Chemist Zheming Wang is the newest AAAS Fellow, joining the ranks of astronaut Mae Jemison, and Steven Chu, 1997 Nobel laureate in physics who served as the 12th U.S. Secretary of Energy.

A new study reveals that the devastating 2023 flood in Derna, Libya, was not merely the result of extreme rainfall but was drastically intensified by a major design shortcoming and its resulting collapse of two embankment dams. Through advanced hydrological modeling and satellite data analysis, researchers found that while Storm Daniel brought heavy rainfall, the catastrophe stemmed from dam failures and flawed risk assessment and communication—amplifying the destruction nearly twentyfold. The findings highlight the urgent need for improved flood mitigation strategies, especially in dryland regions where high uncertainty in risk analysis, coupled with vulnerable infrastructure, pose an ever-growing threat.

A group of researchers including scientists of the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Institute of Science Tokyo have uncovered a surprising role for calcium in shaping the building blocks of life. Their study reveals that calcium ions help determine the molecular "handedness" (chirality) of tartaric acid polymers—an essential feature of biological molecules like DNA and proteins. This discovery sheds light on how life's uniform molecular structures may have first emerged on early Earth. In a twist on traditional theories, the researchers suggest that simple polyesters, in addition to peptides or nucleic acids, could have adopted this crucial trait on early Earth, offering a fresh perspective on life’s chemical origins.

- Study from University of Leicester describes a new species of fossil that is 444 million years-old with soft insides perfectly preserved

- Research ‘ultramarathon’ saw palaeontologist puzzled by bizarre fossil for 25 years

- Revealed to be an entirely new kind of arthropod and named after lead researcher’s mum