Genomic analysis hints that the island’s early residents had the technology and know-how to catch some of the biggest animals on Earth.

Providing the clean fuel to manufacturing plants would be a cost-effective way to tackle the country’s climate goals.

Humans caused the decline of the western pond turtle, the West Coast’s only native freshwater turtle. Now, the San Francisco Zoo is raising hatchlings to reintroduce into the wild.

Researchers are cautiously optimistic following companies’ announcement of positive results for lecanemab.

Groundwater stores on the Tibetan plateau have risen recently, but the bad news is that thawing snow and ice are the source.

Having learnt lessons from COVID-19, university officials worldwide are prioritizing testing and keeping students informed about risks.

Skeleton missing lower left leg and dated to 31,000 years ago provides the earliest known evidence for surgical limb removal.

Analysis identifies the remains in an English well as those of medieval Jews, who were probably the victims of an antisemitic massacre.

Canines’ weeping makes them the first non-human animal known to shed happy tears.

Scraps of DNA show that living things of all kinds thrive in the thin air above 4,000 metres.

One ‘superspreader’ with Omicron shed 1,000 times as much viral RNA as those with Alpha or Delta.

Heatwaves, droughts, floods and storms push up the number of cases, make diseases more severe and hamper people’s ability to cope.

Antarctic sample dated at 3–5 million years old extracted as international ice-drilling teams race to extend Earth’s climate record.

Analysis of 20 emissions-storage facilities suggests that they now hold 20–30% less carbon than previously estimated.

After two years of negotiations, the US Congress finally passed legislation to massively increase science and technology research and enhance competitiveness in the semiconductor industry.

Catching an earlier version of SARS-CoV-2 — particularly Omicron — provides some immunity against the two fast-spreading lineages.

Mature fireflies lit their lanterns before birds and bats evolved, suggesting that sexual signalling drove this dazzling behaviour.

Infection with a pre-Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant protects against reinfection with a second, although the effect fades almost completely after three years.