Military and SES personnel being taught analog communication and navigation techniques as experts warn solar flare could knock out ‘critical space infrastructure’
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Australia’s emergency services and military personnel are being trained to read paper maps, navigate without GPS support and sail by the stars in case something knocks out the nation’s space capabilities.
A panel at the 19th Australian Space Forum in Adelaide on Wednesday was asked to consider what would happen “if we suddenly lost access to critical space infrastructure – no satellites, no GPS, no remote sensing, no secure communications?”
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jul/23/australia-emergency-services-satellites-down", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 22 Jul 2026 15:00:19 GMT" } }, { "id": "c73d86315166f22c663886b1d75ef4e98182903d", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "CDC cuts leave US less prepared for disease outbreaks, former officials warn", "summary": "As measles, hantavirus and cyclospora spread, experts say lost staff and expertise are slowing the responseA series of health challenges – hantavirus, screwworm, Ebola, cyclospora, measles, whooping cough, bird flu – are exposing the widening gaps in America’s ability to prevent, identify and halt infectious disease outbreaks.The rapid dismantling of the US public health system at all levels means the US is in worse shape than it was before the Covid pandemic, former top CDC officials say. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/22/cdc-cuts-disease-outbreaks-cyclospora-hantavirus-measles", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-22T14:00:16+00:00", "score": 82.08, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "CDC cuts leave US less prepared for disease outbreaks, former officials warn", "summary": "As measles, hantavirus and cyclospora spread, experts say lost staff and expertise are slowing the response
A series of health challenges – hantavirus, screwworm, Ebola, cyclospora, measles, whooping cough, bird flu – are exposing the widening gaps in America’s ability to prevent, identify and halt infectious disease outbreaks.
The rapid dismantling of the US public health system at all levels means the US is in worse shape than it was before the Covid pandemic, former top CDC officials say.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/22/cdc-cuts-disease-outbreaks-cyclospora-hantavirus-measles", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 22 Jul 2026 14:00:16 GMT" } }, { "id": "a70827b12ed7e672623db96d7b526c91add1fa93", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Sperm whales change ‘vowel’ sounds when boats are nearby, scientists discover", "summary": "Researchers listening off the Caribbean island of Dominica found variations in the mammals’ audible clicks when marine traffic was closeSperm whales produce a specific pattern of clicking noises when they hear the noise of boats, researchers have found. The pattern is so distinct that the scientists who identified it said they can now use it to predict when ships are nearby.Researchers from Project Ceti (the Cetacean Translation Initiative), a non-profit research organisation working to decode sperm whale communication, spent four years tuning in on the calls of 15 sperm whales off the coast of Dominica. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/22/sperm-whales-dominica-clicks-vowels-language-changes-shipping-noise-project-ceti", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-22T13:00:15+00:00", "score": 81.6, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Sperm whales change ‘vowel’ sounds when boats are nearby, scientists discover", "summary": "Researchers listening off the Caribbean island of Dominica found variations in the mammals’ audible clicks when marine traffic was close
Sperm whales produce a specific pattern of clicking noises when they hear the noise of boats, researchers have found. The pattern is so distinct that the scientists who identified it said they can now use it to predict when ships are nearby.
Researchers from Project Ceti (the Cetacean Translation Initiative), a non-profit research organisation working to decode sperm whale communication, spent four years tuning in on the calls of 15 sperm whales off the coast of Dominica.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/22/sperm-whales-dominica-clicks-vowels-language-changes-shipping-noise-project-ceti", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 22 Jul 2026 13:00:15 GMT" } }, { "id": "dd7a14e992aa735aa83f3c62cd69c826fc3a21f1", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Trump administration says 15 agencies will get $5bn in ‘AI for science’ effort", "summary": "Administration will also overhaul how US government funds federal research by supporting individual scientists and AI over universitiesThe US will spend $5bn to tackle longstanding scientific problems across multiple fields using AI, the Trump administration said in a statement on Wednesday. The agencies will use the funding to identify the root causes of chronic diseases, accelerate drug discovery and develop longer-lasting building materials, among other tasks, according to the statement.Scientists will have access to the Department of Energy’s supercomputers, AI and specialized datasets, along with other components needed to run experiments using algorithms, said Michael Kratsios, the chief technology adviser to Donald Trump, in an interview with Reuters. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/22/trump-science-funding-overhaul-ai", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-22T11:51:44+00:00", "score": 81.04, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Trump administration says 15 agencies will get $5bn in ‘AI for science’ effort", "summary": "Administration will also overhaul how US government funds federal research by supporting individual scientists and AI over universities
The US will spend $5bn to tackle longstanding scientific problems across multiple fields using AI, the Trump administration said in a statement on Wednesday. The agencies will use the funding to identify the root causes of chronic diseases, accelerate drug discovery and develop longer-lasting building materials, among other tasks, according to the statement.
Scientists will have access to the Department of Energy’s supercomputers, AI and specialized datasets, along with other components needed to run experiments using algorithms, said Michael Kratsios, the chief technology adviser to Donald Trump, in an interview with Reuters.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/22/trump-science-funding-overhaul-ai", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 22 Jul 2026 11:51:44 GMT" } }, { "id": "5fe733e083d1edf64d600a08441393f0f9984ffd", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Rivers of magma once bubbled beneath crust of Mars, research suggests", "summary": "Finding widens selection of rocky planets that may once have been habitableMars once had rivers of magma bubbling beneath its crust, new research suggests. The surprise find makes it more probable that Mars could have supported life and widens the selection of rocky planets that may once have been habitable.Researchers at the University of Oxford studied data gathered by Nasa’s Insight Lander, which recorded seismic waves caused by meteorite impacts and Martian quakes. They used the seismic data to analyse a mysterious boundary 15 miles (24km) below the surface of Mars. Their findings, published in Nature Astronomy, showed that the most likely cause for this boundary was molten rock pooling deep underground and stretching sideways for hundreds or even thousands of miles. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jul/22/magma-rivers-beneath-mars-crust-study", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-22T05:00:07+00:00", "score": 77.71, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Rivers of magma once bubbled beneath crust of Mars, research suggests", "summary": "Finding widens selection of rocky planets that may once have been habitable
Mars once had rivers of magma bubbling beneath its crust, new research suggests. The surprise find makes it more probable that Mars could have supported life and widens the selection of rocky planets that may once have been habitable.
Researchers at the University of Oxford studied data gathered by Nasa’s Insight Lander, which recorded seismic waves caused by meteorite impacts and Martian quakes. They used the seismic data to analyse a mysterious boundary 15 miles (24km) below the surface of Mars. Their findings, published in Nature Astronomy, showed that the most likely cause for this boundary was molten rock pooling deep underground and stretching sideways for hundreds or even thousands of miles.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jul/22/magma-rivers-beneath-mars-crust-study", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 22 Jul 2026 05:00:07 GMT" } }, { "id": "656cc8d23be5ebf721ce8067f9fbce501482f166", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Revisited: A Scottish tea mystery, episode two – the list", "summary": "Science correspondent Nicola Davis investigates the strange story of Tam O’Braan and his attempts to grow tea in Scotland.In episode two of this mini-series first broadcast in October 2025, Nicola hears how O’Braan’s network of Scottish tea growers began to have suspicions about exactly what he was selling and where it came from, and how cutting-edge science helped provide some answersA strange brew: the case of the man behind an audacious Scottish tea fraudSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/jul/22/revisited-a-scottish-tea-mystery-episode-two-the-list", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-22T04:00:05+00:00", "score": 77.22, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Revisited: A Scottish tea mystery, episode two – the list", "summary": "Science correspondent Nicola Davis investigates the strange story of Tam O’Braan and his attempts to grow tea in Scotland.
In episode two of this mini-series first broadcast in October 2025, Nicola hears how O’Braan’s network of Scottish tea growers began to have suspicions about exactly what he was selling and where it came from, and how cutting-edge science helped provide some answers
A strange brew: the case of the man behind an audacious Scottish tea fraud
Support the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/jul/22/revisited-a-scottish-tea-mystery-episode-two-the-list", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 22 Jul 2026 04:00:05 GMT" } }, { "id": "dbfaad2d2984b32837997fe858726857331b4af7", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Milky Way flipped in collision with dwarf galaxy 10bn years ago, astronomers say", "summary": "Durham University researchers find cataclysmic direct hit with Gaia Sausage sent Milky Way into its current positionAstronomers have found evidence that the Milky Way was flipped on its side following a direct hit from a wayward galaxy long before the solar system was born.The cataclysmic collision took place about 10bn years ago when the Milky Way was struck head-on by an incoming dwarf galaxy known – for purely astronomical reasons – as the Gaia Sausage. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jul/21/milky-way-disc-flip-collision-dwarf-galaxy-astronomers", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-21T15:00:48+00:00", "score": 70.91, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Milky Way flipped in collision with dwarf galaxy 10bn years ago, astronomers say", "summary": "Durham University researchers find cataclysmic direct hit with Gaia Sausage sent Milky Way into its current position
Astronomers have found evidence that the Milky Way was flipped on its side following a direct hit from a wayward galaxy long before the solar system was born.
The cataclysmic collision took place about 10bn years ago when the Milky Way was struck head-on by an incoming dwarf galaxy known – for purely astronomical reasons – as the Gaia Sausage.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jul/21/milky-way-disc-flip-collision-dwarf-galaxy-astronomers", "image": "", "published": "Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:00:48 GMT" } }, { "id": "36225bdc16deb1b5807d70d2f7f6920d02c32cb2", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Revisited: A Scottish tea mystery, episode one – green shoots", "summary": "Science correspondent Nicola Davis investigates the strange story of Tam O’Braan and his attempts to grow tea in Scotland.In episode one of this mini-series first broadcast in October 2025, Nicola looks back on her first meeting with O’Braan while working on a feature about tea plantations in the UK. He was selling his award-winning Scottish-grown tea to some of the UK’s finest hotels, but something didn’t quite add up. And Nicola wasn’t the only person taking an interest in his storyClips: BBC, Food.NDTVA strange brew: the case of the man behind an audacious Scottish tea fraud Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/jul/21/revisited-a-scottish-tea-mystery-episode-one-green-shoots", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-21T04:00:09+00:00", "score": 65.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Revisited: A Scottish tea mystery, episode one – green shoots", "summary": "Science correspondent Nicola Davis investigates the strange story of Tam O’Braan and his attempts to grow tea in Scotland.
In episode one of this mini-series first broadcast in October 2025, Nicola looks back on her first meeting with O’Braan while working on a feature about tea plantations in the UK. He was selling his award-winning Scottish-grown tea to some of the UK’s finest hotels, but something didn’t quite add up. And Nicola wasn’t the only person taking an interest in his story
Clips: BBC, Food.NDTV
A strange brew: the case of the man behind an audacious Scottish tea fraud
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/jul/21/revisited-a-scottish-tea-mystery-episode-one-green-shoots", "image": "", "published": "Tue, 21 Jul 2026 04:00:09 GMT" } }, { "id": "f55c95ab86a76a5a916ee97a88561be1aa18c848", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Slowdown in Arctic ice melt ends after largest winter decline on record", "summary": "Scientists recorded slower reduction over past 20 years, but study finds this was ‘temporary rather than sustained’A previously recorded slowdown in Arctic sea ice decline has ended, according to a new study, with the largest year-to-year wintertime reduction ever recorded.In a study published last summer, researchers found that melting sea ice in the Arctic had slowed down over the past 20 years, with no statistically significant decline in its extent recorded between 2005 and 2024. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/20/slowdown-arctic-sea-ice-melt-largest-winter-decline-record", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-20T19:00:48+00:00", "score": 61.18, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Slowdown in Arctic ice melt ends after largest winter decline on record", "summary": "Scientists recorded slower reduction over past 20 years, but study finds this was ‘temporary rather than sustained’
A previously recorded slowdown in Arctic sea ice decline has ended, according to a new study, with the largest year-to-year wintertime reduction ever recorded.
In a study published last summer, researchers found that melting sea ice in the Arctic had slowed down over the past 20 years, with no statistically significant decline in its extent recorded between 2005 and 2024.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/20/slowdown-arctic-sea-ice-melt-largest-winter-decline-record", "image": "", "published": "Mon, 20 Jul 2026 19:00:48 GMT" } }, { "id": "123e3d7b42e761923c71d7d9c27ee0a89a98881b", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Antibiotic-resistant bacteria increasingly leaving children vulnerable to common infections, global study finds", "summary": "Exclusive: Research spanning 82 countries finds antibiotic resistance increased in every region between 2004 and 2022Harry Booth has had a rough run through Australia’s coldest months. The 13-year-old has been in and out of hospital with a range of common chest and urinary tract infections that his doctors found challenging to treat.Harry was born with kidney failure and began dialysis at six months old, before receiving a kidney transplant from his father at age four. The surgery saved his life but comes with a trade-off: he now needs to take medications that suppress his immune system to prevent his body from rejecting the kidney. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jul/21/antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-increasingly-leaving-children-vulnerable-to-common-infections-global-study-finds", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-20T16:00:45+00:00", "score": 59.73, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Antibiotic-resistant bacteria increasingly leaving children vulnerable to common infections, global study finds", "summary": "Exclusive: Research spanning 82 countries finds antibiotic resistance increased in every region between 2004 and 2022
Harry Booth has had a rough run through Australia’s coldest months. The 13-year-old has been in and out of hospital with a range of common chest and urinary tract infections that his doctors found challenging to treat.
Harry was born with kidney failure and began dialysis at six months old, before receiving a kidney transplant from his father at age four. The surgery saved his life but comes with a trade-off: he now needs to take medications that suppress his immune system to prevent his body from rejecting the kidney.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jul/21/antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-increasingly-leaving-children-vulnerable-to-common-infections-global-study-finds", "image": "", "published": "Mon, 20 Jul 2026 16:00:45 GMT" } }, { "id": "62a7f1e3f4fc7561f5fdd3a92d6c0f32c9acea8e", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "‘Most people don’t know we’ve set up a doomsday system’: physicist Laura Grego on satellites, nuclear weapons and the battle for our skies", "summary": "Elon Musk is trying to own it, competing powers are trying to fight in it and nobody seems to be regulating it. So who does space really belong to?The last time I saw Laura Grego was in a tent in a baking field on the Welsh borders in May. The conversation on stage ranged from the dangers of space debris to how the law of the sea might pertain to outer space; from our sense of the sacred to our interplanetary futures. At one point Grego, a physicist, said intently, “People have to be aware of what is happening in space. Public knowledge has to catch up.” Three weeks later, SpaceX launched on the stock exchange, temporarily making Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire.So, I ask her now, what is it that we should all know? Well, she says, the average person’s experience of space is about to change. If, so far, that has been “looking at the stars and being full of wonder, full of connec…", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/jul/20/doomsday-system-physicist-laura-grego-satellites-nuclear-weapons-battle-skies-space-elon-musk", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-20T13:09:33+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "‘Most people don’t know we’ve set up a doomsday system’: physicist Laura Grego on satellites, nuclear weapons and the battle for our skies", "summary": "Elon Musk is trying to own it, competing powers are trying to fight in it and nobody seems to be regulating it. So who does space really belong to?
The last time I saw Laura Grego was in a tent in a baking field on the Welsh borders in May. The conversation on stage ranged from the dangers of space debris to how the law of the sea might pertain to outer space; from our sense of the sacred to our interplanetary futures. At one point Grego, a physicist, said intently, “People have to be aware of what is happening in space. Public knowledge has to catch up.” Three weeks later, SpaceX launched on the stock exchange, temporarily making Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire.
So, I ask her now, what is it that we should all know? Well, she says, the average person’s experience of space is about to change. If, so far, that has been “looking at the stars and being full of wonder, full of connection with the universe”, perhaps noticing the occasional streaking object that was not a shooting star, now “there are plans for tens of thousands more satellites, which would really change your relationship with what you see in the sky”. SpaceX, specifically, has just applied to a federal regulator for permission to launch up to 1m of them.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/jul/20/doomsday-system-physicist-laura-grego-satellites-nuclear-weapons-battle-skies-space-elon-musk", "image": "", "published": "Mon, 20 Jul 2026 13:09:33 GMT" } }, { "id": "fe466aa76a1bde1227b252fb0077d31cb502da43", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "AI-altered images on birdwatching forums putting research at risk", "summary": "Experts warn increase in enhanced photos on birding platforms creating fake sightings, threatening credibility of tool used by scientistsFor many birdwatchers, recording a species outside its normal range is the holy grail. In the UK, the discoveries often make national headlines. The western reef heron, for example, usually found in Africa and southern Europe, was spotted in a seaside town in north Wales in June, and widely celebrated on birding forums.But a new scourge is threatening to disrupt the fun: AI slop. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/20/ai-slop-manipulated-fake-images-birds-citizen-science-aoe", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-20T04:00:45+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "AI-altered images on birdwatching forums putting research at risk", "summary": "Experts warn increase in enhanced photos on birding platforms creating fake sightings, threatening credibility of tool used by scientists
For many birdwatchers, recording a species outside its normal range is the holy grail. In the UK, the discoveries often make national headlines. The western reef heron, for example, usually found in Africa and southern Europe, was spotted in a seaside town in north Wales in June, and widely celebrated on birding forums.
But a new scourge is threatening to disrupt the fun: AI slop.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/20/ai-slop-manipulated-fake-images-birds-citizen-science-aoe", "image": "", "published": "Mon, 20 Jul 2026 04:00:45 GMT" } }, { "id": "fea3fff67bf9c0e6504c837209a7714101660033", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Molten salt and human sweat: the weird batteries that could store renewable energy", "summary": "From Nevada to Manchester, developers are trialling innovative solutions to clean energy’s biggest challengeIn the deserts of the United Arab Emirates a sprawling clean energy project, stretching across an area roughly the size of 12,600 football fields, will play host to a breakthrough allowing solar energy to power the equivalent of half a million homes through the night.The Gulf state has been steadily combining 5.2GW of solar power capacity with 19GWh of battery storage to create the largest battery scheme in the world. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/19/molten-salt-human-sweat-weird-batteries-store-renewable-energy", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-19T11:00:25+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Molten salt and human sweat: the weird batteries that could store renewable energy", "summary": "From Nevada to Manchester, developers are trialling innovative solutions to clean energy’s biggest challenge
In the deserts of the United Arab Emirates a sprawling clean energy project, stretching across an area roughly the size of 12,600 football fields, will play host to a breakthrough allowing solar energy to power the equivalent of half a million homes through the night.
The Gulf state has been steadily combining 5.2GW of solar power capacity with 19GWh of battery storage to create the largest battery scheme in the world.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/19/molten-salt-human-sweat-weird-batteries-store-renewable-energy", "image": "", "published": "Sun, 19 Jul 2026 11:00:25 GMT" } }, { "id": "c10c57092b337a65dca31e0a39e9b995280bc434", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Robert Laidlow: Reality Eaters album review", "summary": "BBC Philharmonic/Havlat/Kaziboni/Piatti Quartet(NMC)Einstein’s field equations, Newton’s universal law and artificial intelligence are among the subjects of Laidlow’s ambitious orchestral worksRobert Laidlow is as at home in the realms of science and technology as he is in the world of classical music. As this NMC debut album demonstrates, his intricate, wildly imaginative work is eminently approachable, even if the core concepts are highly complex.Warp, a terse, 12-minute piano concerto, proposes a musical solution to Einstein’s field equations as the intrepid Joseph Havlat boldly goes where no pianist has gone before amid the distorting fabric of orchestral space-time. Strident orchestral lines spiral ever upwards, stretching instruments to their limits, while the piano maintains its course towards a serene conclusion. Handsomely recorded, the BBC Philharmonic and Vimbayi Kaziboni off…", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/jul/17/robert-laidlow-reality-eaters-album-review", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-17T06:30:00+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Robert Laidlow: Reality Eaters album review", "summary": "BBC Philharmonic/Havlat/Kaziboni/Piatti Quartet
(NMC)
Einstein’s field equations, Newton’s universal law and artificial intelligence are among the subjects of Laidlow’s ambitious orchestral works
Robert Laidlow is as at home in the realms of science and technology as he is in the world of classical music. As this NMC debut album demonstrates, his intricate, wildly imaginative work is eminently approachable, even if the core concepts are highly complex.
Warp, a terse, 12-minute piano concerto, proposes a musical solution to Einstein’s field equations as the intrepid Joseph Havlat boldly goes where no pianist has gone before amid the distorting fabric of orchestral space-time. Strident orchestral lines spiral ever upwards, stretching instruments to their limits, while the piano maintains its course towards a serene conclusion. Handsomely recorded, the BBC Philharmonic and Vimbayi Kaziboni offer vibrantly detailed support.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/music/2026/jul/17/robert-laidlow-reality-eaters-album-review", "image": "", "published": "Fri, 17 Jul 2026 06:30:00 GMT" } }, { "id": "d01a1ed876995cb7b7d396529167e64037782ad0", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Weatherwatch: How English summer clouds can warn of trouble ahead", "summary": "Mackerel skies and mare’s tails signal arrival of warm fronts that push moisture to high altitudes and creates distinctive clouds“Mare’s tails and mackerel scales make lofty ships to carry low sails,” runs an old English saying about summer skies.Mackerel skies are cirrocumulus or altocumulus clouds in regular but patchy rows, resembling the light and dark-scale pattern on a mackerel. The cirrocumulus version is white and wispy, altocumulus is grey and thicker. One easy rule is that cirrocumulus is narrower than a finger at arm’s length, altocumulus more like three fingers. Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/17/weatherwatch-english-summer-clouds-warn-bumps-ahead", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-17T05:00:59+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Weatherwatch: How English summer clouds can warn of trouble ahead", "summary": "Mackerel skies and mare’s tails signal arrival of warm fronts that push moisture to high altitudes and creates distinctive clouds
“Mare’s tails and mackerel scales make lofty ships to carry low sails,” runs an old English saying about summer skies.
Mackerel skies are cirrocumulus or altocumulus clouds in regular but patchy rows, resembling the light and dark-scale pattern on a mackerel. The cirrocumulus version is white and wispy, altocumulus is grey and thicker. One easy rule is that cirrocumulus is narrower than a finger at arm’s length, altocumulus more like three fingers.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jul/17/weatherwatch-english-summer-clouds-warn-bumps-ahead", "image": "", "published": "Fri, 17 Jul 2026 05:00:59 GMT" } }, { "id": "0ea41e5054cbd865f30c47c841e0a9ef54956a0d", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Can a world-first gene therapy reverse ageing? – podcast", "summary": "The first person has been treated with a highly anticipated new gene therapy that aims to turn back the clock on ageing cells. The trial is aimed at retinal cells, with the hope that encouraging them to behave as if they were young again could improve sight in the affected patients. If it proves to be safe, it could open the door to a whole raft of therapies based on the emerging field of cellular rejuvenation. To understand more about this cutting edge research, Madeleine Finlay hears from science editor Ian Sample and from Paul Knoepfler, professor of cell biology and human anatomy at the university of California, Davis.Support the Guardian Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/jul/16/can-a-world-first-gene-therapy-reverse-ageing-podcast", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-16T04:00:13+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Can a world-first gene therapy reverse ageing? – podcast", "summary": "The first person has been treated with a highly anticipated new gene therapy that aims to turn back the clock on ageing cells. The trial is aimed at retinal cells, with the hope that encouraging them to behave as if they were young again could improve sight in the affected patients. If it proves to be safe, it could open the door to a whole raft of therapies based on the emerging field of cellular rejuvenation. To understand more about this cutting edge research, Madeleine Finlay hears from science editor Ian Sample and from Paul Knoepfler, professor of cell biology and human anatomy at the university of California, Davis.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2026/jul/16/can-a-world-first-gene-therapy-reverse-ageing-podcast", "image": "", "published": "Thu, 16 Jul 2026 04:00:13 GMT" } }, { "id": "401f84069e55aeae2da05134885e9328a15a76a0", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Once again we are told AI may be conscious – I study consciousness, and I have my doubts | Anil Seth", "summary": "Despite Anthropic’s claims, Claude is no more likely to achieve sentience than a simulation of a weather system is likely to generate a real hurricaneFor centuries, humans have been fascinated by the prospect of creating artificial beings in our own image. Of developing synthetic minds and artificial bodies that not only think but also feel, and are both intelligent and conscious. For the vast majority of this time, this prospect seemed very distant; a topic for science fiction and philosophy, not for the here and now. But over the past few years, the rapid rise of AI – and especially of language models – has changed everything.Last week, the frontier AI firm Anthropic published new research on its language model, Claude, in which the researchers claimed to find signs of consciousness emerging within its inner workings. They didn’t claim that Claude is actually conscious in the same way…", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/15/ai-consciousness-anthropic-claude-dawkins", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-15T06:00:47+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Once again we are told AI may be conscious – I study consciousness, and I have my doubts | Anil Seth", "summary": "Despite Anthropic’s claims, Claude is no more likely to achieve sentience than a simulation of a weather system is likely to generate a real hurricane
For centuries, humans have been fascinated by the prospect of creating artificial beings in our own image. Of developing synthetic minds and artificial bodies that not only think but also feel, and are both intelligent and conscious. For the vast majority of this time, this prospect seemed very distant; a topic for science fiction and philosophy, not for the here and now. But over the past few years, the rapid rise of AI – and especially of language models – has changed everything.
Last week, the frontier AI firm Anthropic published new research on its language model, Claude, in which the researchers claimed to find signs of consciousness emerging within its inner workings. They didn’t claim that Claude is actually conscious in the same way that humans are, but the findings certainly upped the ante on the possibility of consciousness arising in AI.
Anil Seth is professor of cognitive and computational neuroscience at the University of Sussex, and co-director of the Sussex centre for consciousness science. He is the author of Being You
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/15/ai-consciousness-anthropic-claude-dawkins", "image": "", "published": "Wed, 15 Jul 2026 06:00:47 GMT" } }, { "id": "8a8d07a42ac0e9c6f54fa951a3b492dadf5b20ac", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Heat can be deadly, but sunshine itself? Science says we could use more of it | Rowan Jacobsen", "summary": "Extreme exposure should be avoided, but we’ve gone too far the other way – enjoyed safely, the sun can have enormous health benefitsHigh summer has returned to the UK, and with it, the usual warnings about the dangers of sunlight and reminders to seek shade and cover up. After years of such advice, most members of the public naturally assume that the science connecting sun exposure to poor health is well established, so people are often shocked to learn that the opposite is true: those who spend more time in the sun tend to be healthier. A lot healthier.I know because I began researching the subject nine years ago after stumbling upon some studies – and I’ve stayed on the case ever since, now summarising everything we know in my new book, In Defense of Sunlight. It contains good news for many people: we don’t have to fear the sun nearly as much as we thought. In fact, most of us could b…", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/14/sun-health-outdoors-heatwave-daylight-science", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-14T07:00:23+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Heat can be deadly, but sunshine itself? Science says we could use more of it | Rowan Jacobsen", "summary": "Extreme exposure should be avoided, but we’ve gone too far the other way – enjoyed safely, the sun can have enormous health benefits
High summer has returned to the UK, and with it, the usual warnings about the dangers of sunlight and reminders to seek shade and cover up. After years of such advice, most members of the public naturally assume that the science connecting sun exposure to poor health is well established, so people are often shocked to learn that the opposite is true: those who spend more time in the sun tend to be healthier. A lot healthier.
I know because I began researching the subject nine years ago after stumbling upon some studies – and I’ve stayed on the case ever since, now summarising everything we know in my new book, In Defense of Sunlight. It contains good news for many people: we don’t have to fear the sun nearly as much as we thought. In fact, most of us could benefit from a bit more exposure.
Rowan Jacobsen is a former Knight Science Journalism Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a media fellow at the Nova Institute for Health in Baltimore. His book In Defense of Sunlight: The Surprising Science of Sun Exposure is published this month
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/14/sun-health-outdoors-heatwave-daylight-science", "image": "", "published": "Tue, 14 Jul 2026 07:00:23 GMT" } }, { "id": "6a843bb1a3132d3de1fc25d53cbb3b0161fd3723", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "Can a ‘power phrase’ turn a spineless worm like me into a go-getter? I doubt it – but it’s worth a shot | Emma Beddington", "summary": "The psychotherapist Amy Morin says uttering a ‘short, positive sentence’ can offer the cognitive reset we need. The idea makes me cringe – but then I can barely cope with returning defective trousersAre you dreading a high-stakes meeting, a challenging professional task or an awkward conversation? I’m not, because I’m a craven coward who has dodged that kind of unpleasantness for years. If only I had a “power phrase” to activate, maybe things would have been different.That is the psychotherapist Amy Morin’s advice for dealing with sticky situations. The author of The Mental Strength Playbook, Morin explained in Business Insider that a “short, positive sentence you say to yourself in the moment” is an effective two-minute cognitive reset. She used hers, she says, while answering challenging questions to land her book deal: “I activated my power phrase and told myself, I’m a strong, strai…", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/13/can-a-power-phrase-turn-a-spineless-worm-like-me-into-a-go-getter-i-doubt-it-but-its-worth-a-shot", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-13T10:00:44+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "Can a ‘power phrase’ turn a spineless worm like me into a go-getter? I doubt it – but it’s worth a shot | Emma Beddington", "summary": "The psychotherapist Amy Morin says uttering a ‘short, positive sentence’ can offer the cognitive reset we need. The idea makes me cringe – but then I can barely cope with returning defective trousers
Are you dreading a high-stakes meeting, a challenging professional task or an awkward conversation? I’m not, because I’m a craven coward who has dodged that kind of unpleasantness for years. If only I had a “power phrase” to activate, maybe things would have been different.
That is the psychotherapist Amy Morin’s advice for dealing with sticky situations. The author of The Mental Strength Playbook, Morin explained in Business Insider that a “short, positive sentence you say to yourself in the moment” is an effective two-minute cognitive reset. She used hers, she says, while answering challenging questions to land her book deal: “I activated my power phrase and told myself, I’m a strong, straightforward communicator.”
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/13/can-a-power-phrase-turn-a-spineless-worm-like-me-into-a-go-getter-i-doubt-it-but-its-worth-a-shot", "image": "", "published": "Mon, 13 Jul 2026 10:00:44 GMT" } }, { "id": "cad5a405704e541bdd85bef690d8fce52bf1f3a1", "source_id": "guardian_science", "source": "The Guardian — Science", "category": "science", "engine": "rss", "title": "At last, a proper excuse for monoglots to learn another language: it helps keep your brain young | Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett", "summary": "I love busting out a French subjunctive in pursuit of better restaurant service, so it’s a joy to discover there’s a neuroscientific upside to being multilingualIt’s hard to pick a favourite PG Wodehouse line, but the one I’m perhaps most fond of is this: “Into the face of the young man who sat on the terrace of the Hotel Magnifique at Cannes there had crept a look of furtive shame, the shifty hangdog look which announces that an Englishman is about to speak French.”It’s funny, but it also succinctly captures something that I have long felt about language acquisition, which is that in order to truly embrace learning another tongue, you have to be prepared to look foolish and vulnerable. (Why that can be so difficult for the English – a monoglot minority on a largely bilingual planet – is another article entirely.) More people will perhaps be prepared to endure that humbling process now,…", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/12/learn-another-language-french-restaurant-service-multilingual", "image": "", "published": "2026-07-12T05:00:10+00:00", "score": 58.55, "color": "#7cff9e", "raw": { "title": "At last, a proper excuse for monoglots to learn another language: it helps keep your brain young | Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett", "summary": "I love busting out a French subjunctive in pursuit of better restaurant service, so it’s a joy to discover there’s a neuroscientific upside to being multilingual
It’s hard to pick a favourite PG Wodehouse line, but the one I’m perhaps most fond of is this: “Into the face of the young man who sat on the terrace of the Hotel Magnifique at Cannes there had crept a look of furtive shame, the shifty hangdog look which announces that an Englishman is about to speak French.”
It’s funny, but it also succinctly captures something that I have long felt about language acquisition, which is that in order to truly embrace learning another tongue, you have to be prepared to look foolish and vulnerable. (Why that can be so difficult for the English – a monoglot minority on a largely bilingual planet – is another article entirely.) More people will perhaps be prepared to endure that humbling process now, as new research has found that learning another language can slow ageing in the brain by up to 13 years. Multilingualism, it is thought, promotes brain connectivity and slows its decline with age.
Continue reading...", "url": "https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/jul/12/learn-another-language-french-restaurant-service-multilingual", "image": "", "published": "Sun, 12 Jul 2026 05:00:10 GMT" } } ], "stored": 0, "ai": { "enriched": false, "stored": 0 }, "health": [ { "id": "guardian_science", "name": "The Guardian — Science", "engine": "rss", "category": "science", "ok": true, "error": "", "ms": 70, "count": 20, "cached_at": "2026-07-23T02:47:42+00:00" } ] }