How well you do at school depends on how much your teachers know: Insights from 14 French-speaking countries in Africa
Countries in sub-Saharan Africa have made remarkable progress towards reaching universal school enrollment in the past 25 years. Across the region, 8 in 10 children of primary school age are now enrolled in school, and in countries such as Benin and.....»»
Why invasive ants are a silent threat to our ecosystems
Invertebrates are often described by experts as the "little things that run the world," and ants are certainly one of the top contenders for this role. Ants help ecosystems to function normally and the total weight of all ants on Earth is roughly equ.....»»
Air pollution from fires hits world"s poorest hardest: study
People in poorer countries are disproportionately suffering from air pollution spewed from the increasing scourge of fires in forests and fields around the world, according to new research published Wednesday......»»
Scientists regenerate neurons that restore walking in mice after paralysis from spinal cord injury
In a new study in mice, a team of researchers from UCLA, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, and Harvard University have uncovered a crucial component for restoring functional activity after spinal cord injury. The neuroscientists have shown t.....»»
Scientists find "missing ingredient" for pink diamonds
Scientists said on Tuesday they have found the "missing ingredient" for pink diamonds, some of the world's most expensive stones due their rarity and beauty, and the discovery could help find more......»»
A brief history of abortion—from ancient Egyptian herbs to fighting stigma today
You might be forgiven for thinking of abortion as a particularly modern phenomenon. But there's plenty of evidence to suggest that abortion has been a constant feature of social life for thousands of years. The history of abortion is often told as a.....»»
Sex life discovery raises IVF hope for endangered purple cauliflower soft coral
Vital coastal habitat was destroyed in the devastating floods that hit New South Wales in 2021 and 2022......»»
Saturday Citations: Cutting the middleman out of spider silk synthesis; hungry black holes; Osiris-Rex is back!
This week, we reported on spider silk synthesis without spiders, and how policymakers are pursuing a wish-based approach to a global economy under climate change—what the kids call "manifesting" a green-growth future. Plus, black holes could be hun.....»»
Scientists warn entire branches of the "Tree of Life" are going extinct
Humans are driving the loss of entire branches of the "Tree of Life," according to a new study published on Monday which warns of the threat of a sixth mass extinction......»»
Direct synthesis of fluorinated carbon materials via solid-state mechanochemical reaction between graphite and PTFE
A research team, led by Professor Jong-Beom Baek and his team in the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering at UNIST have achieved a significant breakthrough in battery technology. They have developed an innovative method that enables the safe syn.....»»
Workers uncover eight mummies and pre-Inca objects while expanding the gas network in Peru
Some archaeologists describe Peru's capital as an onion with many layers of history, others consider it a box of surprises. That's what some gas line workers got when their digging uncovered eight pre-Inca funeral bales......»»
Historians race to find Great Lakes shipwrecks before quagga mussels destroy the sites
The Great Lakes' frigid fresh water used to keep shipwrecks so well preserved that divers could see dishes in the cupboards. Downed planes that spent decades underwater were left so pristine they could practically fly again when archaeologists finall.....»»
Arizona"s sweltering summer could set new record for most heat-associated deaths in big metro
America's hottest metro area is on track to set an annual record for heat-associated deaths after a sweltering summer, particularly in Phoenix......»»
Recycling plastic not enough, warns UN environment chief
With the production of plastic on the rise worldwide and creating ever more pollution, the UN environment chief warned that humanity cannot just recycle its way out of the mess, and she called for a total rethink about the way we use plastics......»»
Crowdfunding conservation: A Pacific island"s plan to protect its waters
For a little under $150, you can now directly sponsor marine conservation across one square kilometer of the Pacific Ocean, through a novel scheme announced this week by the tiny island of Niue......»»
Biologists in slow and steady race to help North America"s largest and rarest tortoise species
While the average lifespan of North America's largest and most rare tortoise species is unknown, biologists have said it could span upward of a century......»»
Largest asteroid sample ever collected is coming down to Earth
Chunks of asteroid that could tell us about the earliest days of the 4.5 billion-year-old solar system and the possible origins of water on our planet are set to land in the Utah desert Sunday......»»
Can cloud-based quantum computing really offer a quantum advantage?
A quantum machine can drastically speed up certain kinds of computation, but only if two or more quantum bits in the machine are entangled—that is, capable of displaying related behavior despite being separated......»»
Pollen analysis suggests dispersal of modern humans occurred during a major Pleistocene warming spell
It's an Ice Age mystery that's been debated for decades among anthropologists: Exactly when and how did the flow of Homo sapiens in Eurasia happen? Did a cold snap or a warming spell drive early human movement from Africa into Europe and Asia?.....»»
The deep genetic structure of Africa reveals unique ancestry of inhabitants of the Angolan Namib
Africa is the birthplace of modern humans and the continent with the highest level of genetic diversity. While ancient DNA studies are revealing some aspects of the genetic structure of Africa before the spread of food production, issues concerning D.....»»