First-ever shark recorded in Antarctic waters filmed at 490 meters in near‑freezing water

• An ungainly barrel of a shark cruising languidly over a barren seabed far too deep for the sun’s rays to illuminate was an unexpected sight.

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 55 words

NASA hopes fuel leaks are fixed as it launches another countdown test for the Artemis II moonshot

• NASA began another practice launch countdown Tuesday for its first moonshot in decades with astronauts after making repairs to fix dangerous fuel leaks that already have bumped t

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 67 words
Ancient microbes may have used oxygen 500 million years before it filled Earth's atmosphere

Ancient microbes may have used oxygen 500 million years before it filled Earth's atmosphere

• Oxygen became stable in atmosphere ~2.3 billion years ago during Great Oxidation Event. • MIT study shows aerobic respiration enzyme evolved hundreds of millions of years earlier

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 168 words
Breakthrough CRISPR system could reverse antibiotic resistance crisis

Breakthrough CRISPR system could reverse antibiotic resistance crisis

• Breakthrough CRISPR system could reverse antibiotic resistance crisis A new CRISPR â gene driveâ for bacteria could turn back the clock on antibiotic resistance. • Antibiotic res

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 119 words
125 million-year-old dinosaur with never before seen hollow spikes discovered in China

125 million-year-old dinosaur with never before seen hollow spikes discovered in China

• 125 million-year-old dinosaur with never before seen hollow spikes discovered in China For more than two centuries, paleontologists have studied a group of plant eating dinosaurs

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 132 words
Climate change is accelerating but nature is slowing down

Climate change is accelerating but nature is slowing down

• Climate warming has accelerated since 1970s, yet species turnover hasn’t increased. • Global biodiversity surveys across marine, freshwater, land show declining turnover over 1-5

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 77 words
People who switched to cannabis drinks cut their alcohol use nearly in half

People who switched to cannabis drinks cut their alcohol use nearly in half

• Study shows cannabis-infused drinks can cut alcohol consumption by nearly 50%.\n• Researchers from University at Buffalo highlight cannabis as a harm‑reduction tool for heavy dri

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 179 words
NASA fired three rockets into the northern lights and the results are stunning

NASA fired three rockets into the northern lights and the results are stunning

• NASA fired three rockets into the northern lights and the results are stunning NASA has successfully launched two sounding rocket missions from Alaska to investigate the powerful

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 123 words

Trauma is a major barrier to refugees' employment, study finds

• Ukrainian refugees with war trauma face lower employment rates in host countries. • Trauma reduces job‑seeking motivation and skill utilization among displaced workers. • Study u

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 121 words
A satellite illusion hid the true scale of Arctic snow loss

A satellite illusion hid the true scale of Arctic snow loss

• A satellite illusion hid the true scale of Arctic snow loss For decades, assessments from the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have tracked how Ea

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 237 words

Image: Winter grips Hokkaido, Japan

• Northern Japan, especially the island of Hokkaido, is home to some of the snowiest cities in the world. • Sapporo, the island’s largest city and host of an annual snow festival,

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 171 words

Economists and environmental scientists see the world differently-here's why that matters

• Economists prioritize measurable outcomes and cost‑benefit analysis, simplifying complex systems into quantifiable variables. • Environmental scientists emphasize interconnectedn

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 150 words
One stem cell generates 14 million tumor-killing NK cells in major cancer breakthrough

One stem cell generates 14 million tumor-killing NK cells in major cancer breakthrough

• One stem cell generates 14 million tumor-killing NK cells in major cancer breakthrough Researchers in China have created a more efficient strategy for producing natural killer (N

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 243 words

Draining wetlands produces substantial emissions in the Canadian Prairies

• The value of wetlands on the landscape cannot be overstated-they store and filter water, provide wildlife habitat, cool the atmosphere and sequester carbon. • Yet, in the farmlan

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 92 words

Genetic analysis reveals an alternative explanation for the Jomon migration to Japan

• It’s long been assumed the Jomon people, who had inhabited the Japanese archipelago since around 16,000 years ago, had multiple lineages resulting from different migration routes

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 135 words

What it really means to love your job-and when that love can become a liability

• What does it mean to love your job? • The language of love has become increasingly common in contemporary discussions of work. • People say they want to love their jobs, organiza

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 105 words

Bushbabies reclassified as 'near threatened.' Scientists share how to protect these adorable primates

• Frank Cuozzo and Michelle Sauther first traveled to South Africa in 2012 to search for some of the most unusual primates on Earth-bushbabies. • These animals are nocturnal and sm

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 117 words

Traversal by Maria Popova... Polymaths, and the Transit of Venus

• Traversal blends biography and science history, spanning 250 years of boundary‑crossing figures. • It profiles 15 pioneers-from Cook’s telescopes to Shelley’s galvanism‑driven fi

Open Hardware · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 74 words

Atrocities take place in democratic nations as well as autocratic ones-our database has logged them all

• Database records atrocities in both democratic and autocratic nations worldwide. • Iranian security forces killed thousands during January 2026 protests. • Minneapolis police fat

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 130 words

Researchers measure Puijo lichens and microbes for canopy nitrous oxide uptake

• The role of soil and forests in greenhouse gas sequestration has been studied for a long time. • However, forests are also home to invisible organisms that may affect the climate

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 184 words

Sea level rise worries most Hawaiʻi residents, survey finds

• Most Hawaiʻi residents believe sea level rise is already affecting the state, expect major impacts within their lifetimes, and support significant changes to how and where develo

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 90 words
Why Europe barred China from flagship Horizon research programmes

Why Europe barred China from flagship Horizon research programmes

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Credit: Cheng Xin/Getty Chinese research organizations can no longer take part in most of the research grants funded by Horizon

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 295 words
How to wow a popular-science writer with your research expertise

How to wow a popular-science writer with your research expertise

• Following popular‑science writers’ advice can make research accessible in interviews. • Richard Feynman’s clash with historian Crease shows writer‑scientist tension. • Writers se

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 168 words

Expedition to investigate coastal Kelvin waves and marine heat waves in the tropical Atlantic

• International research team launched expedition aboard German vessel METEOR along West African coast. • Expedition led by GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel. • Focus

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 165 words
Why we don't really know what the public thinks about science

Why we don't really know what the public thinks about science

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Children are taught about the conduction of electricity at a science festival in China.Credit: Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Aroun

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 294 words
Can consciousness ever be understood - this side of death?

Can consciousness ever be understood - this side of death?

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Illustration: Claire Welsh/Nature A World Appears: A Journey into ConsciousnessMichael PollanPenguin (2026) Humans and other ani

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 257 words
De novo design of GPCR exoframe modulators

De novo design of GPCR exoframe modulators

• Abstract G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are important therapeutic targets and have been targeted mainly through their orthosteric site, where the endogenous agonist binds1.

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 227 words

Author Correction: The genomic landscape of response to EGFR blockade in colorectal cancer

• Nature article on EGFR blockade response in colorectal cancer corrected figure duplication. • Micrograph in Extended Data Fig. 8 mistakenly duplicated from Fig. 10, misrepresenti

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 166 words

Editorial Expression of Concern: Transcription-independent ARF regulation in oncogenic stress-mediated p53 responses

• Western blot bands in Figures 1e, 3g, and 4c display suspicious similarities, questioning data integrity. • Authors lack original data, preventing verification of the contested i

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 242 words
Updates to the 'bible' for mental-health conditions will miss the mark - is it time to ditch the DSM?

Updates to the 'bible' for mental-health conditions will miss the mark - is it time to ditch the <i>DSM</i>?

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X For more than 70 years, physicians seeking to diagnose mental-health conditions have turned to the ‘bible for psychiatry’ -The D

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 251 words
The science influencers going viral on TikTok to fight misinformation

The science influencers going viral on TikTok to fight misinformation

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Video images courtesy of (clockwise from top left): Adam Levy, DM Operations,Simon Clark and The Gut Health Doctor. • Hands: Uly

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 281 words
Nanoscience is latest discipline to embrace large-scale replication efforts

Nanoscience is latest discipline to embrace large-scale replication efforts

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Credit: Olga Yastremska/Alamy Calling nanoscientists: your field needs you to try to replicate a landmark finding that quantum d

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 298 words
Why sky-high pay for AI researchers is bad for the future of science

Why sky-high pay for AI researchers is bad for the future of science

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Young, successful AI researchers are increasingly choosing to leave academia for industry.Credit: Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty In

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 248 words
Brain differences between sexes get more pronounced from puberty

Brain differences between sexes get more pronounced from puberty

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Credit: Cavan Images/Getty Some sex differences in brain-connectivity patterns become more pronounced with age, according to new

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 289 words
Don't deprioritize curiosity-driven research

Don't deprioritize curiosity-driven research

• UKRI paused medical, biological, and physical science grants amid policy review, unsettling researchers. • Short‑term contract holders risk career setbacks due to funding freeze.

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 167 words

What's behind 'teensplaining'? Scientists should study this adolescent behaviour

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X Adolescents have long been stereotyped in literature and science as being impulsive and emotional. • One aspect of their unique

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 266 words

The funding system needs fixing - but it's not a 'waste of time and money'

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X In a Career column, Gerald Schweiger argues that one Horizon Europe funding call cost more in researcher and funder time than th

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 273 words

Statistical approximation is not general intelligence

• Chenet et al claim behavioural test success equals AGI, but authors dispute this. • Statistical approximation alone cannot demonstrate general intelligence, as it lacks causal re

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 176 words
Student dilemma: physical science or physical education?

Student dilemma: physical science or physical education?

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X 100 years ago Access options Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subs

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 389 words

Smartphones are a double-edged tool in classrooms

• Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X The widespread use of smartphones by university students in China shows a conflict between conventional teaching methods and the

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 368 words

Publisher Correction: Psychedelics elicit their effects by 5-HT2A receptor-mediated G<sub>i</sub> signalling

• Subjects Cryoelectron microscopy Psychiatric disorders Receptor pharmacology TheOriginal Articlewas published on 28 January 2026 Correction to:Naturehttps://doi.org/10.1038/s4158

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 2 min · 226 words

How 1.5 million km of undersea internet cables can double up as an earthquake and tsunami warning system

• Undersea internet cables cover 70% of Earth’s surface, offering a global monitoring network. • These cables can detect seismic vibrations, providing real-time data on tectonic mo

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 138 words

Will more police and surveillance prevent the next school tragedy?

• I’m still processing the devastating mass school shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C. • Like many people across the country, I’m thinking about the families and communities directly i

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 72 words

Gotland hunter-gatherer graves hint at how Stone Age families organized

• A woman was buried with two children, but they were not her own. • In another grave, two children were placed. • They were not siblings and were more distantly related, perhaps c

Science · February 18, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 187 words

Cognitive biases of talent scouts can undermine sports teams' success

• Sports talent scouts’ decisions are influenced by various common cognitive biases that can affect their work and undermine team success, a paper published in the International Re

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 187 words

A bacterium's built-in compass, explained: Single-cell magnetometry confirms Earth-field alignment

• Some bacterial species possess an astonishing ability: They use Earth’s magnetic field to orient themselves. • To better understand this mechanism, the team led by Argovia-Profes

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 110 words

Scientists build successful 'cloud in a box'

• In a quiet laboratory, a team of atmospheric scientists and engineers at the U.S. • Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory recently gathered around a worksta

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 102 words

Rhododendron-derived drugs now made by bacteria

• E. coli engineered to synthesize rhododendron-derived compounds with anticancer, anti-HIV, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory properties. • Kobe University’s rational design strateg

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 133 words

Beyond the beaches, Wellington's catastrophic sewage spill could be bad news for coastal ecosystems

• Public concern over the total failure of the Moa Point wastewater treatment plant on Wellington’s south coast has been growing, despite this week’s announcement of an independent

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 61 words

Porous liquids could capture methane from biogas and release it on demand

• Jessica Rimsza, a materials engineer at Sandia National Laboratories, sees untapped potential in what most people see as waste. • Food scraps, manure and sewage are natural bypro

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 167 words

Exploring electron microscopy and AI as key players for identifying pollen grains

• Have you ever seen a hibiscus flower? • Although its petals have a range of colors, what makes the trumpet-shaped flower more beautiful is the central stalk, which houses the ant

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 150 words

Moving biopesticides through plants opens new opportunities

• dsRNA biopesticides sprayed on leaves can move into root systems. • Study refutes belief that dsRNA enters plant cells directly. • Research led by Dr. Chris Brosnan at UQ’s Queen

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 123 words

AI model delivers detailed 15-day Mediterranean Sea predictions in seconds

• SeaCast is an innovative high-resolution forecasting system for the Mediterranean that harnesses AI to deliver faster and more energy-efficient predictions than traditional model

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 131 words

Strong Field Spin-Boson model revises how intense lasers drive electrons in dense matter

• A team of physicists from the University of Ottawa have developed a new theoretical model that shines new light on how scientists understand the way lasers interact with dense ma

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 96 words

Horses with over 30 minutes of REM sleep show better persistence in learning tasks

• Horses with ≥30 minutes REM sleep daily outperform peers in field learning tasks. • Short REM periods reduce perseverance and performance during demanding training. • New field‑a

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 148 words

Why failing generative AI keeps rolling in government: Nine arguments sustain momentum

• New ethnographic research reveals nine justifications that make AI innovations almost ‘irresistible’ across organizational and professional boundaries. • The study conducted at t

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 106 words

Relatedness and positive attitudes drive trust in AI and its developers

• As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly embedded in everyday life and public institutions, trust in the companies developing AI is emerging as a critical societal issue.

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 134 words

Greenland entrepreneur gambles on leafy greens

• Growing lettuce in the Arctic as a business venture? • One Greenland entrepreneur believes in the idea, selling his house to get start-up capital in a gamble he’s hoping will pay

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 68 words

Climate change widened Valencia's 2024 extreme rain footprint by 55%, study finds

• Human-driven climate change intensified rainfall that triggered Spain’s deadliest natural disaster in a generation when flash floods hit the Valencia region in 2024, a new study

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 63 words

Astronomers may have just found one of the missing links in galaxy evolution

• 48 astronomers from 14 nations uncover dusty, star‑forming galaxies at universe’s edge. • These galaxies formed just one billion years after the Big Bang, 13.7 billion years ago.

Science · February 17, 2026 (updated February 24, 2026) · 1 min · 171 words