Drones that avoid and withstand hefty collisions are in development

Two teams of engineers have taken separate approaches to enable drones to carry out research or rescue operations with a reduced risk of crashing Technology 9 March 2022 By Alex Wilkins The RMF-Owl is designed to be collision-tolerant for subterranean exploration De Petris et al. Prototype drones capable of navigating dangerous and unpredictable environments without … Read more

Mosquitoes learn to avoid pesticides after just one non-lethal dose

Experiments show that two species of mosquitoes change their behaviour after exposure to five common pesticides, which could make the chemicals less effective Life 17 February 2022 By Chen Ly A female Aedes aegypti mosquito BSIP SA/Alamy Mosquitoes can learn to avoid pesticides after just one exposure to them, which means current pesticides may not … Read more

The Main Reason People Avoid Fast Food May Not Be Unhealthiness, Study Finds

On any given day, about one in three adult Americans eats fast food. There are some problems associated with this. Lots of research suggests fast food isn’t good for you, and it’s been linked to the obesity epidemic affecting millions in the US, among a host of other issues related to health.   But according … Read more

For NASA, a somber ‘Day of Remembrance’ casts spotlight on astronaut safety to avoid tragedies

NASA leaders emphasized the importance of safety and having an inclusive culture in a discussion held during the agency’s annual Day of Remembrance to honor fallen astronauts. The televised safety panel on Thursday (Jan. 27) ran after a series of commemorative events at NASA centers across the country. Participants included NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, Deputy … Read more

UK energy crisis: Why renewable subsidies will help avoid price shocks

Rising energy costs have seen wind farms substantially refund environmental levies for the first time, showing they are likely to be the solution, not the problem, to soaring bills Environment | Analysis 14 January 2022 By Adam Vaughan Clyde Wind Farm in South Lanarkshire, UK Simon Butterworth/Alamy Amid the UK’s increasingly heated debate about what … Read more

Energy bills: What can the UK government do to avoid a cost of living crisis?

By Adam Vaughan Protesters demand action on fuel poverty in London in November 2021 Vuk Valcic/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images The shock of rising energy bills due to sky-high wholesale gas prices has already squeezed UK household budgets, disrupted industrial plants and triggered the collapse of 28 energy suppliers including Bulb. Now the issue is … Read more

Watch fish make a shimmering wave to avoid predators | Science

Some of the most stunning examples of animal behavior seem to be driven by predators. A massive cloud of starlings darting away from a hawk that looks like swirling plume of smoke, for example. Or a shiny school of sardines twirling as dolphins circle around. Biologists have long believed such behavior confuses predators, giving each … Read more

Adult fireflies started glowing for sex, not to avoid predators | Science

The glow of the firefly is as mysterious as it is alluring. Scientists have long argued over why the trait evolved in these adult beetles: Was it to deter predators—or identify mates? A new study argues for the latter, finding the ability arose more than 130 million years ago, tens of millions of years before … Read more