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Stay informed with commentary and opinion pieces on the latest issues in science, technology, health and the environment, written by expert Â鶹´«Ã½ journalists and world-leading researchers and thinkers.

Technology

Why full-fledged quantum computers might always be five years away

To predict when we’ll have a truly useful quantum computer, we need to know precisely what one is. Columnist Karmela Padavic-Callaghan finds that’s harder to pin down than you might think

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NGC 6357: Cosmic 'Winter' Wonderland Although there are no seasons in space, this cosmic vista invokes thoughts of a frosty winter landscape. It is, in fact, a region called NGC 6357 where radiation from hot, young stars is energizing the cooler gas in the cloud that surrounds them. This composite image contains X-ray data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the ROSAT telescope (purple), infrared data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope (orange), and optical data from the SuperCosmos Sky Survey (blue) made by the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope. Located in our galaxy about 5,500 light years from Earth, NGC 6357 is actually a "cluster of clusters," containing at least three clusters of young stars, including many hot, massive, luminous stars. The X-rays from Chandra and ROSAT reveal hundreds of point sources, which are the young stars in NGC 6357, as well as diffuse X-ray emission from hot gas. There are bubbles, or cavities, that have been created by radiation and material blowing away from the surfaces of massive stars, plus supernova explosions. Astronomers call NGC 6357 and other objects like it "HII" (pronounced "H-two") regions. An HII region is created when the radiation from hot, young stars strips away the electrons from neutral hydrogen atoms in the surrounding gas to form clouds of ionized hydrogen, which is denoted scientifically as "HII". Researchers use Chandra to study NGC 6357 and similar objects because young stars are bright in X-rays. Also, X-rays can penetrate the shrouds of gas and dust surrounding these infant stars, allowing astronomers to see details of star birth that would be otherwise missed. A recent paper on Chandra observations of NGC 6357 by Leisa Townsley of Pennsylvania State University appeared in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series and is available online. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages the Chandra program for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts, controls Chandra's science and flight operations.

Space

Why the most central law in cosmology may need to be broken

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Physics

The biggest mysteries in physics may have one answer

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2WXCRCE Illustration of the components of proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC) and some targeted protein degradation technologies. Seen are the proteolysis-targeting chimera molecule (left), an E3 ligase (green, middle) with a protein of interest (blue, middle) and ubiquitin (orange, middle), and a proteasome (blue/green, right).

Health

A new kind of drug will help fight previously untreatable conditions

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Health

Peptides are the latest wellness trend – but do they work?

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Environment

Getting a bit more gas from the North Sea doesn’t matter climate-wise

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Mind

How ultra-processed foods may damage your long-term brain health

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Environment

Earth is heating up faster than at any time in its history

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Health

There are only a few anti-ageing supplements that actually work

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Dr Becky Smethurst in front of a milky way reconstruction
Space

We still don’t know how black holes get so big | Becky Smethurst

Astrophysicist Becky Smethurst explains how supermassive black holes might get so big and how they affect the galaxies around them

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Technology

The ancient Silk Road city that has a lesson for Silicon Valley

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Everything from cells to stars to particles exists on the edge of chaos

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Mind

Using AI for creative pursuits? Moderation is key

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Environment

It is vital we understand heat and humidity’s differing effects on us

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