- Scientists at University of Leicester and Yunnan University identified an ancient member of the Chelicerate family

- X-ray analysis revealed pincer-like limbs that are the beginnings of what would become spiders’ fangs

- An inspiration for many monster movies and the origin of Spider-Man, the fangs of chelicerates made them formidable predators

Black-box optimization, particularly Bayesian optimization, is a practical approach for weather-intervention design, achieving meaningful rainfall reduction even under a very limited budget of expensive weather simulations, finding effective actions with only a small number of trials.

Riverine PFOA presents higher concentrations in the eastern Seto Inland Sea than in the western part. Yodo and Yamato Rivers dominate the PFOA levels in the eastern part. After entering Osaka Bay, most PFOA is transported to the Kii Channel and farther exported to the Pacific Ocean via the upper 20 m. Annual export to the Pacific Ocean from the Japan’s coast is 328.0–348.9 kg, which is largely contributed by the Seto Inland Sea.

Geothermal energy—the clean, renewable heat beneath our feet—has the potential to become the backbone of the world’s energy system on the same scale as oil and gas today, said Matthew Houde, Co-Founder and Chief of Staff at Quaise Energy, during a keynote address at the recent World Geothermal Congress (WGC). The WGC is the leading global event dedicated to geothermal energy.

For millennia, farming in Switzerland did not reduce plant diversity but helped increase it, University of Basel researchers have shown in a detailed reconstruction covering the past 7000 years. Only recent decades paint a different picture.

Reliable power generation remains a major challenge in extreme environments where access to conventional energy infrastructure is limited. In a recent review, researchers from Hanyang University examine how perovskite solar cells could provide lightweight, efficient, and durable power solutions for applications in space, underwater settings, deserts, polar regions, and high-altitude locations. The review highlights advances in materials and device engineering that could support future remote and off-grid energy systems.