Science On Top

One study suggests a dip in solar activity in 15 years. Mainstream media gets it so very wrong.

The world's first malaria vaccine gets regulatory approval, but it's not the panacea you might think.

B…

Researchers at the University of York and GlaxoSmithKline have figured out all the steps needed to genetically engineer yeast to essentially produce opiates like morphine.

A pitcher plant in the jung…

A single-celled organism has no brain and no nervous system, so you wouldn't think it could have an eye. But the dinoflagellate Erythropsidinium is able to "see" polarised light, and aim its piston a…

More communication with the recently awoken Philae probe on Comet 67P.

New techniques to treat depression, and Sean's fascinating story of being part of a clinical trial.

Tech startup OneWeb has anno…

The New Horizons spacecraft is one month away from Pluto, but it's already giving us some fuzzy photos.

And new findings from the Hubble telescope give some insights into the complex orbits and inter…

The International Institute for Species Exploration has selected it's "Top 10 New Species" from the approximately 18,000 new species named during 2014. The list includes cartwheeling spiders, feather…

The Opah, or moonfish, is the only warm-blooded fish that we know of. And it looks like "a big startled frisbee, with thin red fins stuck on as an afterthought."

A new epidemiological study suggests …

Dr. Alice Gorman is a Space Archaeologist. She explains what that means, and why cable ties can be more significant than you might think.

NASA has ended the MESSENGER space probe's mission by crashin…

Audi claims to have produced clean, synthetic diesel fuel by using electrolysis to turn air and water into hydrocarbons. When using green electricity the process can be 100% renewable and the fuel wo…

A controversial paper published by Chinese researchers in the online journal Protein & Cell marks the first time scientists have reported manipulating the genetic material of human embryos.

A new stu…

After more than a hundred years, Brontosaurus is a dinosaur again. And once again, taxonomy is hard.

The Dutch are the tallest people on the planet, but it wasn't always so. The average adult height …

Two major reports have highlighted the impending dangers of antibiotic resistance. In the UK a government report estimated that an outbreak of a drug-resistant infection in Britain could cause up to …

A new study has been published in the Lancet which suggests babies who were breastfeed were more likely to have higher IQs, spend more time in school, and end up in higher-paying jobs.

A study by res…

For the first time, a salty subsurface ocean on Jupiter's largest moon Ganymede has been detected through the use of auroras. The idea of a subsurface ocean isn't new, but auroras have never before b…

Astronomers using the Hubble Space telescope have found large methane storms raging on the planet Uranus.

Only three animals go through menopause: humans, short-finned pilot whales, and killer whales…

The Dawn probe arrives at dwarf planet Ceres, and finds mysterious bright spots.

An ecological study has found that large predators - lions, wolves, hyenas etc - regulate their population numbers, ma…

70,000 Years ago, a small star passed within a light-year of Earth - within the Oort cloud on the edge of our solar system.

New research suggests the sun can continue doing damage to our skin even wh…

Scientists are 'baffled' by strange cloud-like plumes spotted 250km above the surface of Mars.

Genetic analysis shows penguins can only taste salty and sour things, and they lost the other taste rece…

The UK parliament has voted to allow so-called 'three-person babies", a controversial method of IVF using with DNA from two women and one man.

Scientists at a US conference have said it is time to ac…