Meridian

Cracked, but still there: the glass ceiling persists for senior women in science

Despite significant achievements and leadership roles, women in science continue to face persistent bias and the 'glass ceiling,' where they must overdeliver to gain trust and authority. Subtle discrimination manifests in doubts about their capabilities, leadership style, and work-life balance, undermining their confidence and career progression.

What a viral TikTok taught me about personal storytelling in science

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Nature·2 days ago

What a viral TikTok taught me about personal storytelling in science

Psychology student Jazz Nuku's viral TikTok video sparked widespread discussion on consciousness by blending science and personal storytelling, inspiring educators to prioritize engagement through personal connections amid challenges posed by AI in education. The author emphasizes using personal experiences and secure assessments to maintain student interest in complex subjects like biological psychology.

Modelling the cosmos and imagining a future without meat: Books in brief

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Nature·2 days ago

Modelling the cosmos and imagining a future without meat: Books in brief

Andrew Robinson reviews five science books covering topics from the limitations and governance of AI by Virginia Dignum, to cosmology and epistemology by Andrew H. Jaffe, and the environmental and health impacts of rising global meat consumption with alternatives proposed by Bruce Friedrich. These works highlight critical scientific and societal challenges including AI ethics, understanding the universe, and sustainable food futures.

Electric-vehicle batteries toughen up to beat the heat

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Nature·2 days ago

Electric-vehicle batteries toughen up to beat the heat

Researchers at Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, are working on improving electric-vehicle batteries to better withstand high temperatures.

Briefing chat: What Galileo’s scribbled margin notes reveal about his scientific journey

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Nature·2 days ago

Briefing chat: What Galileo’s scribbled margin notes reveal about his scientific journey

Galileo's handwritten annotations discovered in an ancient astronomy text provide new insights into his scientific journey, as discussed in the Nature Podcast episode dated 6 March 2026.

Celebrate women in research and the networks that sustain them

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Nature·2 days ago

Celebrate women in research and the networks that sustain them

On International Women's Day 2026, Nature and Sony honored three women researchers—Xiwen Gong, Ellen Roche, and Zhen Xu—for their pioneering work in renewable energy, medical devices, and non-invasive cancer treatment, highlighting the importance of mentorship and collaboration in advancing science and gender equality. The article also emphasizes ongoing challenges to gender equality in research and celebrates the supportive networks that sustain women in science.

Peanut-processing microbes ward off dangerous allergic shock

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Nature·2 days ago

Peanut-processing microbes ward off dangerous allergic shock

Scientists discovered that Rothia bacteria in saliva and the small intestine can digest allergy-triggering compounds in peanuts, reducing the severity of allergic reactions in mice. This finding suggests a potential microbial approach to mitigating life-threatening peanut allergies.

Genetically modified pig liver keeps man alive until human organ transplant

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Nature·2 days ago

Genetically modified pig liver keeps man alive until human organ transplant

A 56-year-old man with liver failure in China was the first living person to be connected to a genetically modified pig liver outside his body, which filtered his blood until he received a human liver transplant and is now recovering well. The pig liver had six genetic modifications to reduce rejection risk, marking a significant advancement in xenotransplantation as a potential lifesaving bridge therapy for organ failure patients.

Climate change is speeding up — the pace nearly doubled in ten years

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Nature·2 days ago

Climate change is speeding up — the pace nearly doubled in ten years

A recent study published in Geophysical Research Letters shows that the rate of global warming has nearly doubled since the 1970s, accelerating to around 0.35 ºC per decade due to factors including reduced air pollution from shipping regulations. Despite some debate over exact figures, scientists agree that this acceleration increases the urgency for emissions reductions to prevent surpassing the 1.5 ºC threshold set by the Paris Agreement by 2030.

Uncharted: Understanding women’s health across the body

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Nature·2 days ago

Uncharted: Understanding women’s health across the body

Research on women's health has historically been limited due to exclusion from clinical studies and male-focused data, leading to gaps in understanding and treatment efficacy. Recent policies mandating sex-disaggregated data have revealed significant sex differences in disease patterns, treatment side effects, and health outcomes, highlighting the need for more inclusive research to improve diagnosis, treatment, and health equity for women.

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Nature·2 days ago

The missing pieces of menopause science

Menopause research, especially on perimenopause, remains limited, leading to challenges in diagnosis and treatment. While menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) helps alleviate symptoms, its long-term effects are understudied, and misinformation about its benefits and risks persists despite recent FDA updates and evolving clinical guidelines.

These brain cells clear proteins that contribute to Alzheimer’s

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Nature·3 days ago

These brain cells clear proteins that contribute to Alzheimer’s

Researchers discovered that tanycytes, specialized brain cells, transport tau proteins from cerebrospinal fluid to the bloodstream, helping clear toxic proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease. In Alzheimer's patients, these cells malfunction, leading to tau accumulation in the brain, which may contribute to disease progression.

Daily briefing: How DNA testing can tell identical twins apart

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Nature·3 days ago

Daily briefing: How DNA testing can tell identical twins apart

Emerging forensic methods like whole-genome sequencing and epigenetic analysis can differentiate identical twins in criminal cases, overcoming limitations of conventional DNA testing. Additionally, GLP-1 drugs show potential in reducing addiction risk, and researchers have synthesized rare hexagonal diamonds in the lab.

How these koalas bounced back from the brink of extinction

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Nature·3 days ago

How these koalas bounced back from the brink of extinction

Koala populations in Victoria, Australia, once nearly extinct due to hunting, have shown significant genomic recovery and increased genetic diversity thanks to conservation efforts and population growth. A study reveals that despite a severe genetic bottleneck, the koalas' effective population size and genetic variation have rebounded, offering new insights for conservation planning.

The Epstein scandal is a wake-up call — new rules are needed on links with rich donors

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Nature·3 days ago

The Epstein scandal is a wake-up call — new rules are needed on links with rich donors

The Jeffrey Epstein scandal revealed systemic oversight failures that allowed a convicted sex offender to influence academia through unchecked donor relationships, highlighting the urgent need for stronger governance and transparency in managing ties with wealthy benefactors.

Author Correction: Programmable 200 GOPS Hopfield-inspired photonic Ising machine

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Nature·3 days ago

Author Correction: Programmable 200 GOPS Hopfield-inspired photonic Ising machine

The authors issued a correction to their Nature article on a programmable 200 GOPS Hopfield-inspired photonic Ising machine, fixing errors in the names and chemical structures of amino acids in Figure 4a. The corrected versions are now available in the HTML and PDF formats.

Do obesity drugs treat addiction? Huge study hints at their promise

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Nature·3 days ago

Do obesity drugs treat addiction? Huge study hints at their promise

A large study analyzing over 600,000 US veterans found that GLP-1 drugs, primarily used for obesity and type 2 diabetes, are associated with a significant reduction in the risk of developing substance-use disorders and a 50% lower risk of death from addiction. The findings suggest these medications may help prevent and treat addiction to substances like alcohol, cocaine, opioids, and nicotine, though larger clinical trials are needed to confirm efficacy.

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Nature·3 days ago

Inside Mexico’s stem-cell industry

Mexico has become a hotspot for medical tourism offering unproven stem-cell therapies, primarily due to lax regulations and lower costs compared to the US. While some clinics claim safety and efficacy, experts warn that the lack of rigorous trials and oversight risks patient harm and could undermine legitimate stem-cell research.

How AI is shaping the war in Iran — and what’s next for future conflicts

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Nature·3 days ago

How AI is shaping the war in Iran — and what’s next for future conflicts

The US military's use of AI in warfare, particularly in the US-Israel-Iran conflict, has raised ethical concerns, highlighted by the US government's recent sidelining of AI supplier Anthropic over disagreements about lawful AI use. International discussions on regulating lethal autonomous weapons lag behind rapid AI advancements, with debates ongoing about AI's role in targeting and autonomous weaponry.

High-rise transistors can be used to build space-saving circuits

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Nature·3 days ago

High-rise transistors can be used to build space-saving circuits

Researchers from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) have developed logical circuits using stacked nanosheet transistors, enabling more compact and faster electronic devices by optimizing chip space beyond conventional transistor limitations.

First ‘half Möbius’ carbon chain wows chemists

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Nature·3 days ago

First ‘half Möbius’ carbon chain wows chemists

Chemists have synthesized a novel carbon-based molecule featuring a unique 'half-Möbius' twist, where the atomic chain is twisted by 90º instead of the traditional 180º, creating distinct chiral forms. This breakthrough, detailed in a Science paper, marks the first molecule of its kind and could have implications for understanding molecular chirality and conjugated structures.

Women in science are not a ‘problem to be fixed’

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Nature·3 days ago

Women in science are not a ‘problem to be fixed’

Cordelia Fine discusses gender inequality in STEM and the workplace, challenging the notion that women are a problem to be fixed and highlighting how occupational segregation is influenced by social and cultural factors rather than inherent preferences. She emphasizes the importance of understanding gender as a social construct and cultural inheritance that shapes labor division and workplace dynamics.

The first ‘AI societies’ are taking shape: how human-like are they?

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Nature·3 days ago

The first ‘AI societies’ are taking shape: how human-like are they?

Researchers and companies like Simile are developing AI 'societies' by training AI agents to mimic human behaviors and interactions, with aims to simulate large-scale human social dynamics for applications such as conflict resolution and policy-making. Studies show AI agents exhibit some human-like social behaviors but also differ fundamentally in interaction patterns, indicating both potential and limitations in these simulations.

Identical twins on trial: can DNA testing tell them apart?

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Nature·3 days ago

Identical twins on trial: can DNA testing tell them apart?

In a French criminal trial, conventional DNA testing could not distinguish between identical twin suspects due to their identical genetic profiles. Advanced methods like whole-genome sequencing, mitochondrial DNA analysis, and epigenetic methylation patterns offer potential ways to differentiate identical twins in forensic cases.