Science and Technology Articles

AI learns its first words (and helps explain how humans acquire language)
How do we learn to associate specific objects with specific words? A team from New York University have developed an AI ‘baby’ to help us answer this question.

Killing consumerism: Are we headed to disposal doom?
In his keynote presentation, Professor Mark Miodownik deliberates on the perils of consumerism, how we might manage to bring it to a sustainable future, and its obsolescence

Flying Green: The first transatlantic flight using 100% sustainable fuel jets off
The first transatlantic flight run on 100% sustainable fuel ran at the end of last year – it could be the start of more environmentally friendly travel

One of a kind: The science behind snowflakes
Perfectly unique snowflakes tell an interesting story of their path to the ground, led by probability and chance. A story of chemical bonds, mathematical probability and a sprinkle of physics; read on to find out how they are made.

We’re all in this together: Scottish wildcats are merging with domestic cats
The Scottish wildcat population has been severely weakened by genetic mixing with domestic cats. Concerted conservation efforts will be needed to restore them to their former glory

How reindeers keep their cool
With all the exercise reindeers supposedly get up to (think flying across the globe) how do they keep cool with such a well-insulating coat? Here’s the answer

Science in the news: AI biodiversity, bed bug chaos, and puffy planets
Here’s a rundown of the science stories you need to know about from the last few weeks

Why you should give blood
Blood donation is simple to do, less scary than you think, and in high demand from students

From mRNA vaccines to the quantum dots: The 2023 Nobel Prizes for science
Here’s a rundown of the 2023 Nobel Prizes for science

Booze without the hangover: The science behind a low-alcohol pint
Forget just Dry January. As more students move away from drinking, low-alcohol alternatives are being poured into the glass, but how are they made?

Artificial intelligence to artificial imposter
As artificial intelligence evolves, a new generation of more sophisticated, and more believable scams are emerging

Long COVID: Can improved sleep cure breathlessness?
A joint study led by The University of Manchester and Leicester has linked disturbed sleep to breathlessness in long COVID patients and proposes possible treatment solutions.

A history lesson in the web’s largest online resource, Wikipedia
A vision for a cyberspace utopia created the world’s most extensive and read-reference information bank, and it’s still standing today

Manchester graphene research: is the military muscling in?
Questions are being asked about some of the organisations helping to fund graphene research

Private money in space
Private companies have opened up space travel by bringing costs down – Wasim Aksar takes a look at those who are going boldly where no one has gone before

A live dissection experience: VIVIT
Using the world’s only bespoke semi-synthetic cadaver, VIVIT provide an eerily accurate experience of dissection

First Time: Nathaniel Hall breaks stigma surrounding HIV
Actor and writer Nathaniel Hall talks to Issy Bolitho about his upcoming one-man play that is set to start an honest conversation about being HIV-positive.

Physics Without Frontiers
Dr Kate Shaw visit the University to talk about Physics Without Frontiers, an international effort to develop research in disenfranchised countries.

The hangover hustle: you’re losing more of your life to it than you think
A new study has revealed how much productivity is lost from British people’s lives thanks to the mornings after the nights before