Refractor: Science & Health

For the first time in more than 15 years, the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) committee has significantly revised the protocols governing how scientists “evaluate, verify, and announce evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence.”

Why does the "poop emoji" look the way it does? Physics has the answer: as most animals defecate downward, each new coil falls a shorter distance, naturally forming the familiar tapered swirl.

A landmark study is due to start in the coming months, and if successful it could ultimately revive our immune system in older age and even treat chronic illnesses like autoimmune disease. The Phase 1 trial is aiming to rejuvenate senescent T cells.

University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) scientists have developed a form of neurological pacemaker that adapts in real time to a patient’s walking and could address one of the most disabling and hard-to-treat symptoms of Parkinson’s disease.

Jacob Haqq-Misra and Eric Wolf, researchers with the charity Blue Marble Space, argue in their recently published paper that Earth could stay green for nearly 1.9 billion years or more, depending on how the future plays out.

The volatile seismic zone along the roughly 750-mile San Andreas Fault beneath California are "critically stressed" – a level of pressure that has reached its highest point in 1,000 years – increasing the likelihood of a big earthquake hitting the US.

An experiment conducted by a team of researchers from Texas A&M University has revealed a healing sequence in mammalian physiology that rebuilds lost skeletal structure, albeit with less than perfect results.

A company known for its AI image generation has made a surprise pivot – to healthcare. Midjourney says it will deliver a "new form of medical imaging" to map the body, in a day-spa setting, with the first center due to open to the public in 2027.

Since our first encounter with the Lifestraw personal water purification device, manufacturer Vestergaard Frandsen has upgraded the specifications in response to feedback from the field.