Lee Bell

Brain research is energy-hungry and often limited by what’s safe to do in healthy people. MIT researchers say a focused ultrasound method could open up deeper, cleaner tests of how awareness is generated

A long-running study in Norway’s Svalbard has found polar bears’ body condition has actually improved despite global warming, which has shocked researchers who were expecting the opposite.

Corals look like they’re just quietly existing, but a new study has found they run a proper day-night rhythm - while the coral rests, its microbial roommates keep working

A new McGill review has suggested something far smaller than warming air and darker oceans has been quietly speeding up the melting of ice behind the scenes

The government has unveiled its long-awaited Warm Homes Plan, promising £15bn over five years for solar panels, heat pumps and batteries - with new rules for renters and a push to slash bills.

Physicists have built a new simulation to test self-interacting dark matter, where particles collide with each other. It has let researchers model halo ‘core collapse’ accurately, from the comfort of a laptop

Penn engineers have shown that bubbles in wet foam never truly settle, even when the foam looks still. The surprising part is the maths matches how deep learning systems train

Scientists have pinned down iron as the tiny ingredient that keeps phytoplankton photosynthesis humming, and new at-sea measurements show exactly how things slip when oceans run short

Reliable energy storage has long been one of the weak points of renewable power, but fresh research suggests a subtle chemical change could help flow batteries last much longer for cheaper

Quantum machines are power-hungry long before they’re even useful, mostly because controlling them takes loads of bulky kit. A breakthrough cuts that overhead, which could matter for future energy use, scientists say

Superconductors are the dream for cleaner power, but most only work in deep-freeze conditions. MIT scientists have now spotted a weird signal in twisted graphene that hints at a different way in

Researchers say the planet’s own carbon cycle could swing too hard in response to global warming, setting up a much colder future long after the damage is done

AI has garnered a reputation as an energy-guzzling monster of late, with data centres blamed for added emissions. But fresh research suggests otherwise, and it could actually help drive greener innovation

A new EU-funded project will train specialists to turn exotic “vortex” beams into real-world tech

New study shows reading a quantum clock can use a billion times more energy than running it.

Scientists at Tsinghua University say their new optical engine processes data at 12.5 GHz, slashing AI delay and power in one go

Researchers from the University of Washington have used tiny grains of space dust trapped by ancient ice to map Arctic Ocean shrinking

The mammoth discovery is forcing scientists to rethink where, how - and maybe even when - these creatures evolved

Scientists say a topological quantum battery could move energy long distances without leaking.

Cambridge researchers have finally visualised the tiny protein clusters linked to Parkinson’s disease.