University of Oxford

New data has found the cheap steroid dexamethasone significantly reduces deaths when administered to COVID-19 patients in intensive care. The treatment has been described as “the first major breakthrough in the therapeutics of COVID-19 infection”.

Is there a link between personality traits and gut microbiome composition? While new research does not claim gut bacteria determines a personality, it does reveal a bi-directional association between behavior and the microbiome.

For the first time, researchers have identified regions of the genome related to left-handedness in the general population.

Birds flying together in formation can save substantial amounts of energy. But what’s good for the goose isn’t necessarily good for the gander, with scientists finding that for pairs of homing pigeons this approach actually costs them energy instead.

A team of scientists led by Ken Amor from the Department of Earth Sciences at Oxford University has uncovered evidence of the largest meteor ever to strike the British Isles.

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.

​In an extraordinary milestone procedure, scientists in the UK have performed the first gene therapy operation aimed at stopping progression of the most common cause of vision loss. The success of the procedure is yet to be determined​.

​In the largest cross-cultural survey ever conducted, a team of anthropologists has determined 7 moral rules they suggest are universal. Surveying ethnographic accounts from 60 different cultures the research concludes every single culture analyzed seems to be ruled by the same moral precepts.​

​After a heart attack, the heart's damaged muscle tissue is replaced by non-beating scar tissue. Unfortunately, this leaves the muscle permanently weakened. There could be new hope, however, as scientists have taken strides toward understanding how a fish is able to heal its own heart.

Scientists have developed a pioneering two-pronged virus that targets cancerous cells and the healthy neighboring cells that can aid and abet them, a new tool they describe as the first of its kind.​

Perhaps one of the biggest dilemmas faced by parents in the 21st century is how much screen time their child should be allowed. A new study from the University of Oxford may set some parent’s minds at ease, finding screen time has little to no effect on the duration of a child’s sleep.

​Crows and their close relatives ravens are known to be quite intelligent. New research has now uncovered a previously unknown ability, with crows being observed building tools from multiple parts for the first time ever.