News
Compound Tool Construction by New Caledonian Crows
Feature Image Credit Ken Bohn / San Diego Zoo Global New Scientist by Laura Steel Humans are constantly creating novel compound tools from otherwise non-functional elements. From large scale technologies such as cars, to simply tying two non-functional bits of string together to make a useful longer piece. This skill comes so easily to us…
Novel DNA Modifications—an in2science blog
by Judahne Medley in2science UK is an award-winning charity which matches school students from disadvantaged backgrounds to research placements, giving them the opportunity to pursue their interests in STEM subjects. This summer, The Oxford Scientist, was pleased to provide free copies of the magazine to students who came to the University of Oxford. Two of these students –…
Neuroscience is a Piece of (Brain) Cake!—an in2science blog
by Emily Kyle in2science UK is an award-winning charity which matches school students from disadvantaged backgrounds to research placements, giving them the opportunity to pursue their interests in STEM subjects. This summer, The Oxford Scientist, was pleased to provide free copies of the magazine to students who came to the University of Oxford. Two of these students –…
A small solution to a big problem? The launch of Ocean Cleanup
by Louis Claxton Over the past few years ocean plastic pollution has made its way into mainstream media and has even earnt the attention of politicians1. Thanks in part to Blue Planet II, the British public was made aware of just how large a problem plastic pollution is for the world’s aquatic life. Now,…
Imaginative new method identifies world’s first animal
Dickinsonia was a giant of the Ediacaran era – growing up to 1.4m in length at a time when most life on Earth was confined to the microscopic. Further to this, the “pancake-like” entity achieved this 17 million years before Cambrian explosion, the notorious event 541 million years ago when most life on Earth started…
Newly released video shows first pair of angler fish seen alive by scientists
Kristen and Joachim Jakobsen – a husband and wife team of deep sea explorers – have captured on video a mating pair of angler fish at 800 m in a specialized submersible craft. They spotted the creatures by chance whilst returning from a five-hour long dive, and carefully followed them in the sub, filming through…
Missing Cancer Puzzle Piece: Could Interstitium Be the Answer?
A group of researchers has discovered that the interstitial space surrounding cells in numerous tissues such as the lungs, gut, dermis and blood vessels has a unique structure that hasn’t been described before. It has been observed that this space is made up of multiple fluid-filled sinuses that form a network through which interstitial fluid…
Research finds promising technique to combat cancer drug resistance
Multi-drug resistance is the main challenge for chemotherapy – it is the leading cause of tumour recurrence and cancer metastasis. The root of the problem: efflux pumps on the cell surface which serve to protect a cell by pumping out unwanted toxic substances. Unfortunately, these come as a disadvantage when targeting cancer cells with drugs….
Hidden Depths—The Science Behind the Broad Street Sinkhole
“The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some way, and then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice had not a moment to think about stopping herself before she found herself falling down what seemed to be a very deep well.” – so reads one of the many literary quotes shared by Oxford’s…
Research finds a high salt diet causes dementia in mice
The current UK population consumes an average of about 8.5g/day of salt, more than 2g/day above the maximum recommended daily amount. This is worrying given its well-known health implications. Salt raises blood pressure, increasing risk of heart disease and stroke. One in three of UK adults have high blood pressure, and as many people are…