
Icy Grip
23 May 2018
When water freezes on the surface of rock, metal, plastic and many other materials, it can be very difficult to remove. What makes the bonds so strong? What materials bond most strongly with ice?

23 May 2018
When water freezes on the surface of rock, metal, plastic and many other materials, it can be very difficult to remove. What makes the bonds so strong? What materials bond most strongly with ice?

23 May 2018

23 May 2018
In the search for extraterrestrial life, we look for planets at a similar distance from their sun as Earth is from ours: the so-called Goldilocks zone. However, we are very fortunate to have the bounty of materials that exists in Earth's crust, and our...

23 May 2018
It's to do with "various theories in plant neurobiology", we're told. Plus: how to write a hit pop song, why it's not a rib that Adam's missing, and more

23 May 2018
Stymied by writer's block? Let this neural net brainstorm the beginnings of your next masterpiece

23 May 2018
We view fire as a hazard, but a thought-provoking book argues it wasn’t always so – and helps us revise our thinking by looking back over geological time

23 May 2018
Placentas are usually discarded, yet they are packed full of stem cells. Now Bob Hariri and XPrize founder Peter Diamandis aim to harness their potential

23 May 2018
People travelled from far and wide to see New Zealand’s spectacular pink and white terraces. Then they were destroyed in a volcanic eruption – or were they?

23 May 2018
From purple sea snail milk to arsenic green and a yellow made from urine, we’ve gone to bizarre lengths in our millennia-long quest to create the most vibrant shades

23 May 2018
Your inbox is full of pleading emails because the EU’s new data rules come into force this week – but they might not actually do anything to improve your life