The consensus on the likelihood of giving birth to a boy or girl has long been that the odds are roughly equal and that all mothers have the same odds of having either a boy or a girl. This is partially because sperm have a 50–50 chance of carrying either an X or Y chromosome. Yet, many families seem to be prone to having all girls or all boys. New research shows that there might be a reason for this.
Quantum teleportation is a fascinating process that involves transferring a particle's quantum state to another distant location, without moving or detecting the particle itself. This process could be central to the realization of a so-called "quantum internet," a version of the internet that enables the safe and instant transmission of quantum information between devices within the same network.
Using the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has detected a new exoplanet orbiting a nearby star. The newfound alien world, designated TOI-2431 b, is comparable in size to Earth and has a very short orbital period. The finding was reported in a research paper published July 11 on the pre-print server arXiv.
Astronomers may have caught a still-forming planet in action, carving out an intricate pattern in the gas and dust that surrounds its young host star. Using ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), they observed a planetary disk with prominent spiral arms, finding clear signs of a planet nestled in its inner regions. This is the first time astronomers have detected a planet candidate embedded inside a disk spiral.
A new commentary published in Nature Communications by Dr. James Bradley, Reader in Environmental Science at Queen Mary University of London, and his team reveals a dramatic and concerning shift in the Arctic winter.
Beneath the scales of Australia's iconic monitor lizards (commonly known as goannas), scientists have discovered an unexpected secret: a hidden layer of bony skin structures known as osteoderms. These structures, which have been long overlooked, may hold the key to understanding how these ancient reptiles not only survived but thrived in one of the world's harshest environments.
Overlooked diaries written by teenage boys in pre-war Soviet Russia reveal relatable perspectives on love, lust, boredom, pressure to succeed and trying to fit in; but also experience of famine, exile and conscription under Stalin.
