Autism may have two distinct subtypes that vary by brain activity 16. June 2026 (14:00) Evidence is mounting that there are distinct subtypes of autism, and now, scientists have found that the condition can vary according to the strength of people's brain connections(New Scientist)
Arctic Ocean reaches tipping point that could be dire for marine life 16. June 2026 (13:06) Disappearing sea ice is letting more sunlight in the Arctic Ocean and boosting phytoplankton growth, but this has depleted a crucial nutrient, which could severely affect animals higher up the food chain(New Scientist)
Technology is changing our perspective on nature – at every scale 16. June 2026 (11:00) Inspired by Ariel Waldman’s docuseries Life Unearthed, columnist Annalee Newitz explores how microscopes, drones and specialised cameras are giving us an unprecedented view of nature from many different vantage points(New Scientist)
Sperm have been made magnetic to allow IVF inside the body 15. June 2026 (18:00) IVF could be done inside the body using sperm that have been magnetised, allowing them to be directed to an egg while getting around the need for invasive egg retrievals and embryo transfers(New Scientist)
The social media ban is an experiment – here’s how it will be studied 15. June 2026 (17:59) Scientists have long grappled with how to measure the effect of social media on children. Now, the UK government has announced a total ban for everyone under 16, and researchers are rushing to design rigorous studies before it comes into effect(New Scientist)
Inside the start-up aiming for a giant leap in robot intelligence 15. June 2026 (16:50) Physical Intelligence is drawing on the broad knowledge of large language models to help robots understand instructions and learn to carry out any task independently(New Scientist)
Are useful and error-free quantum computers only two years away? 15. June 2026 (16:00) Quantum computing firm QuEra says it plans to make a fault-tolerant quantum computer and offer it to users through the cloud in 2028, which will require a real leap in engineering(New Scientist)
We may have finally solved cosmology's chicken-or-the-egg problem 15. June 2026 (11:00) Galaxies and their supermassive black holes evolve together, but which came first is an ongoing question. Now we may finally have an answer, says columnist Leah Crane(New Scientist)
The relationship recession is even bigger for Gen Z than we thought 12. June 2026 (19:00) We know that members of Gen Z are less likely to be in a steady relationship than millennials were at their age, but previous research missed out an important factor that actually widens the relationship recession(New Scientist)
