Science

New high-resolution images show that novae are anything but simple stellar fireworks. One exploded with multiple gas streams colliding almost immediately, while another shockingly delayed its eruption for more than 50 days before unleashing a powerful blast. These complex outflows create shock waves that produce intense gamma rays, confirming long-standing theories with direct visual evidence. The findings reveal novae as evolving, multi-stage events rather than single, instant explosions.

As we age, our immune system quietly loses its edge, and scientists have uncovered a surprising reason why. A protein called platelet factor 4 naturally declines over time, allowing blood stem cells to multiply too freely and drift toward unhealthy, mutation-prone behavior linked to cancer, inflammation, and heart disease. Researchers found that restoring this protein in older mice — and even in human stem cells in the lab — made aging blood and immune cells behave strikingly younger again.

Understanding the chemical properties of a molecule is an inherently quantum problem, making quantum computers a good tool for the job – and we may start seeing this take off in 2026

One of my colleagues’ students is going to take the MCAT, the test required to get into med school. (As far as I know, it’s still required.) The student found this question in a practice exam they were taking on a laptop.

I’ll print out what’s above:

Which of the following statements is NOT an accurate description of gender?

A. Gender is a biological distinction.
B. Gender ideals and expectations vary by culture.
C. Some societies recognize more than two genders.
D. Gender is a performative aspect of individual identity.

I know the right answer, but perhaps you can vote to see which one was deemed correct by those who made the test.  It’s unclear to me why this is on a test designed to assess students’ ability to succeed in medical school.  Well, you get a chance to answer it below, as here’s a poll. Pick one,and remember, you’re looking for an INACCURATE description of gender.

 

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Mars once had sprawling river systems that rivaled major watersheds on Earth, and scientists have now identified the biggest ones for the first time. Researchers mapped 16 massive drainage basins where water likely flowed long enough to support life. Even though these areas cover just 5% of ancient Martian terrain, they account for a huge share of erosion and sediment movement. That makes them some of the most promising places to search for ancient life.

Today’s Jesus and Mo strip, called “abandon,” came with this note:

Ending the year on a hopelessly optimistic note. Happy New Year to all youl ovely patrons! Here’s the article upon which today’s strip is based.

After many tries, I managed to call up that archived article, but here’s the same one I found in the Times from December 2 that you can probably access for free (click on screenshot).  They’re the same.

And an excerpt:

Paganism is the most popular spiritual destination for British Christians who convert to another faith, outstripping Buddhism, Islam and Judaism, a study has found.

Religious faith is “fragmenting” in the UK as more than one in ten people who abandon Christianity in Britain take up paganism, wicca or another form of “spiritualism”, according to the report.

While Christianity is still gaining new adherents, these arrivals are outnumbered by people quitting the faith, figures showed. This is leading Christianity to dwindle in Britain overall, casting doubt on recent reports suggesting that a revival may be under way.

So much for a slowdown in the waning of Christianity!  Here the barmaid explains the decline to the pair, BUT note that many of these apostates still accept some form of woo.

Astronomers have found a system of three supermassive black holes, all actively feeding, that appear to be combining into a single system – a rare event that will help elucidate the physics of complex mergers

A supernova observed by Chinese and Japanese astronomers in 1181 CE didn’t fully explode, instead it sputtered and left behind a rare “zombie star” surrounded by long filaments resembling fireworks. New research by Syracuse University physicist Eric Coughlin explains how these unusual structures formed. After the failed detonation, the surviving white dwarf launched a fast, dense wind that slammed into surrounding gas. The collision created finger-like plumes through a fluid instability, but a second instability that normally tears such structures apart never activated. In some sense, the stars didn’t quite die!

A female mouse that spent two weeks aboard China’s space station has successfully given birth to healthy pups after returning to Earth. This marks the first time offspring have been born from mammals that have traveled in space. The birth demonstrates that short term spaceflight doesn’t impair reproductive capability and provides crucial data for understanding how space environments affect mammalian development, a critical question for future long-l duration human missions beyond Earth.

An explorer and a glaciologist are kite-skiing across Antarctica with a ground-penetrating radar to gather data that will help understand the past and future of the ice sheet

How did hot Jupiters end up orbiting so close to their stars, thus earning their moniker? This is what a recent study published in The Astronomical Journal hopes to address as a team of researchers from The University of Tokyo investigated the orbital evolution of hot Jupiters ended, specifically regarding where their orbits started before orbiting so close to their stars. This study has the potential to help scientists better understand the formation and evolution of exoplanets and what this could mean for finding life beyond Earth.

Scientists have discovered that moons could theoretically orbit all seven planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system despite the complex gravitational environment. Using computer simulations, a team of researchers have mapped stable zones where satellites could survive around each planet. They found that moons can remain stable up to about 40-45% of each planet’s sphere of gravitational influence. The neighbouring planets squeeze these stable zones slightly inward compared to isolated planets, but the effect is modest. Long term calculations suggest only tiny moons, roughly one ten millionth the mass of Earth, could survive the immense tidal forces.

In 1892, astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard thought he saw a bright star near Venus, but then it vanished. We may now know why

Reflect Orbital plans to launch thousands of reflective mirrors to produce "sunlight on demand", but researchers are sceptical about whether the reflected light will be enough to generate electricity

Drugs like Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound have transformed how we treat obesity, but more effective treatments could be down the road

After the New START treaty expires in February, there will be no cap on the number of US and Russian nuclear weapons - but some are sceptical about whether the deal actually made the world safer

After the New START treaty expires in February, there will be no cap on the number of US and Russian nuclear weapons - but some are sceptical about whether the deal actually made the world safer

The BepiColombo mission has been on its way to Mercury since 2018 and will finally start orbiting the planet and taking X-ray images in the second half of 2026

Flocean, a Norwegian company, is set to open the world’s first commercial-scale subsea desalination plant, an approach that could cut the cost and energy used to make seawater drinkable

The price of weight-loss drugs like Wegovy put them out of reach for most people with obesity, but new arrivals and expiring patents should change that this year