Category Science

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Does ‘laziness’ start in the brain?

Understanding the surprising mechanism behind apathy can help unlock scientific ways to boost your motivation

We all know people with very different levels of motivation. Some will go the extra mile in any endeavour. Others just can’t be bothered to put the effort in. We might think of them as lazy – happiest on the sofa, rather than planning their latest project. What’s behind this variation? Most of us would probably attribute it to a mixture of temperament, circumstances, upbringing or even values.

But research in neuroscience and in patients with brain disorders is challenging these assumptions by revealing the brain mechanisms that underlie motivation. When these systems become dysfunctional, people who were once highly motivated can become pathologically apathetic. Whereas previously they might have been curious, highly engaged and productive – at work, in their social lives and in their creative thinking – they can suddenly seem like the opposite.

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Fermi Telescope Detects Gamma-Ray Halo That Could Be First Direct Dark Matter Signal

NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has detected a faint halo of high-energy gamma rays around the Milky Way’s centre—matching predictions for dark-matter annihilation. The finding, reported by Professor Tomonori Totani, could represent the first direct glimpse of dark matter, but scientists caution that alternative explanations remain and independent confirm...

Researchers Develop New Materials for Truly Stretchable OLED Screens

Researchers at the University of Chicago have created new materials that make OLED displays fully stretchable. Their key advance is an aluminium electrode embedded in a gallium–indium alloy, allowing it to “crackle” and self-heal under strain as liquid metal fills emerging gaps. Alongside this, a newly designed stretchy conductive polymer maintains electrical pe...

Scientists Finally Identify What Drives Venus’s Fast Winds

A new study has identified the primary force behind Venus’s extreme superrotating atmosphere: a once-per-day thermal tide driven by solar heating. Using data from Venus Express and Akatsuki along with circulation models, researchers show that this daily tide transports most of the momentum that accelerates cloud-top winds to speeds over 100 metres per second. The re...

X-Ray Nebula Discovery Brings Astronomers Closer to Solving Cosmic Ray Mystery

A new study has linked an unexplained LHAASO detection to a pulsar-powered X-ray nebula, confirming it as a rare PeVatron capable of accelerating particles to extreme energies. The discovery is a major step toward solving the long-standing mystery of galactic cosmic rays. Researchers are now combining X-ray, gamma-ray and neutrino observations to trace these powerful ...

China’s Massive JUNO Experiment Delivers Its First World-Class Neutrino Results

China’s Jiangmen Underground Neutrino Observatory has delivered world-class results after only 59 days of data collection, achieving the most precise measurements yet of two major neutrino oscillation parameters. JUNO’s early performance surpasses all previous experiments, confirming a small but intriguing discrepancy between solar and reactor neutrino observation...