Single brain implant lets paralyzed people both talk and gesture via an avatar

By decoding two kinds of signals from one brain area, multitasking device offers step toward more natural communication

What caused this woman’s hallucinations? Doctors reveal an infestation of brain worms

After months of headaches and visual hallucinations, a woman was finally revealed to have brain cysts filled with tapeworm larvae

25 years after 9/11, AI sparks a math debate as data center pollution concerns grow

As new 9/11 documents emerge, AI transforms math and fuels debates over pollution, power and progress

ESA Space Environment Report 2026

The cosmic coincidences that made our universe – and us – possible

The sun and moon are positioned just right for us to see total solar eclipses, and the make-up of the universe is just right for life. Columnist Leah Crane wonders if it’s really all one big coincidence

ESA’s FLEX mission reveals the secret glow of plants

Video: 00:06:30 Plants may look still and silent, but every leaf is constantly responding to its environment. As plants photosynthesise, they emit an incredibly faint glow called fluorescence. Invisible to our eyes, this signal can reveal how…

FLEX and Sentinel-3C ready for liftoff on Vega-C

Two Earth observation satellites – ESA’s Fluorescence Explorer (FLEX) satellite, and the third satellite for the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission – are encapsulated inside the nose cone of a Vega-C launcher and are awaiting liftoff at Europe’s…

Three wild dogs have traveled farther than any African mammal

Record-breaking “odyssey” suggests populations of these highly endangered carnivores are more connected than thought

APOD: 2026 September 14 – Where Your Elements Came From

APOD Science APOD APOD: 2026 September 14 –… Today’s APOD Archive Submissions Index Search Calendar RSS Education About Discuss APOD Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating…

An Early Look at Fall Color in Canada

Earth Observatory Science Earth Observatory An Early Look at Fall Color in… Earth Earth Observatory Image of the Day EO Explorer Topics All Topics Atmosphere Land Heat & Radiation Life on Earth Human Dimensions Natural Events Oceans Remote Sensing…

NSF memo implementing Trump’s ‘golden age’ of science unsettles researchers

New document emphasizes support for White House priorities over curiosity-driven ideas

Donor-funded science is rising in Brazil ― upending a long tradition

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02829-2 Philanthropists are stepping up support for research in a country where scientists have relied on the government alone for funding.

Encoded and non-genetic protein variants expand human functional proteome

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/s41586-026-11124-z Encoded and non-genetic protein variants expand human functional proteome

Drug firms’ secret data supercharge AI protein models

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02882-x An AI system trained on more than 20,000 protein structures from pharmaceutical companies outperforms AlphaFold-like models that use only public data.

Fraud sealed the fate of controversial zoologist Paul Kammerer — 100 years on, his ideas deserve revisiting

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02851-4 After an eventful life in the limelight, the discovery of a manipulated specimen preceded the biologist’s death. Questions about his findings remain.

UK universities are on the brink — what is their greatest source of stress?

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02608-z Nature asked eight leaders in higher education what they thought about the state of UK institutions. Here’s how they answered.

‘Multifunctional’ brain implant translates speech and gestures in real time

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02895-6 A neural device uses artificial intelligence to read brain activity for intended words and gestures simultaneously.

The pet trade puts reptiles and amphibians at risk: close legal gaps now

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02852-3 Patchy legislation means that animals are routinely taken from their natural habitats and sold in other countries. Fresh national and international measures could help to…

How is climate change affecting conifers and their ability to sequester carbon?

Nature, Published online: 14 September 2026; doi:10.1038/d41586-026-02847-0 Fresh evidence reveals that the interplay of several factors could affect the ability of these trees to grow.

How our sense of beauty takes shape in the brain

A new study tries to map why humans can experience beauty collectively

‘Chilling’ warning or overreaction? AI bioweapons report divides experts

Anthropic describes five cases where scientists in unnamed countries tried to use its Claude software for potentially nefarious work on viruses or toxins