New Atlas

Science Audio available

Study links spikes in oxygen levels with bursts of evolution

Michael Irving May 14, 2019

Within a relatively short period of time, life burst forth into an incredible diversity of forms, in an event that has since come to be known as the Cambrian explosion. Now, an international team of scientists has found clues to what may have caused that – spikes in oxygen levels.

A new study adds support to the theory that spikes in oxygen levels helped make conditions ...

Environment

Stalled waves in the jet stream blamed for last year's extreme weather events

Michael Irving April 30, 2019

The summer of 2018 was marked by extreme weather events like droughts and floods. A new study has pinned the blame on stalled giant waves in the jet stream, and unfortunately they’re expected to only get worse with the changing climate.

Climate researchers have blamed stalled giant waves in the jet stream for some of last year's ...

Science Audio available

Fossilized remains of "Cthulhu" discovered in England

Michael Irving April 9, 2019

The fossilized remains of Cthulhu have been discovered in England – but it’s probably safe to look upon its form without going mad. A new species of extinct sea cucumber resembles a mess of tentacles, earning it the name of Sollasina cthulhu, in honor of H.P. Lovecraft’s mythical sea entity.

An artist's rendition of the new species, named Sollasina cthulhu after H.P. Lovecraft's mythical beast

Biology Audio available

Genetic mutation allows Scottish woman to resist pain and heal faster

Michael Irving March 28, 2019

A woman in Scotland has been found to have a previously-unknown genetic mutation that makes her almost completely immune to pain. Her wounds heal faster and she seems to have less anxiety and fear. Geneticists are now studying the genes responsible to uncover new potential treatments for pain relief

A new genetic study has identified gene mutations that appear to allow a Scottish woman to ...

Biology Audio available

New Oxford-developed tool reads the life histories of cancer cells

Michael Irving February 12, 2019

Tumors are made up of many different types of cancer cells, and we can’t always clear them all out. Now Oxford researchers have developed a way to track the genetic “life histories” of thousands of individual cancer cells at once, which may lead to more effective and personalized cancer treatments.

Oxford researchers have developed a new technique that can track the "life histories" of cancer cells

Physics

Dark matter and dark energy may really be one "dark fluid" with negative mass

Michael Irving December 5, 2018

An astrophysicist from Oxford has put forward a new theory that suggests that dark matter and dark energy are actually part of the same phenomenon: a “dark fluid” with negative mass that fills the universe.

A new theory suggests that the universe is filled with a dark fluid that has negative ...

Medical Audio available

Experimental cancer drug repurposed to prevent Parkinson’s

Michael Irving December 2, 2018

As promising as a drug candidate may be, not all of them end up performing as hoped – but they can still find use. Researchers at Oxford University have managed to give second life to an experimental cancer drug known as tasquinimod, which has now shown promise in preventing Parkinson’s.

An experimental cancer drug has found new life as a potential treatment for Parkinson's disease

Biology Audio available

Oxford scientists lay out blueprint for universal flu vaccine

Michael Irving September 23, 2018

Every year, the world enters an arms race with the flu. Creating a universal flu vaccine would give us the upper hand for the foreseeable future, and a new study from Oxford has identified a way to make that possible.

Scientists at Oxford have used mathematical models to get a better understanding of the evolutionary dynamics ...

Science Audio available

Prehistoric mummy shows embalming took place 1,500 years before the Pharaohs

Michael Irving August 15, 2018

Mummification is usually associated with the age of Pharaohs, but it didn't spring up overnight. Now an international team has found further evidence that deliberate mummification was taking place a millennium and a half earlier and across a much wider area of Egypt than previously believed.

Chemical analysis of a mummy has now revealed that the mummification process was being performed 1,500 ...

VR

VR therapist helps patients overcome fear of heights in Oxford study

Rich Haridy July 12, 2018

A new study has used a VR-based treatment to help people overcome a fear of heights. The treatment is the first to demonstrate the effectiveness of a completely automated therapy guided by a computer-generated virtual therapist that responds to the patient's voice.

This is the first treatment that removes the need for a real-life therapist to guide a ...