Few terms are as closely associated with AI hype as artificial general intelligence, or AGI. But Google DeepMind researchers have now proposed a framework that could more concretely measure how close ...

Five years ago, scientists watched in wonder as synthetic bacteria grew and split into daughter cells. The bacteria’s extremely stripped-down genome still supported its entire life cycle. It was a ...

It’s easy to take safe drinking water for granted. In most developed countries, access to safe water takes a simple flip of a kitchen tap or a run to the grocery store. But over two billion people ...

It’s hard to picture a keyboard layout other than the one we know best. From laptops to smartphones, it’s an integral part of our digital lives. Scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital have now ...

Alzheimer’s disease and cancer have something in common: They’re hard to treat. Despite decades of research, both still plague humanity, robbing people of longer, healthier lives. In Alzheimer’s, a ...

In a small trial, a gene therapy injected into the brain slowed the disease by 75 percent over three years. Huntington’s disease is extremely cruel. Symptoms start with random, uncontrollable twitches ...

In the beginning, the Big Bang happened, sending everything in the universe expanding outward and apart, from a dense hot point. Since then, all that matter and energy has continued to move outward, ...

AI-powered digital assistants can do many complex tasks on their own. But who takes responsibility when they cause harm? Treat the Matplotlib event as a one-off if you like. The deeper point, however, ...

Despite their brief history, computers and AI have fundamentally changed what we see, what we know, and what we do. Little is as important for the world’s future and our own lives as how this history ...

Our hands are works of art. A rigid skeleton provides structure. Muscles adjust to different weights. Our skin, embedded with touch, pressure, and temperature sensors, provides immediate feedback on ...

The tiny chips hitch a ride on immune cells to target inflammation in the brain. Scientists hope to kick off clinical trials within three years. From restoring movement and speech in people with ...

The project explores how life adapts to extreme environments—and hopes to inspire new drugs or even treatments to aid space travel. We’ve only scratched the surface of what thrives in the deepest ...