Oak trees use delaying tactics to thwart hungry caterpillars 01. May 2026 (12:00) An infestation of caterpillars can make an oak tree postpone when it opens its leaves next year by three days, wrong-footing the insects when they attack again(New Scientist)
Will Colombia summit kick-start the end of the fossil fuel era? 01. May 2026 (11:58) With progress at COP climate meetings stalling, 57 countries took part in the first of a new series of conferences aiming to develop roadmaps away from fossil fuels, but big emitters like China and the US were absent(New Scientist)
Why I explore our inevitable love for robots in my novel Luminous 01. May 2026 (11:35) Silvia Park, author of the May read for the New Scientist Book Club, reveals how a book that was originally intended to be for children took a darker route following a death in the family(New Scientist)
Read an extract from Luminous by Silvia Park 01. May 2026 (11:35) In this extract from Luminous, the May read for the New Scientist Book Club, we meet a mysterious robot discovered in a salvage yard in Seoul, in a future reunified Korea(New Scientist)
The rings of Uranus are even stranger than we thought 01. May 2026 (10:00) Uranus’s outermost two rings are surprisingly dissimilar, which opens up a mystery about the tiny moons and moonlets that form them(New Scientist)
An unorthodox version of quantum theory could reveal what reality is 01. May 2026 (08:00) The implications of quantum mechanics suggest reality isn't as solid as we think it is, but physicist David Bohm had a spin on the theory that restores reality. Columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan explores how we could test Bohmian mechanics – and if it will ever become more widely accepted(New Scientist)
'Green' cryptocurrency uses 18 times more energy than makers claim 30. April 2026 (20:00) A cryptocurrency that aims to avoid the disastrous energy consumption of bitcoin is actually using 18 times more energy than its makers claim – but it promises improvements are on the way(New Scientist)
Your oral microbiome could affect your weight, liver and diabetes risk 30. April 2026 (19:00) An ambitious study has explored how the oral microbiome may affect our metabolic health, raising hopes that conditions like pre-diabetes could one day be screened for via a simple mouth swab(New Scientist)
Human heads have changed shape a lot in the past 100 years 30. April 2026 (17:00) Since the early 20th century, people’s skulls have got rounder and their jaws have got wider, probably because of changes in health, diet and environment(New Scientist)
Doubts cast over 'wild' claim that magnetic control can turn on genes 30. April 2026 (14:00) Researchers in South Korea say they have made a major advance by turning on genes with an electromagnetic signal, but critics say the claims are implausible and the paper is flawed(New Scientist)
