Adrian Patel Technology Editor Mars remains humanity’s most likely second home in conceptual roadmaps, but a NASA-funded study warns the planet cannot be terraformed with present-day technology. Meanwhile, past commercial attempts like Mars One have collapsed into bankruptcy, highlighting the stark gap between billionaire ambitions and the grim realities of off-world survival. The idea of a human colony on … Read more
Researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the University of California, Riverside, have identified a single gene, SDMYB, that controls the alternating daily sex cycle of avocado flowers. Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the discovery allows breeders to determine tree flowering types via DNA testing years before maturity. For … Read more
Meta must pay $567 million to fund youth mental health treatment and safety programs in New Mexico, following a ruling by Judge Bryan Biedscheid. The penalty follows a March jury verdict finding the company liable for child harms, bringing Meta’s total financial exposure in the state case to $942 million. A New Mexico court has … Read more
The Trump administration is exempting power plants serving artificial intelligence data centers from Clean Air Act acid rain rules and moving to roll back public participation in minor air permit applications. The actions coincide with New York enacting a moratorium and Palm Beach County rejecting a major campus expansion. Exemptions From Acid Rain Regulations for … Read more
OpenAI is developing a hockey puck-sized, doughnut-shaped smart speaker designed to retail between $300 and $400. Expected to launch in early 2027, the portable, battery-powered device features moving components, a camera system, and advanced voice-mode capabilities developed alongside former Apple design chief Jony Ive. OpenAI’s hardware ambitions are taking a distinctive physical shape. According to … Read more
Google DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis is stepping down from day-to-day operations to become chair of Google DeepMind and Alphabet chief scientist, handing daily leadership to Koray Kavukcuoglu amid high-profile departures and delayed flagship releases. Alphabet announced a sweeping leadership shake-up at its artificial intelligence division on August 5, moving its top researcher into a broader … Read more
Astrophysicists have captured the highest-resolution images ever recorded of the Sun’s surface, revealing intricate structures and physical processes that could help solve longstanding mysteries about stellar heat and activity. The breakthrough observations were made using the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST), located in Hawaii and operated by the National Science Foundation’s National Solar Observatory … Read more
Astronomers have confirmed the first atmosphere on a rocky exoplanet in a star’s habitable zone, detecting helium leaking from LHS 1140 b, a world located 48 light-years away in the constellation Cetus. Researchers observed the atmospheric escape during planetary transits in 2024, marking a major milestone in the search for habitable worlds beyond our solar … Read more
Bose has introduced its second-generation QuietComfort headphones, marking the first hardware update to its popular entry-level noise-canceling line in three years, as reported by Engadget. The new wireless headphones carry a price tag of $359, representing a small price bump from the original version’s $349 debut nearly three years ago, according to The Verge. Bose … Read more
Skywatchers across parts of the world will witness a celestial double feature on August 12, 2026, combining a total solar eclipse with the peak of the Perseid meteor shower under dark, new moon skies that could produce up to 100 meteors per hour. August is delivering a major astronomical lineup highlighted by three major events, … Read more