Artificial intelligence systems like ChatGPT are notorious for being power-hungry. To tackle this challenge, a team from the Centre for Optics, Photonics and Lasers (COPL) has come up with an optical chip that can transfer massive amounts of data at ultra-high speed. As thin as a strand of hair, this technology offers unrivalled energy efficiency.   Published in Nature Photonics, the innovation harnesses the power of light to transmit information. Unlike traditional systems that rely solely on light intensity, this chip also uses ...

Modern manufacturing operates in complex environments where traditional management approaches are no longer enough. This highlights the need for real-time, dynamic and self-adaptive management strategies. Manufacturing data analytics (MDA) has emerged as a powerful solution for transforming traditional manufacturing into smart manufacturing. Through MDA, manufacturers can identify hidden patterns in external and internal data, allowing them to better anticipate and respond to geopolitical risks and rapidly changing customer expectations and demands. However, despite these benefits, adoption of MDA remains surprisingly low, with ...

Coordination nanosheets are a unique class of two-dimensional (2D) materials that are formed by coordination bonds between planar organic ligands and metal ions. These 2D nanomaterials are increasingly utilized in energy storage, electronic devices, and as electrode-based catalysts due to their excellent electronic, optical, redox properties, and catalytic activity. Over the last decade, coordination nanosheets composed of various transition metal ions, such as nickel (Ni) ions linked to benzenehexathiol (BHT)—an ...

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental condition, is often associated with difficulties in social communication and repetitive behavior. Previous research reveals that people with ASD often find it challenging to interpret intentions from body language and have difficulty recognizing faces and emotions, which may contribute to their social communication problems. Scientists speculate that these challenges might arise from differences in how the brain perceives faces and body parts, i.e., how individuals with ASD represent the human body. However, until now, no study had clearly mapped how ...

Childhood maltreatment leaves deep and lasting marks that have far-reaching consequences, extending beyond immediate trauma and affecting survivors in ways that are often invisible and misunderstood. Many survivors often face a complex mix of challenges that have an impact not only on their mental well-being but also on their physical health, social development, and overall quality of life. Studies have shown that the consequences of childhood maltreatment can be truly profound, influencing the risk of chronic health conditions and hindering educational and employment opportunities and lifelong relationships. However, despite the severity ...

Women diagnosed with premenstrual symptoms have a slightly increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease later in life. This is shown by a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in Nature Cardiovascular Research. Premenstrual symptoms include premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and the more severe form, premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). The symptoms, which appear a few days before menstruation and then subside, can be both psychological and physical. The study included more than 99,000 women with premenstrual symptoms who were followed for up to 22 years. The researchers compared their health with women without these symptoms – both in the general population ...

Strictly embargoed until 10am BST (5am US Eastern Time) on Friday 11 July 2025 (Nature Geoscience embargo) -With pictures- The remains of landscapes thought to have formed when ancient rivers flowed across East Antarctica have been discovered – and could help predictions of future loss from the ice sheet. Researchers led by Durham University, UK, examined radar measurements of ice thickness and found extensive, previously unmapped, flat surfaces buried beneath a 3,500 km stretch of the East Antarctic coastline. These surfaces were once connected and it is believed were formed by large rivers after East Antarctica and Australia broke apart approximately ...

Royal Astronomical Society press release RAS PR 25/33 (NAM 13) 10 July 2025 Embargoed until Friday 11 July 2025 at 10:00 BST A mystery interstellar object discovered last week is likely to be the oldest comet ever seen – possibly predating our solar system by more than three billion years, researchers say. The "water ice-rich" visitor, named 3I/ATLAS, is only the third known object from beyond our solar system ever spotted in our cosmic neighbourhood and the first to reach us from a completely different region of our Milky Way galaxy. It could ...

University of Leeds news | Peer-reviewed |  Under embargo until 10am BST Friday, July 11, 2025  WITH PICS & VIDEOS  Researchers have developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) system that enables a four-legged robot to adapt its gait to different, unfamiliar terrain, just like a real animal, in what is believed to be a world first.  The pioneering technology allows the robot to change the way it moves autonomously, rather than having to be told when and how to alter its stride like the current generation of robots. This advance is seen as a major step ...

Toronto, ON, July 11, 2025 — A new study finds socioeconomic disparities in rates of emergency department (ED) visits for concussion among children and youth.    Researchers from ICES, York University, Toronto Metropolitan University, and the University of Calgary found an increase in ED visits for concussion among all age groups prior to the pandemic, with the biggest increase among older children and teens (ages 10 to 19 years). However, children in the highest socioeconomic status group accounted for significantly more concussion-related ED visits ...

Approximately 40% of the European population are allergic to pollen, and their symptoms cause an estimated loss of 100 million school- and workdays every year. The prevalence of hay fever has been surging for decades and this is likely to continue– a change so fast that genetic and health changes can’t be solely responsible. Improved hygiene, the widespread use of antibiotics and antiseptics, lifestyle changes, diet, pollution, and the climate crisis are also thought to play a major role in this increase. But now there is new hope for sufferers. As proof-of-principle, researchers have engineered ...

Fukuoka, Japan—Researchers at Kyushu University have found that when azuki bean beetles infected with Wolbachia bacteria are exposed to a simulated climate change environment—characterized by elevated temperature and carbon dioxide—they tend to produce larger eggs to enhance the survivability of their offspring. Interestingly, these larger eggs gave rise exclusively to male larvae. The study, published in Scientific Reports, demonstrates the benefits of Wolbachia infection under adverse environmental conditions in these beetles. It is also the first observation of sex-dependent changes in egg size in a species with chromosomal ...

Since its development 100 years ago, quantum mechanics has revolutionized our understanding of nature, revealing a bizarre world in which an object can act like both waves and particles, and behave differently depending on whether it is being watched.  In recent decades, researchers exploring this wave-particle duality have learned to measure the relative “wave-ness” and “particle-ness” of quantum objects, helping to explain how and when they veer between wave-like or particle-like behaviors. Now, in a paper ...

A new weekly injectable drug could transform the lives of more than eight million people living with Parkinson’s disease, potentially replacing the need for multiple daily tablets. Scientists from the University of South Australia (UniSA) have developed a long-acting injectable formulation that delivers a steady dose of levodopa and carbidopa – two key medications for Parkinson’s – over an entire week. Their findings have been reported in the journal Drug Delivery and Translational Research. The biodegradable formulation is injected under the skin or into muscle tissue, where it gradually releases ...

TUCSON, Ariz. — Research led by the University of Arizona Health Sciences found a potential link between growth problems among infants and high levels of toxic metals and other elements in the breast milk of Mayan women in Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán watershed region. The findings were reported in the journal Environmental Pollution.  Guatemala has the highest rate of impaired growth, or stunting, in the Western Hemisphere. Stunting is frequently attributed to poor nutrition and infections. Many studies have linked ...

Being consistently physically active in adulthood is linked to a 30–40% lower risk of death from any cause in later life, while upping levels from below those recommended for health is still associated with a 20–25% lower risk, finds a pooled data analysis of the available evidence, published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The findings prompt the researchers to conclude that switching to a more active lifestyle at any point in adult life may extend the lifespan, and that it’s never too late to start. Currently, it’s recommended that adults should aim for 150-300 weekly minutes of moderate intensity physical activity, or 75-150 ...

Receiving six or more prescriptions of the drug gabapentin for low back pain is associated with significantly increased risks of developing dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI)--29% and 85%, respectively—finds a large medical records study published online in the journal Regional Anesthesia & Pain Medicine. What’s more, these risks were more than twice as high in those normally considered too young to develop either condition—18-64 year olds—the findings indicate. Unlike opioids, gabapentin has relatively low addictive potential, and it has become increasingly popular for the treatment ...

The involvement of children’s social care services was a common factor in nearly a third of UK maternal deaths occurring during, or within a year of, pregnancy between 2014 and 2022, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Medicine. These women were at heightened risk of dying from psychiatric causes and being murdered, the findings indicate. But uncoordinated appointment schedules across a wide number of services added to the many disadvantages these women already faced. Changes to maternity care practice and policy are now urgently required, say the researchers. In the UK, children's social ...

A third of women who died during or in the year after pregnancy were known to Children’s Social Care – higher than previously reported, new research reveals. The authors say urgent changes are needed to prioritise and improve mothers’ care. The study is published today in BMJ Medicine and led by King’s College London, Oxford University and the charity Birth Companions, and funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research. It is the first to detail the situations of the 1695 ...

SMC labelling: Peer-reviewed, Observational study, People Imperial College Academic Health Science Centre press release Under STRICT embargo until: Thursday 10 July 2025 23.30 GMT/ 18.30 Eastern Standard Time Ethnic minority and poorer children more likely to die in intensive care Children from ethnic minority backgrounds and those living in areas with higher levels of child poverty were more likely to die in intensive care than White children and those from the least deprived areas. Researchers ...

Young patients with advanced Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system, now have a better chance of having their own children after treatment. An international study led by the German Hodgkin Study Group (GHSG) at University Hospital Cologne and the University’s Faculty of Medicine has shown: The new BrECADD chemotherapy regimen preserves fertility significantly better than the previous standard eBEACOPP – without worsening the chances of recovery. The results were published under the title “Fertility in patients with advanced-stage classic Hodgkin lymphoma treated withBrECADD versus eBEACOPP: ...

It can be difficult to decide whether to expedite birth when a woman in the final stage of pregnancy perceives less fetal movements. An additional ultrasound measurement to assess resistance infetal blood vessels can help make this decision more accurately, leading to fewer complications during delivery. This is the conclusion of a large international study led by gynaecologist Sanne Gordijn from the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), in collaboration with Wessel Ganzevoort from Amsterdam UMC. Reduced Fetal Movement Can Be Concerning Sometimes, ...

The environmental impact of nine pesticides, commonly used in grape cultivation, may have been significantly underestimated, suggesting current pesticide risk assessment criteria need updating. The research will be presented today [Friday 11 July] at the Goldschmidt Conference in Prague. In laboratory experiments, the nine pesticides that are used in viticulture and on other crops, far exceeded the two-day threshold set by the Stockholm Convention for the half-life of chemicals in the atmosphere. The researchers also identified several unknown molecules when they looked at how the pesticides break down and degrade in the atmosphere. Global use of pesticides has doubled since 1990, ...

Embargoed until 00:01 BST on Friday 11 July 2025 (19.01 ET Thursday 10 July 2025) -With pictures- The Milky Way could have many more satellite galaxies than scientists have previously been able to predict or observe, according to new research. Cosmologists at Durham University, UK, used a new technique combining the highest-resolution supercomputer simulations that exist, alongside novel mathematical modelling, predicting the existence of missing “orphan” galaxies. Their findings suggest that there should be 80 or perhaps up to 100 more satellite galaxies surrounding ...

A new study published in the Annals of the Entomological Society of America, offers the most detailed view to date of how this unusual fly develops and gives live birth—a rare phenomenon among flies. Led by undergraduate student Parker Henderson ‘22 of St. Olaf College, the study revealed remarkable insights into the reproductive biology of Ormia ochracea, a parasitic fly known for its ability to locate singing crickets using hyperacute directional hearing. Using a combination of dissection, fluorescence staining, and microscopy, the ...