Upstract News

What if the Universe Has No End?

The Big Bang is widely accepted as being the beginning of everything we see around us, but other theories that are gathering support among scientists are suggesting otherwise.

The Case for More Doping in the Olympics

Some tech and drug enhancements are banned as unfair, but ironically they could end up leveling the playing field.

Where the Internet Was Delivered by a Donkey

When Kyrgyzstan moved all education online during the pandemic, some remote schools were left behind. Connecting them meant delivering them an “internet in a box.”

24 Hour Time-Lapse Shows How Much Plants Like to Move

The Very First Signs of an Immune Response Have Been Filmed in a Developing Embryo

Even as a hollow ball of embryonic cells, developing fish and mammals are not entirely defenceless.

Neuroprivacy as a Basic Human Right

New braintech can capture a vast amount of personal data. It’s time to think about how yours will be protected.

Here Lies Flash

In just a few short days, on December 31, 2020, we will say our final goodbyes to one of the most important internet technologies that ever lived: Flash. I remember vividly the first time I saw...

Uh-Oh. Russia's Laptev Sea Should Have Started to Freeze by Now

For the first time since records began, the main nursery of Arctic sea ice in Siberia has yet to start freezing in late October.

The Most Famous Paradox in Physics Nears Its End

In a landmark series of calculations, physicists have proved that black holes can shed information — an apparent violation of Einstein’s theory of relativity.

Why Google’s Recipe Results Are Meaningless

How the search engine incentivized cooking websites to game its five-star system.

How Modern Mathematics Emerged From a Lost Islamic Library

Centuries ago, a prestigious Islamic library brought Arabic numerals to the world. Though the library long since disappeared, its mathematical revolution changed our world.

Meet the Novogen White, a Special Breed of Commercial Chicken

Meet the Novogen White, a special breed of commercial chicken whose eggs are used in the pharmaceutical industry for a wide range of medicines, including vaccine production

World's Biggest Iceberg Captured by RAF Cameras

A reconnaissance flight in the South Atlantic obtains spectacular imagery of the giant iceberg A68a.

Mark Zuckerberg's Big Problem Has Been Obvious for 17 Years, but Nobody Wants to Admit It

What if nobody could ever tell you that you're wrong?

14 Pink Animals That Wow and Woo

These pink animals come in various shades of magenta, fuchsia, coral, and rose. Consider them your valentine from Mother Nature.

Why Facebook Can’t Fix Itself

The platform is overrun with hate speech and disinformation. Does it actually want to solve the problem?

Research questions that could have a big social impact, organised by discipline

Some ideas for socially valuable research topics across 19 fields.

Work, Float, Eat, Dream: Life on the International Space Station

We asked some of the people who've spent the most time on the ISS: What's it like up there?

French iPhone Boxes Come Packed in an Outer Box With Separate EarPods

After the news that France would be the only territory to continue to include EarPods with the iPhone, it seems that Apple is not packing the earbuds...

The Wreck of a WWII Steamship May Hold Lost Russian Treasure

The disassembled treasure room hasn't been seen since 1944.

How to Launch a Nuclear Weapon

Only the President can order the launch nuclear weapons. The President is not required to consult with anyone, and, if the President orders a launch, no one has the authority to rescind the order.

Who Infected President Trump? This Genetics Tool Could Easily Pinpoint the Source

If White House officials want to find the origin of its outbreak, they could use viral genomics to identify a source and a location. But time is quickly running out.

Big Tech and Free Speech

Paywall Article, but here are the three takeaways:

Embers in the Forest

Global warming doesn’t just mean we’ll have more fires. It means the fires will be hotter, faster and more destructive.

Can the Deep Sea Be Mined Without Catastrophic Results?

Mining agencies promise to minimize harm to ocean ecosystems. Scientists say we can't predict its full extent — or how to reverse it

Boyfriends for Rent, Robots, Camming: How the Business of Loneliness Is Booming

Even before the Covid pandemic, loneliness had been deemed an official epidemic in several countries – and some companies have offered tech-based solutions

Researchers See Signs of Chronic Stress in Polar Bears’ Blood

Abnormally long fasts linked to melting sea ice may be pushing polar bears to their limits.

How the Waters Off Catalina Became a DDT Dumping Ground

A new generation of scientists have uncovered barrels containing DDT, a toxic pesticide banned decades ago, dumped into the deep ocean.

Geoengineering: A Horrible Idea We Might Have to Do

That Time John McAfee Developed One of the First Social Networks

The controversial jailed antivirus software mogul John McAfee followed up his virus-fighting work with one of the first social networks, a competitor to AOL Instant Messenger. Really.

Does Palantir See Too Much?

The tech giant helps governments and law enforcement decipher vast amounts of data — to mysterious and, some say, dangerous ends.

Inside the World of Investigators Who Know You've Faked Your Death

In the summer of 1996, my mother’s business partner vanished during a sea kayaking trip off the coast of Mexico. Keith, as I’ll call him,...

Identifying Communities at Risk for Impacts of Extreme Heat

An analysis of ways to measure a community's vulnerability to climate change suggests that California's current method may leave some at-risk communities behind in efforts to reduce health impacts...

The Great Google Crash: The World’s Dependency Revealed

Whoops, Humans Made a Space Barrier Around Earth

The kicker? It's actually saving us.

The Special Interest Web: Nukemap

NUKEMAP is a mapping mash-up that calculates the effects of the detonation of a nuclear bomb.

57,000 Year-Old Wolf Puppy Found Frozen in Yukon Permafrost

The preserved pup is helping researchers understand how wolves migrated across Europe, Asia, and North America.

How Claude Shannon Invented the Future

Safety Concerns Over Planes Returning to Service

Pilot rustiness, maintenance errors and even insect nests could endanger safety warn airline experts.

How SEO Is Gentrifying the Internet

Discover the one weird trick that’s ruining everything you love about being online.