
Where AI Is Now: Smaller, Better, Cheaper Models
A state of the AI industry report shows that 2024 was a breakthrough year for small, sleek models to rival the behemoths
First published in 1869, Nature is the world's leading multidisciplinary science journal. Nature publishes the finest peer-reviewed research that drives ground-breaking discovery, and is read by thought-leaders and decision-makers around the world.
Where AI Is Now: Smaller, Better, Cheaper Models
A state of the AI industry report shows that 2024 was a breakthrough year for small, sleek models to rival the behemoths
Scientists May Have Finally Found the Mysterious Animal Hosts of Mpox
A team of researchers traced the wild animal source of the mpox virus to the fire-footed rope squirrel
Obesity-Drug Pioneers and Large Hadron Collider Physicists Win $3-Million Breakthrough Prizes
Advances recognized by science’s most lucrative awards include high-energy physics experiments and groundbreaking weight-loss treatments
Scientists Identify a Brain Structure That Filters Consciousness
Our conscious awareness may be governed by a structure deep in the brain
This AI Speedrunner Taught Itself to Play Minecraft
The Dreamer AI system of Google's DeepMind reached the milestone of mastering Minecraft by ‘imagining’ the future impact of possible decisions
New Plan for Particle Physics Megaproject Leaves out Funding Details
A long-awaiting report from CERN explores the feasibility of building a supersized successor to the Large Hadron Collider
NIH Director Removes Four Main Scientists amid Massive Staff Purge
The Trump Administration has fired four leaders and thousands of employees at the National Institutes of Health in “one of the darkest days”
Does Intermittent Fasting Improve Health beyond Weight Loss?
Intermittent fasting has gained a following, in part because of tantalizing hints that it can boost cognition, fend off cancer and even slow aging
COVID Research Funding to Be Slashed, NIH Documents Show
Studies on COVID, climate change and South Africa are on the latest list of terminated grants by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, according to updated documents obtained by Nature
In a Sky Full of Satellites, Astronomers Find Creative Ways to Observe the Stars
Swarms of satellites launched by SpaceX and other companies are disrupting astronomical observations. Here's how scientists are coping
76 Ways Pregnancy and Giving Birth Change a Person's Body
Data from 300,000 births reveal how essential biological measurements are altered by carrying and delivering a baby
Who Will Build the Next Giant Particle Collider?
The European physics laboratory CERN is planning to build a mega collider by 2070. Critics say the plan could lead to ruin
Mini-Satellite Sends Encrypted Quantum Message a Record-Breaking Distance
Scientists in China have transmitted encrypted images a record 12,900 kilometers, paving the way for quantum messaging anywhere on Earth
How ‘Qudits’ Could Boost Quantum Computing
“Qudits,” the multi-dimensional cousins of qubits, could make quantum computers more efficient and less prone to error
We Make Memories as Babies—So Why Do We Forget Them?
MRI scans show that the brains of infants and toddlers can encode memories, even if we don’t remember them as adults
Can Earth’s Rotation Generate Electricity? Physicists Divided over Controversial Idea
Experiments suggest an unusual magnetic material could help harness energy from Earth’s rotation. But not everyone is convinced
Psychology Explains Why Some People Buy So Much Stuff
From China to Brazil to Germany, huge numbers of people are addicted to shopping, driven in part by companies that use gaming strategies
Four Ways the COVID-Causing Virus Changed Science
After 150,000 articles and 17 million genome sequences, what science has taught us about SARS-CoV-2
Ancient DNA Shows Stone Age Europeans Voyaged by Sea to Africa
Roughly 8,000-year-old remains unearthed from present-day Tunisia held a surprise: European hunter-gatherer ancestry
If Life on Mars Ever Existed, This Bizarre Rock May Tell Us
The intriguing chemistry of a rock collected by the Perseverance rover could trace to microbial activity—or not
Man Survives with Titanium Heart for 100 Days—A World First
Titanium hearts could serve as a stopgap for people with heart failure who are waiting for a donor organ
Controversial ‘Quantum Advantage’ Claim Made by Computing Firm D-Wave
The company says it has solved the first problem of scientific relevance with a quantum processor faster than could be done with classical computers—but others disagree
NASA Begins Mass Firings ahead of Trump Team’s Deadline
Top advisers in NASA’s Office of the Chief Scientist are among the first to go amid a government-wide downsizing effort
Stand Up for Science Rallies Draw Crowds Protesting Trump Cuts
Scientists and supporters rallied in cities across the U.S. and Europe to protest dramatic funding cuts and other attacks from the Trump administration