The Independent - Science RSS Feed

Secret to a longer life lies on Easter Island

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

A drug originating on Easter Island, the mysterious South Pacific home of a lost statue-building people, may become the first substance to slow down human ageing, new research indicates.

Scientists create test-tube sperm

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Scientists have created human sperm in the laboratory for the first time. The extraordinary development, which until a few years ago belonged in the realms of science fiction, raises hopes that infertile men may one day be able to father their own biological children.

'The Eagle has landed': A space geek remembers the Moon shot

Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

The first sign of trouble came when the Eagle was five minutes into its descent, 33,500ft above the Moon's surface. A shrill alarm rang through the cramped, seatless cabin in which two astronauts stood facing the stars. An error message flashed up on their primitive computer's tiny read-out: "1202". Neither Neil Armstrong nor Buzz Aldrin knew what it meant. It was left to Steve Bales, a 26-year-old technician at Mission Control in Houston to decide they should keep going. The error, he was fairly sure, would fix itself, and he repeatedly called "Go!" as the alarm sounded four more times.

A new journey of exploration for Michael Palin

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

They all sound somewhat dramatic, the mishaps suffered in the course of the seven long voyages around the world embarked upon by Michael Palin, Monty Python comic turned TV traveller, but one sounds puzzling in the extreme. Camel poisoning?

Recording tracks Russia's Moon gatecrash attempt

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:08:14 GMT

A never-before-heard recording of the dramatic moment in which British boffins observed a Soviet attempt to scupper American victory in the race to the Moon has been made available to the public for the first time.

Recording released of Russia's Moon gatecrash attempt

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:08:14 GMT

The Apollo hoax theories

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:23:53 GMT

9/11 and Kennedy aside, no event in world history has generated quite so many conspiracy theories than the Apollo moon landings. But do they stand up? Here are the best reasons why it couldn’t have happened, and the rebuttals. Of course, you may disagree.

Shirley Dent: 'Are you just being weird now?’

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:15:19 GMT

Watch this youtube video fully comprehend the sheer and utter frustration which drove Brian Cox, research fellow of the Royal Society and professor of particle physics at the University of Manchester, to ask this question of a gormless TV producer.

Shirley Dent: 'Are you just being weird now?’

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:15:19 GMT

How global warming shrank St Kilda's sheep

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

It was the curious case of the shrinking sheep. For nearly a quarter of a century the wild Soay sheep on the windswept Scottish island of Hirta have been getting smaller when evolution should have made them bigger.

Observations: The evolution of Darwin's festival

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Charles Darwin ignored received wisdom when he wrote On the Origin of Species and, to mark the bicentenary of his birth, his hometown Shrewsbury is hosting a celebration that bends the conventions of the arts festival. Shift Time, which runs in the town from today until Sunday 12 July, calls itself "a festival of ideas", and is welcoming not only international artists, but scientists and renowned thinkers, too.

Appeal for funds to fight curse of brain tumours

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Brain tumours have become the biggest cause of death among young cancer patients, but the disease receives only a small fraction of the funding spent on researching other forms of cancer.

Unlocked: the secrets of schizophrenia

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Scientists have discovered a remarkable similarity between the genetic faults behind both schizophrenia and manic depression in a breakthrough that is expected to open the way to new treatments for two of the most common mental illnesses, affecting millions of people.

Was the moon landing a mission to nowhere?

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Although we are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the first lunar landing, for many 21 December 1968 is the more important date. It was then that man first left the confines of Earth, when Apollo 8 became the first manned spacecraft to travel moonward. To some, this was the greatest achievement of the Apollo programme; astronauts Borman, Lovell and Anders were the first to see the Earth as a planet. Each hour, it had receded a little more into the great cosmic dark. But for the public and the politicians it was actually setting foot on the Moon that mattered, and, just after Apollo 8 made its triumphant return, the crew of the first lunar landing mission were selected.

Original Moonwalker: How Neil Armstrong kept his feet on the ground despite becoming the most famous man on Earth

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Forty years on, the debate is over. He didn't say the "a". Neil Armstrong meant to, of course; the line he had prepared to mark the climax of humankind's greatest adventure of the 20th century should have come out as "One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind". But the "a" somehow got lost. Some experts blamed it on his flat Midwestern accent. Some maintained the humble indefinite article was obliterated by static.

Rival fossil challenges 'missing link'

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

She had a website devoted to her, a film made about her, a book written on her, and even a Google-page dedication of her own. But Ida the fossil primate who was supposed to be the missing link between man and the rest of the animal kingdom has been dethroned by another fossil with far better claims to the crown.

Steve Connor: Lofty medics should stick to their day job

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

The sixth World Conference of Science Journalists is underway in London. I can't say it's going to change my life, as I missed out on the previous five, but I did notice that it has attracted the attention of a bunch of medics with strong views on the state of science journalism today.

Did leak from a laboratory cause swine flu pandemic?

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

It has swept across the world killing at least 300 people and infecting thousands more. Yet the swine flu pandemic might not have happened had it not been for the accidental release of the same strain of influenza virus from a research laboratory in the late 1970s, according to a new study.

The stars for July

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

Summer is here, graced with a trio of beautiful bright stars – the "Summer Triangle". Almost overhead you'll find Vega, the fifth-brightest star in the sky. It commands the constellation of Lyra, the lyre – a stringed instrument constructed by the mythical god Hermes.

Round-world flight planned for solar-powered plane

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:25:54 GMT

A solar-powered plane its inventor hopes will lead to a non-stop round the world flight was unveiled today.

Solved: riddle of Siberia's flattened forest

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

A massive explosion that flattened an entire forest in northern Russia over an area of 800 square miles more than a century ago was almost certainly caused by the Earth colliding with a comet, according to a study by rocket scientists in the United States.

Does Saturn moon hide watery caverns - and life?

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 06:30:43 GMT

Saturn's icy moon Enceladus could contain watery underground caverns, forming a potential home for alien life, say scientists.

The wonder of Mars in its seasonal glory

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

The most powerful camera that has ever been used to survey another planet is capturing spectacular pictures of the surface of Mars to reveal a rich tapestry of geological features. Located on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, a Nasa probe launched in 2005, the HiRise camera has already taken detailed images of the outlines of ancient extra-terrestrial seas and rivers – the first unambiguous evidence that shorelines once existed on the Red Planet.

Mind-enhancing drugs: Are they a no-brainer?

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 23:00:01 GMT

In the middle of the exam season, the offer of a drug that could improve results might excite students but would be likely to terrify their parents. Now, a distinguished professor of bioethics says it is time to embrace the possibilities of "brain boosters" – chemical cognitive enhancement. The provocative suggestion comes from John Harris, director of the Institute for Science, Ethics and Innovation at the University of Manchester, and editor-in-chief of the Journal of Medical Ethics.

New techniques prove mammoths more recent than first thought

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 07:30:44 GMT

Woolly mammoths were roaming the Shropshire countryside thousands of years after they were thought to be extinct, research suggests.