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Explore the most exciting new ideas and emerging concepts in science, health, technology and the environment with 91av’s exclusive in-depth articles, interviews and long reads.

Health

Exposing C-section babies to vaginal fluid boosts their development

Transferring a mother's vaginal fluid to a baby born by Caesarean section was linked to their development being more advanced at 6 months

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Space

How to see five planets align in the sky this weekend

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The Search for Dark Matter

Video
Methylphenidate, often sold under the brand name Ritalin, can be prescribed to people with ADHD

Health

‘Smart drugs’ don’t make people better at a problem-solving test

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Health

Endometriosis may be caused by bacterial infections

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Environment

Shell can’t say it backs net zero while still betting on fossil fuels

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LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 30: A pair of 1X androids are displayed at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) at ExCel on May 30, 2023 in London, England. The event is the IEEE Robotics and Automation Society's flagship conference and a forum for robotics researchers to present and discuss their work. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Technology

Robotics gets less attention than it should given its potential impact

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Environment

Concern about dirty air can galvanise the fight against climate change

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What looks much like craggy mountains on a moonlit evening is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by the Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) on NASA???s James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals previously obscured areas of star birth. Called the Cosmic Cliffs, the region is actually the edge of a gigantic, gaseous cavity within NGC 3324, roughly 7,600 light-years away. The cavernous area has been carved from the nebula by the intense ultraviolet radiation and stellar winds from extremely massive, hot, young stars located in the center of the bubble, above the area shown in this image. The high-energy radiation from these stars is sculpting the nebula???s wall by slowly eroding it away. NIRCam ??? with its crisp resolution and unparalleled sensitivity ??? unveils hundreds of previously hidden stars, and even numerous background galaxies. Several prominent features in this image are described below. ??? The ???steam??? that appears to rise from the celestial ???mountains??? is actually hot, ionized gas and hot dust streaming away from the nebula due to intense, ultraviolet radiation. ??? Dramatic pillars rise above the glowing wall of gas, resisting the blistering ultraviolet radiation from the young stars. ??? Bubbles and cavities are being blown by the intense radiation and stellar winds of newborn stars. ??? Protostellar jets and outflows, which appear in gold, shoot from dust-enshrouded, nascent stars. ??? A ???blow-out??? erupts at the top-center of the ridge, spewing gas and dust into the interstellar medium. ??? An unusual ???arch??? appears, looking like a bent-over cylinder. This period of very early star formation is difficult to capture because, for an individual star, it lasts only about 50,000 to 100,000 years ??? but Webb???s extreme sensitivity and exquisite spatial resolution have chronicled this rare event. Located roughly 7,600 light-years away, NGC 3324 was first cat

Space

The JWST is already delivering on its promise to transform cosmology

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Technology

IBM quantum computer beat a supercomputer in a head-to-head test

Researchers at IBM pitted their 127-qubit Eagle quantum computer against a conventional supercomputer in a challenge to perform a complex calculation – and the quantum computer won

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Space

Fastest star in the galaxy clocked at 2285 kilometres per second

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Life

Male harbour seals may learn vocalisations years before they need them

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Life

Extinct lizard was a bizarrely supersized version of modern skinks

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Life

Flies die sooner if they see dead flies

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