in plain sight for more than 2,700 years. By piecing together clues from tablets, inscriptions, and an ancient statue, researchers argue that these rulers were omitted from the famous Assyrian King List.

Researchers have found a way to supercharge natural killer cells, powerful immune cells that can attack cancer, so they can penetrate solid tumors and keep fighting once inside. In mice, these specially prepared tissue-resident cells slowed the growth of several tumors, including melanoma and head and neck cancers, and worked even better when paired with the antibody drug cetuximab.

A compound found in turmeric may help protect blood vessels from some of the damage caused by Type 1 diabetes. In rats, curcumin reduced inflammation, improved cellular signaling, and restored vascular health to levels resembling those of nondiabetic animals. The results hint at a possible new way to reduce the long-term cardiovascular risks of diabetes, but human trials are still needed.

Britain’s postwar sugar rationing created a rare natural experiment that let researchers examine how early sugar exposure might affect health decades later. People who experienced more rationing during their first 1,000 days had lower rates of several cancers and showed signs of slower biological aging. They were also still eating less sugar and maintaining healthier diets around age 50.

Backyard bird feeders could become unexpected hotspots for H5N1 as Australia’s bird flu outbreak spreads, bringing species together in ways that rarely occur naturally. Experts say stopping feeding is safest, while smaller amounts of food, no hand-feeding, and careful cleaning can reduce the danger.

A single asteroid impact may explain two of Deimos’s most puzzling features: its huge southern depression and unusually smooth, dusty surface. Simulations suggest a roughly 320-meter asteroid struck the Martian moon at an angle, throwing debris around the entire world without breaking it apart. New observations from ESA’s Hera spacecraft support the scenario and indicate that Deimos is surprisingly porous and fragile.

A sweeping analysis of thousands of animal genomes suggests that chromosomes do not evolve randomly but instead follow a limited number of irreversible “evolutionary highways.” These one-way genetic changes preserve clues to more than 600 million years of animal history and could even help researchers explore where evolution may head next.

A wavelength of light largely missing from indoor LEDs may play an important role in protecting developing eyes from nearsightedness. Researchers found that indigo light completely prevented myopia in tree shrews, whose eyes share important similarities with human eyes. The discovery raises the possibility that future indoor lighting could be redesigned to more closely mimic sunlight and potentially reduce childhood myopia.

Both too little and too much sleep may be linked to faster aging throughout the body. Researchers analyzing 23 biological aging clocks found the lowest aging levels among people sleeping about 6.4 to 7.8 hours per day. Short or long sleep was also associated with numerous conditions affecting the brain, heart, lungs, metabolism, and digestive system.

Scientists may have solved the mystery of why Antarctica froze millions of years before the Arctic. Slow-moving waves deep inside Earth gradually lifted East Antarctica, building mountains and a high plateau where snow and ice could survive even in a much warmer world. Once glaciers took hold, their bright surfaces reflected sunlight and helped cool the region further.

More screen time during infancy and around the start of school was linked to poorer academic performance and weaker working memory years later. The findings suggest that early childhood may contain particularly sensitive windows when screen habits can have longer-lasting effects.

Early-life stress may physically alter how DNA is packaged in the brain, leaving stress-related genes primed to activate more easily years later. In mice, researchers were able to block this effect, preventing the heightened anxiety and stress sensitivity that otherwise appeared in adulthood.

A neuroscientist is challenging the idea that the brain contains a central system that actually “makes” our decisions. What we experience as choosing may instead emerge from the continuous interaction of perception, movement, the body, and the world around us.

A huge section of Greenland’s Petermann Glacier has snapped off, forming an ice island about the size of Manhattan. Satellites watched cracks spread rapidly before the 76-square-kilometer slab finally broke free on August 4. It is the glacier’s biggest calving event since 2012, and scientists say two even larger pieces could eventually follow. The rare Arctic iceberg will now be tracked as it drifts, breaks apart, and potentially affects shipping routes.

NASA scientists found that microbes brought by astronauts could survive in cold, shadowed niches around the Moon’s South Pole, potentially complicating future searches for pristine lunar chemistry. Some refuges may be no larger than a footprint, while one hardy fungus could even withstand limited exposure to sunlight.

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope has been cleared for final launch preparations ahead of a targeted August 30 liftoff aboard SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy. The powerful new observatory will probe cosmic expansion, the history of the universe, and distant exoplanets.

The Artemis II crew will receive the Congressional Space Medal of Honor after becoming the first humans in more than 50 years to travel beyond the Moon. Their 10-day Orion mission also carried them farther into space than anyone in history.

A major study found that adults with depression show disrupted production of new neurons in the hippocampus, potentially weakening the brain’s ability to separate new experiences from painful memories. The researchers also identified broad molecular changes that could open the door to new treatments tailored to different biological forms of depression.

A massive test of gravity across the cosmos found that it behaves almost exactly as Newton and Einstein predicted, even across galaxy clusters hundreds of millions of light-years apart. The result weakens some modified-gravity explanations and strengthens the case that dark matter is behind the universe’s mysterious missing mass.

Older adults who received the Shingrix shingles vaccine were 24% less likely to be diagnosed with dementia over four years in a study of more than 500,000 people. Researchers estimate the difference could amount to roughly one dementia case prevented for every 17 people vaccinated.

A low-carb diet may raise LDL cholesterol much more sharply in people who are genetically predisposed to high cholesterol, particularly when they consume lots of saturated fat. The findings could help explain why people following seemingly similar diets can have dramatically different results.

Scientists discovered a small, yellowish mountain horned dragon in Thailand and named it Acanthosaura syrax after a dragon from House of the Dragon. Found only in a narrow band of high-elevation forest, the distinctive new species could become a flagship for protecting its rare mountain habitat.

A faint ribbon of stars around a distant galaxy has become the first globular cluster stellar stream ever identified beyond the Milky Way. Because the stars trace the galaxy’s gravity, researchers used the stream to estimate how much invisible dark matter surrounds it and how that matter is distributed. The breakthrough offers astronomers a promising new way to investigate one of the universe’s greatest mysteries.

A decades-old compound may point to a new way of treating obesity by making the body burn more energy rather than simply reducing appetite. In mice, TOFA increased energy use by as much as 18%, reduced body fat without significant muscle loss, and improved blood sugar, triglycerides, and fatty liver disease. It also produced stronger results when combined with GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound.

People who reach 110 and beyond appear to have unusually large numbers of rare immune cells capable of killing abnormal cells. These CD4 cytotoxic T cells became more common with age and often expanded into large groups of nearly identical cells, suggesting the immune system was repeatedly responding to persistent threats.

Researchers have created a tiny chip that produces a stable “rainbow” of light capable of generating multiple high-frequency signals at once, potentially boosting the speed and capacity of future 6G networks. Its extreme precision could also make it valuable for quantum timing, navigation, radar, and even space-based technologies.

Researchers have used AI to uncover the DNA signature of a key genetic “switch” involved in turning genes on. After analyzing about 500,000 DNA sequences, the model identified the initiator in roughly 60% of human genes. The breakthrough could help predict the effects of harmful mutations and eventually contribute to decoding the broader genetic instructions that control gene activity throughout the body.

Scientists have developed an ultrathin coating that could dramatically improve how efficiently heat is transferred during condensation. By turning tiny polymer structures once considered “defects” into places where water droplets can form, then helping those droplets detach quickly, the new surface keeps exposing fresh areas for condensation. In tests on copper tubes, it transferred heat up to 5.5 times more effectively than conventional copper and more than 50% better than a standard water-repelling coating.

Researchers have found a way to slash the processing time for 3D-printed zirconia crowns from as much as 100 hours to under 30 minutes. The advance could eventually let dentists print strong, customized permanent crowns for patients within a single appointment.

A massive analysis involving more than 100 million people has found strong links between recreational drug use and stroke, including among younger adults. Cocaine was associated with nearly double the risk of stroke, amphetamines with more than double the risk, and cannabis with a 37% increase.

Researchers have found a way to create a complete 3D image of a molecule’s wavefunction, one of quantum mechanics’ most fundamental yet elusive features. By combining advanced photoelectron measurements with newly designed algorithms, the University of Göttingen team reconstructed the molecular orbital of a nanometer-sized organic molecule in remarkable detail, even resolving features smaller than the spacing between its carbon atoms.

An abandoned farm field became a flourishing wildflower meadow within little more than a decade, with plant diversity doubling and thousands of orchids appearing naturally. The discovery suggests that simply giving nature time to recover could be a powerful and inexpensive tool for restoring biodiversity.

Mice that developed compulsive drinking after alcohol abstinence showed more than double the activity in a brain region associated with stress and addiction. Because the signal appeared before they drank again, researchers think it could eventually help predict who is most at risk of relapse.

Gut bacteria can transform nitrate and plant-based iron from vegetables and other foods into protective molecules that may benefit the heart and metabolism. In experimental models, higher levels of these compounds were linked to lower blood pressure, better blood sugar control, healthier blood vessels, and less liver fat.

Researchers at CERN have created microscopic versions of the early Universe by colliding surprisingly small atomic nuclei at nearly the speed of light. The collisions produced quark-gluon plasma, the ultra-hot matter believed to have filled the cosmos shortly after the Big Bang. Even more intriguingly, the particles left behind reveal the shape of the nuclei that created them, offering a new way to probe both nuclear physics and the Universe’s earliest moments.

Astronomers using JWST have discovered that massive early galaxies contain far more small, faint stars than expected. That hidden population could make some of these galaxies three to four times more massive than previous estimates. The finding makes it even harder to explain how enormous, mature galaxies formed so soon after the Big Bang. It could also suggest that planets around low-mass stars were more common in the early universe than scientists realized.

Older adults with mild cognitive impairment and sleep problems who took at least 5,000 IU of vitamin D daily scored more than 13% higher on a cognitive test than those taking none. The preliminary findings suggest vitamin D could be worth studying as a potentially modifiable factor during an early window of cognitive decline.

Astronomers have found stars that repeatedly skim past supermassive black holes, surviving each encounter while producing a new burst of light. In some systems, those flares mysteriously fade with every return. Researchers now think the key may be stars that were already spinning extremely fast before being captured. That rapid rotation could explain both the fading flares and how the stars ended up in such extraordinarily tight black hole orbits.

Exercise may not be a powerful weight-loss tool on its own, but it appears to play a much bigger role in preventing lost weight from returning. By preserving muscle, supporting metabolism, improving fat burning, and regulating appetite and blood sugar, regular activity can make long-term weight maintenance easier.

Peppermint oil may have an unexpected benefit for people with mildly high blood pressure. Adults who took a small dose twice daily for 20 days saw their systolic blood pressure fall by an average of 8.5 mmHg, while a placebo group showed little change. Researchers say the inexpensive oil could eventually provide a simple additional option for managing elevated blood pressure.

Researchers have uncovered a possible reason why the Alzheimer’s risk gene APOE4 can disrupt the brain long before memory problems begin. In mice, APOE4 increased a protein called Nell2, shrinking neurons and making memory circuits unusually active. That early hyperactivity predicted worse memory later in life. Reducing Nell2 in adult mice reversed the abnormal changes, raising hopes for a new way to intervene before Alzheimer’s progresses.

Greenland sharks may live for 400 years without suffering the kind of retinal decline normally associated with aging. Researchers found healthy eye tissue and active proteins specially adapted for seeing blue light in the dim Arctic depths. DNA repair mechanisms may help keep their eyes functioning across centuries. The discovery could eventually offer new clues for protecting human vision as we age.

A simple yeast-based food supplement may help restore the immune system’s ability to fight cancer, according to new research in mice. Scientists found that yeast beta-glucan reprogrammed early immune cells in the bone marrow, leading to stronger, longer-lasting cancer-fighting responses against colorectal, skin, and breast cancer cells.

Freezing the liquid core of an optical fiber produced an extreme environment where light and sound interact more than 1,000 times more strongly than in ordinary fibers. Researchers used the effect to create optoacoustic memory, potentially paving the way for lower-energy photonic computers and advanced quantum technologies.

People who speak several languages may have brains that age more slowly, with four-language speakers showing brains that appeared about 13 years younger than those of monolinguals. Starting earlier and becoming highly fluent were also linked to a stronger effect.

Honeybee queens exposed to pesticides can shift some of the contamination into their eggs, revealing a previously unknown survival strategy. The process may protect the queen while putting developing offspring, and potentially the entire colony, at risk.

Pancreatic cancer patients with at least 21 natural teeth survived nearly two years longer after surgery than those with fewer teeth in a study of 339 people. Researchers suspect tooth loss may reflect decades of inflammation, frailty, nutrition, and other factors tied to the body’s overall resilience.

A few minutes of sprinting may reshape the bloodstream far more dramatically than a much longer moderate workout. Six 30-second sprints altered nearly a quarter of the blood proteins measured and more than 200 metabolites, while 90 minutes of moderate cycling produced far smaller immediate changes. Many of the proteins affected by sprinting were also associated with lower risks of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other metabolic diseases.

Scientists analyzing a 2,200-year-old Roman shipwreck found that its hull was coated with pine tar and, in one area, a mixture of tar and beeswax. Pollen trapped in those ancient coatings acted like a geographic fingerprint, revealing the landscapes surrounding the ship when repairs were made.

Scientists have linked a specific gut bacterium, Roseburia inulinivorans, to stronger muscles in both humans and mice. Older adults who carried it had 29% greater handgrip strength, while treated mice gained about 30% more grip strength and developed larger, more fast-twitch muscle fibers. The bacterium was also less common in older people. Researchers say it could eventually become a probiotic candidate for helping combat age-related muscle loss.

A tiny, fully intact Indigenous pot buried for roughly 400 years has left archaeologists wondering why such a usable object was deliberately abandoned. Found at a historic Potano-Timucua village in Florida, the mysterious vessel is helping reveal a complex world of Native traditions, Spanish influence, trade, and migration.

Scientists watched a light-triggered hidden state form inside a material in only 30 femtoseconds, revealing a step that had never been seen before. The material first entered a fleeting electronic state in which its bonds reorganized in a repeating pattern, followed by tiny atomic shifts. This ultrafast pathway could offer a new way to control electronic properties with light and help inspire faster, more responsive technologies.

A hormone already known for curbing appetite and supporting weight loss may have a surprising second job: protecting the liver from inflammation and scarring. Researchers at McMaster University found that GDF15 activates a previously unknown brain-to-liver pathway that triggers the release of glucocorticoids, helping calm immune activity in the liver.

For decades, scientists have puzzled over why certain atomic nuclei unexpectedly produce large numbers of low-energy gamma rays. A new experiment traced the effect to magnetic changes inside the nucleus, where protons and neutrons effectively flip their tiny internal magnets. The discovery could sharpen models of everything from nuclear reactions on Earth to the creation of heavy elements in stars and neutron star mergers.