The fact we can confidently balance on top of a pair of meat-sticks without toppling over is the very symbol of human evolution. Yet just how we came to stand upright in the first place remains a hotly debated topic.Now we have a new piece in the puzzle. Recently discovered fossils left by a relative who lived during the some 11.6 million years ago has provided compelling new evidence that our journey onto open ground could be compared to a toddler learning to walk, rather than a baby rising from a crawl.Thanks to an assortment of well-preserved hominid bones uncovered from a German dig...…The fact we can confidently balance on top of a pair of meat-sticks without toppling over is the very symbol of human evolution. Yet just how we came to stand upright in the first place remains a hotly debated topic.Now we have a new piece in the puzzle. Recently discovered fossils left by a relative who lived during the some 11.6 million years ago has provided compelling new evidence that our journey onto open ground could be compared to a toddler learning to walk, rather than a baby rising from a crawl.Thanks to an assortment of well-preserved hominid bones uncovered from a German dig...WW…

Last year, scientists took a big step towards creating the next generation of computers.For the first time ever, they stored light-based information as sound waves on a computer chip - something the researchers compared to capturing lightning as thunder. While that might sound a little strange, this conversion is critical if we ever want to shift from our current, inefficient electronic computers, to that move data at the speed of light. Light-based or photonic computers have the potential to run at least than your laptop, not to mention the fact that they won't produce heat or...…Last year, scientists took a big step towards creating the next generation of computers.For the first time ever, they stored light-based information as sound waves on a computer chip - something the researchers compared to capturing lightning as thunder. While that might sound a little strange, this conversion is critical if we ever want to shift from our current, inefficient electronic computers, to that move data at the speed of light. Light-based or photonic computers have the potential to run at least than your laptop, not to mention the fact that they won't produce heat or...WW…

Researchers have been able to coax human breast cells to turn into fat cells in a new proof-of-concept study in mice.To achieve this feat, the team exploited a weird pathway that metastasising cancer cells have; their results are just a first step, but it's a truly promising approach.When you cut your finger, or when a foetus grows organs, the  cells begin to look less like themselves, and more 'fluid' – changing into a type of  called a mesenchyme and then reforming into whatever cells the body needs.This process is called epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and that cancer...…Researchers have been able to coax human breast cells to turn into fat cells in a new proof-of-concept study in mice.To achieve this feat, the team exploited a weird pathway that metastasising cancer cells have; their results are just a first step, but it's a truly promising approach.When you cut your finger, or when a foetus grows organs, the  cells begin to look less like themselves, and more 'fluid' – changing into a type of  called a mesenchyme and then reforming into whatever cells the body needs.This process is called epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and that cancer...WW…

About half of hospitalized patients experience neurological symptoms including dizziness, difficulty concentrating, a loss of smell and taste, seizures, strokes, and weakness, according to a published in the Annals of Neurology.The findings illustrate that , the disease the coronavirus causes, is far more than a respiratory infection and rather one that poses "a global threat" to the whole nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord, and nerves, the study authors say."It's important for the general public and physicians to be aware of this, because a infection may present with...…About half of hospitalized patients experience neurological symptoms including dizziness, difficulty concentrating, a loss of smell and taste, seizures, strokes, and weakness, according to a published in the Annals of Neurology.The findings illustrate that , the disease the coronavirus causes, is far more than a respiratory infection and rather one that poses "a global threat" to the whole nervous system, including the brain, spinal cord, and nerves, the study authors say."It's important for the general public and physicians to be aware of this, because a infection may present with...WW…

For, the Arctic has observed an unbroken ritual. In winter, expands, as sub-zero polar temperatures freeze waters in their place. In summer, the ice pack retreats, as warmer temperatures thaw the winter-made gains, surrendering them back to the ocean.In the era of anthropogenic , the ebb and flow of this timeless cycle has become disturbed. For decades, the overall coverage of Arctic sea ice , expanding less and retreating more with each year. Nonetheless, the Arctic has, as always, remained frozen, covered in sea ice, even in the summer. It may not for much longer.A of numerous climate...…For, the Arctic has observed an unbroken ritual. In winter, expands, as sub-zero polar temperatures freeze waters in their place. In summer, the ice pack retreats, as warmer temperatures thaw the winter-made gains, surrendering them back to the ocean.In the era of anthropogenic , the ebb and flow of this timeless cycle has become disturbed. For decades, the overall coverage of Arctic sea ice , expanding less and retreating more with each year. Nonetheless, the Arctic has, as always, remained frozen, covered in sea ice, even in the summer. It may not for much longer.A of numerous climate...WW…

A new discovery could be a clue for us to see if life could emerge elsewhere in the Solar System. Using a new analysis technique, scientists think they have found an extraterrestrial protein, tucked inside a meteorite that fell to Earth 30 years ago.If their results can be replicated, it will be the first protein ever identified that didn't originate here on Earth."This paper characterises the first protein to be discovered in a meteorite," the researchers wrote in a paper . Their work is yet to be peer reviewed, but the implications of this finding are noteworthy.Over the last few years,...…A new discovery could be a clue for us to see if life could emerge elsewhere in the Solar System. Using a new analysis technique, scientists think they have found an extraterrestrial protein, tucked inside a meteorite that fell to Earth 30 years ago.If their results can be replicated, it will be the first protein ever identified that didn't originate here on Earth."This paper characterises the first protein to be discovered in a meteorite," the researchers wrote in a paper . Their work is yet to be peer reviewed, but the implications of this finding are noteworthy.Over the last few years,...WW…

A long-known but under-studied deposit of Cretaceous rock on the edge of the Sahara desert was more than just an ancient stomping ground for , according to a comprehensive new paper.The  in eastern Morocco might also represent a prime candidate for the most dangerous time and place to have been alive in Earth's prehistoric past, based on its fearsome preponderance of large-bodied carnivores, as evidenced in the fossil record.That prevalence – in contrast to the relative scarcity of herbivore remains – constitutes a bias towards giant flesh-eaters that can't be found in any comparable...…A long-known but under-studied deposit of Cretaceous rock on the edge of the Sahara desert was more than just an ancient stomping ground for , according to a comprehensive new paper.The  in eastern Morocco might also represent a prime candidate for the most dangerous time and place to have been alive in Earth's prehistoric past, based on its fearsome preponderance of large-bodied carnivores, as evidenced in the fossil record.That prevalence – in contrast to the relative scarcity of herbivore remains – constitutes a bias towards giant flesh-eaters that can't be found in any comparable...WW…

'How did the evolve' is a simple question that has caused , , and .Right now, research shows that it's highly likely the responsible for evolved naturally – probably starting in bats, and then percolating innocently in an animal host, until it developed the necessary mutations to make it the global we see today.A new study has given even more credence to this theory, finding a close relative of the virus in bats, including similar insertion events – mutations that are 'inserts' of genetic material into the viral genome - showing that such changes to the make-up of the virus can and do...…'How did the evolve' is a simple question that has caused , , and .Right now, research shows that it's highly likely the responsible for evolved naturally – probably starting in bats, and then percolating innocently in an animal host, until it developed the necessary mutations to make it the global we see today.A new study has given even more credence to this theory, finding a close relative of the virus in bats, including similar insertion events – mutations that are 'inserts' of genetic material into the viral genome - showing that such changes to the make-up of the virus can and do...WW…

Another ancient star has been found lurking in the Milky Way. Around 35,000 light-years away, a star named SMSS J160540.18–144323.1 was found to have the lowest iron levels of any star yet analysed in the galaxy.This means that it's one of the oldest stars in the Universe, probably belonging to the second generation of stars after the Universe burst into existence 13.8 billion years ago."This incredibly anaemic star, which likely formed just a few hundred million years after the , has iron levels 1.5 million times lower than that of the Sun," of the ARC Centre of Excellence for All Sky...…Another ancient star has been found lurking in the Milky Way. Around 35,000 light-years away, a star named SMSS J160540.18–144323.1 was found to have the lowest iron levels of any star yet analysed in the galaxy.This means that it's one of the oldest stars in the Universe, probably belonging to the second generation of stars after the Universe burst into existence 13.8 billion years ago."This incredibly anaemic star, which likely formed just a few hundred million years after the , has iron levels 1.5 million times lower than that of the Sun," of the ARC Centre of Excellence for All Sky...WW…