A joint analysis of the neutron-star merger GW170817 and the gamma-ray burst GRB 170817A found no evidence that the gravitational constant has changed over time. The study limits its fractional rate of change to between −3.36 × 10⁻⁹ and 5.34 × 10⁻¹⁰ per year.
A study of fossil charcoal from a Palaeocene lake record identifies several phases of wildfire intensification during and after an ancient warming event. Early increases coincided with drying and the spread of flowering plants, but a later rise in fire activity appears to have been linked more to the type of vegetation available than to continued warming.
A systematic review of 77 studies found that artificial intelligence often detected gastrointestinal parasites accurately in controlled images. But most datasets came from a single institution, and external testing of protozoan-detection systems commonly showed a marked drop in performance.
A study of two Andean butterfly species found darker wings at higher elevations and differences in how populations responded to heat. The results show that both inherited traits and rearing temperatures shape butterflies’ development, appearance and heat tolerance.
Mexico’s 1993 decision to require nine years of schooling changed people’s education, work and family lives, according to a study using 2020 census data. The effects were especially large among Indigenous and rural populations, and parents’ additional schooling was linked to higher school enrolment among their children.
Researchers created a high-resolution map of genetic regulation in the human prefrontal cortex using 5.6 million nuclei from 1,384 donors. The atlas revealed cell-specific regulation of genes linked to brain disorders that bulk-tissue studies had not detected.
Research on Febi and Kubo people in Papua New Guinea’s Western Province describes a history of incomplete projects, wasted money and development brokers who have not delivered lasting progress. As earlier brokers fell short, new generations emerged, connecting communities to government, financial and service systems while also deepening dependence on personal networks.
A study in fruit flies finds that restricting protein early in development can extend adult lifespan. The effect involves Lsp2, a storage protein that carries part of the larval nutritional history into adulthood and influences protein production.
A study of 18 cross-functional practitioners found that an AI-assisted design tool helped teams identify more potential harms than standard worksheets. The tool used shared planning blocks, checklists and simulated user perspectives to support early discussion of responsible AI concerns.
Researchers analysed double-blind randomised trials of adults with major depressive disorder to compare 10 antidepressants with placebo during the first eight weeks of treatment. Some medicines were associated with longer QTc intervals, a heart rhythm measurement, but the analysis did not find higher rates of early major cardiovascular events or non-suicidal death compared with placebo.
Researchers analyzed more than 6.3 million nuclei from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of 1,494 donors, including people with eight brain disorders and neurotypical controls. The atlas shows shared cellular changes across diseases, as well as disease- and stage-related differences in Alzheimer’s disease.
Researchers developed a neural-network design that enforces exact Lorentz symmetry with minimal additional computational overhead. They applied it to graph-based networks and transformers for particle-physics tasks including amplitude prediction, event generation and identifying jets from top quarks.
Different parenting styles in two stickleback types may help keep them genetically distinct. The study found that hybrid fathers showed poorly regulated care, which coincided with lower survival among the offspring they raised.
Researchers studied 4,695 very preterm infants in Sweden and compared outcomes among those who did and did not receive a three-strain probiotic supplement. Probiotic exposure was associated with lower rates of death and necrotizing enterocolitis, a serious intestinal disease, but was not clearly associated with culture-confirmed sepsis.
Two room-temperature lutetium-ion clocks achieved fractional frequency uncertainties near one part in 10¹⁹ and agreed in a direct comparison. The result supports efforts to improve international timekeeping and develop a future definition of the second.
