University of Bristol

Researchers have developed a prototype robot that is able to perform a breast examination and sense lumps that may indicate cancer. While still in the early stages, they say their robot could improve the likelihood of catching breast cancer early.

If a robot is trying to traverse rugged, irregular terrain, it's limited by having just one body shape. The Tetraflex robot was designed with this fact in mind, as it can change shape to adopt different modes of locomotion.

About 66 million years ago, the reign of reptiles came to a dramatic end. Scientists have now predicted that mammals will meet their maker in a similar cataclysm in about 250 million years’ time, as the continents collide to form a new supercontinent.

Dinosaur fans will already be familiar with the ichthyosaurus, a prehistoric marine reptile that resembled a dolphin in appearance. Well it now seems that one of its close relatives, named Hupehsuchus, fed much like a modern-day baleen whale.

There was a time before the dinosaurs when ancient sheep-sized reptiles thrived on Earth. While they were numerous, a new study reveals that their diets actually led to their own starvation by wearing out their teeth.

Robotic graspers are typically either firm enough to securely lift sturdy, heavy objects, or soft enough to lift fragile objects without breaking them. A new sponge-based system, however, could allow one grasper to do both.

Using AI, researchers have created the first map of a protein group known as the Commander complex, which functions as a "postal worker" in the body. The new understanding opens the door to new drugs and modalities for fighting a range of conditions.

When designing fish-like underwater robots, you want a means of propulsion which is both energy-efficient and reasonably speedy. A new tail-flapping system may fit the bill, paving the way for wider usage of such bots.

UK researchers have, for the first time, identified a genetic pathway in the brain that plays a key role in controlling anxiety, opening the door to the development of more effective treatments in the future.

In 1986 it got up close to the Titanic, and now deep-sea explorer Alvin is achieving more world firsts, this time documenting 1.2 miles of new reef featuring live coral that's thousands of years old. Scientists hope it's the first of many to be found.

If you're designing robots for the exploration of oceans on other planets, you want something that's tough, versatile and easy to store in a spacecraft. It turns out that soft-bodied robots inspired by a marine organism may be the perfect choice.

Researchers studying healthy centenarians have homed in on a gene mutation that plays a crucial role in maintaining cardiovascular health in old age. Across a series of experiments the researchers demonstrated how gene therapy could rejuvenate aging hearts.