A new study from Tel Aviv University reveals how plants, despite having neither a brain nor a nervous system, integrate light coming from multiple directions to determine where to grow. The researchers show how this process emerges from local sensing across the stem, without the need for centralized information processing.
Nearly 200 countries recently came together in Armenia for the 2026 United Nations Biodiversity Conference to review progress toward halting and reversing biodiversity loss. Many of these governments will soon convene again in Turkey to discuss efforts to tackle climate change at COP31.
Hydrothermal vents lie in perpetual darkness in the depths of the ocean, yet the cells of the vent mussel Bathymodiolus azoricus, which lives 1,700 meters (5,600 feet) below the surface, follow a 24-hour rhythm in the laboratory.
The world is a far louder and more distracting place than when humans first evolved. But there's increasing evidence that experiencing nature can help restore attention lost to modern distractions, known as "directed attention fatigue."
A 10-year scientific investigation of museum specimens has uncovered two previously unrecognized bandicoot species, expanded the known range of the iconic quenda (or southeastern brown bandicoot) and reshaped understanding of one of Australia's native mammal groups.
Colors in nature are not always produced by pigments. Pearls, bird feathers, butterfly wings and opals display brilliant colors through the interaction of light with microscopic structures, a phenomenon known as structural color.
Urban flooding causes significant social, environmental and economic losses every year. In Baltimore, those losses have increased in frequency and intensity since flooding records began in 1748 and are expected to continue doing so as the climate changes. Traditional flood prevention approaches, which use concrete and other impervious surfaces to direct flow, often fail in urban settings because they impede rainwater infiltration.
Scientific papers are a researcher's most valuable currency, and a paper published in a respected journal can represent several years of work. After noting a surge in citations of her work, statistician Andrea Riebler discovered a vendor in China selling a tool that enables rapid paper mining of public health data. The new software allows anyone to produce ready-to-publish research papers in under two hours.
A University of Queensland study has disproved the assumption that laboratory-based propagation of avocado carries an intrinsic environmental cost. The study led by researchers from the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation with industry partners provides the first integrated environmental comparison of plant tissue culture (PTC)-based clonal rootstock propagation versus conventional seedling propagation.
Global warming, the observed increase in Earth's average global surface temperature since preindustrial times (1850–1900), currently stands at around 1.63 degrees Celsius. While this number is expected to continue to rise, local temperatures will not go up uniformly around the world. In regions where warming trends are most pronounced, local adaptation and resilience measures will be especially critical to minimizing risks to ecosystems, agricultural productivity, the built environment, human health and economic well-being.
