New Scientist Space - Space Headlines

A contentious meeting of physicists highlighted concerns, failures and possible fixes for a crisis in condensed matter physics

In mice, a ketogenic diet increases the build-up of zombie-like cells in the heart, kidney, lungs and brain, which can accelerate organ ageing and lead to health problems

A common species of orchid seems to pass food packages to nearby seedlings, in a kind of plant parental care

A group of doctors and scientists is getting behind the controversial idea that people can be addicted to certain trigger foods, in the same way as drugs and alcohol. The team says this addiction should be treated with abstinence, which goes against mainstream medical advice

Analysis of pollen in sediment cores from a large lake in Greece shows that nomadic livestock herders took over the region after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire

Some AI firms think nuclear power can help meet the electricity demand from Silicon Valley’s data centres, but building new nuclear power stations takes too long to plug the gap in the short term

Strange quantum characteristics of molecules can weather the chaos of chemical reactions, which may benefit quantum technologies or unveil hidden natural phenomena

You can blank out certain types of background noise and focus on just one conversation using prototype noise-cancelling headphones

After comparing people with brain injuries whose life support was continued with those who had it turned off, scientists calculated that around 40 per cent in the latter group may have made some recovery

Soil core samples show an ancient riverbed under the desert near many Egyptian pyramids, revealing an ancient waterway that dried up thousands of years ago

Wildlife photographer Johanna Turner used a trail camera to capture this cheery shot of a black bear, which is going viral after she posted it on social media

Researchers have discovered the gene variant responsible for a distinctive colour pattern seen in cats in Finland, named salmiak after a variety of liquorice

Energy-saving networks that link smart devices, solar panels and batteries could regulate power demand and help avoid fossil fuel use at peak times

A virtual assistant for surgeons translates text prompts into commands for a robot, offering a simple way to instruct machines to carry out small tasks in operations

For the first time, astronomers have observed the area right at the edge of a black hole where matter stops orbiting and plunges straight in at near light speed

Artificial compound eyes made without the need for expensive and precise lenses could provide cheap visual sensors for robots and driverless cars

Enjoy the year's top documentaries so far, including David Attenborough on the rise of the mammals and a profile of Victor Glover, soon to be the first Black astronaut to orbit the moon

All farmland in the Indian state of Sikkim, shown in these images, has been certified organic since 2016, and local authorities say the change is already improving wildlife populations and the area's arid soil

What makes some people so creative? There are many common beliefs about the neuroscience of innovation, but they fail to capture its true complexity, says Anna Abraham in her book The Creative Brain: Myths and truths

The US has been honing its psychological warfare skills since the 19th century, when it started sending anthropologists onto battlefields, says Annalee Newitz