Science News

Tonight we're gonna party like it's 1984. This week marked the 110th birthday of George Orwell, who penned the dystopian government-surveillance novel 1984, coining the phrase "Big Brother" in the process. To celebrate, ...

The software giant's move could help bring 3D printing into the mainstream, but don't expect Star Trek-style replicators just yet

British Airways wants to finally replace paper tags, and maybe save you some time at the check-in counter. The standard paper luggage tag--the one that requires the force of eight men to tear off your suitcase--could be ...

All the latest on newscientist.com: nudging from persuasion to coercion, AI game characters get the human stain, robot eyes vineyard, and more

It's an experimental "x-ray vision" device that's designed with everyday users in mind. Ever wished for X-ray vision? In the future, you could get something like it from a handheld device. Engineers at MIT have made a pr...

"Hello, NSA" is a fun plan to befuddle U.S. spies, but will it work? With characteristic subtlety, yesterday Vice launched "Hello, NSA", a site that generates keyword-laden, tweetable messages designed to overwhelm the N...

An imperial mausoleum from an ancient Peruvian culture was protected from grave robbers for 1200 years by 30 tonnes of rubble

Plus a mind-bending house illusion, the world's most uncomfortable sofa, and more

They can be powerful tools for influencing behaviour - but be careful that nudge policies do not cross the line into coercion, says philosopher Evan Selinger (full text available to subscribers)

The DARPA-funded Gazebo simulation software could make robotics accessible to everyone. The DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC), the most ambitious robot competition in history, cleared a key milestone yesterday. The Pentagon...

A creator of The Sims has taken simulated social skills to the next level - new AI characters are flirty, like to gossip and are easily insulted, just like us

A DIY version of the sci-fi series' ultimate alien: the Dalek. Despite his devotion to Daleks--those cruel, armor-clad extraterrestrials from the TV show Doctor Who, now in its 50th year--Jim Rossiter has no interest in ...

The US National Institutes of Health will retire most of its chimpanzees from biomedical research. It looks like the end of great apes in the laboratory

When violence breaks out at a protest, a system that automatically synchronises video of an event from different cameras can give prosecutors clear evidence

The craft keeps reporting changes to its environment - but seems still to be in the solar system's borderlands, not at the start of interstellar space

Conspiracy theory mash-up, 9800% complete, containers in 3D and more (full text available to subscribers)

An automated grape counter will help growers see which parts of their vineyards need special attention

Efforts to revive the COROT space telescope have failed, which means we will not have any exoplanet missions working in space until 2017

A network that hops on Wi-Fi to boost cellphone coverage in rural areas has been successfully trialled in the Zambian village of Macha

A greenhouse gas is any gaseous compound in the atmosphere that is capable of absorbing infrared radiation, thereby trapping and holding heat in the atmosphere.

Recycled newspapers: Good for the planet, good for preventing head injury. Most safety gear isn't exactly fashionable, and these helmets are no exception. As a consolation, though, at least you're saving the environment ...