While people the world over enjoy a good laugh, remarkably little is known about this instinctive behaviour. By Ali Jones Before babies can talk or walk, they can laugh. An infant’s first giggle at around four months enchants and reinvigorates even the most weary parent and, from then on, it’s a lifelong tool for communicating … Read more
Amid rising sea levels, plastics pollution and overfishing, the emerging Internet of Underwater Things will vastly expand knowledge about the world’s seas. Helen Massy-Beresford Imagine seals swimming in the sea with electronic tags that send real-time water data to scientists back in their laboratories. Or archaeologists near a coast being automatically alerted when a diver … Read more
European researchers are tackling the world’s most lethal infectious disease as part of efforts to end it by 2035. By Anthony King Dr Cristina Vilaplana is a medical doctor passionate about helping patients with tuberculosis (TB). Her research could make a difference to a lot of people. Each year globally, around 10 million adults and … Read more
Life patterns help humans and other animals stay in sync with nature and in good form. By Gareth Willmer For several days after each November full moon, a wondrous spectacle occurs on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia: corals release into the water billions of eggs and sperm that unite to form free-floating larvae. These … Read more
Scientists are refining their understanding of neural networks and sharpening diagnoses. By Vittoria D’Alessio For two years, Dr Islem Rekik ran an EU-funded study to establish what the neural networks in a healthy brain looked like so that dysfunctional ones could become easier to spot. Rekik and her team took a large amount of data … Read more
Efforts to improve biodiversity in Europe’s woodlands will help them better withstand the stresses of climate change. By Alison Jones In a vast sandy pine forest bordering the Atlantic Ocean in south-west France, an innovation is taking root. A corner of the million hectares of towering maritime pines is part of an EU-funded project offering … Read more