How can we accelerate the energy transition in a socially responsible way? Empa researchers propose a publicly funded basic service in solar energy that would increase energy autonomy, create social justice and promote further investment in renewable energies. This requires – among other things – a third of all roofs in Switzerland and a total investment every 30 years that is roughly equivalent to the average gross monthly salary per Swiss citizen.

Researchers from The University of Osaka observed the reactions of Japanese macaques to the deaths of their companions. They found that some macaques remained near and even groomed the dead, especially if they had been close companions. These findings suggest that macaques, like humans, may exhibit emotion-based responses to death.

Babies as young as eight months old can adapt their learning style to changing situations, according to research by Francesco Poli of the Donders Institute at Radboud University. This is the first time that babies have been shown to learn in such a flexible way.

In the Andes, the rise of agriculture to replace foraging was not the result of hardship and resource scarcity, but instead a time of economic resilience and innovation, according to a study published June 25, 2025 in the open-access journal PLOS One by Luis Flores-Blanco of the University of California Davis and Arizona State University, U.S., and colleagues.

In an international study, participants’ attitudes towards certain social groups—namely, politicians and Black people—were more strongly related to their attitudes towards the men than the women of each group, suggesting that men are the “default” for attitudes towards these groups. Curtis Edward Phills of the University of Oregon, U.S., and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on June 25, 2025.

"Boomerang" made from mammoth tusk is likely one of the oldest known in Europe at around 40,000 years old, per analysis of this artifact from a Polish Upper Paleolithic cave