30 September 2022
A prototype computer built using a magnetic material called a skyrmion has been programmed to recognise handwritten digits. The approach could be particularly energy-efficient
26 August 2021
The magnets used in the iPhone 12 and Apple Watch 6 are strong enough to disrupt medical implants such as pacemakers if held too close to the body, according to tests done by the US Food and Drug Administration
12 August 2021
An electromagnetic rifle, a device that uses electromagnetic coils to push a steel projectile down its barrel, is now being offered for pre-order in the US
15 January 2020
Project ELF was a 90-kilometre antenna buried under Michigan’s forests to communicate with nuclear submarines – with strange consequences for the surrounding nature
7 September 2018
Most radios use antennae to pick up a signal, but this new one uses a glass box full of vapour instead, with lasers to translate the signal into a sound
22 May 2018
A rocket engine propelled by electromagnetic waves grabbed headlines, but new tests find the EM drive may actually be driven by Earth’s magnetic field
13 November 2017
Our galaxy may have billions of habitable worlds. A proposal to spread life says we should use giant lasers and light sails to send microbes out to them
22 September 2017
Pixels created with pinholes in aluminium can change colour under different light, which may be useful for fighting forgeries and for storing data
3 August 2017
Scientists looking for one thing sometimes stumble upon the unexpected. Here are some lucky breaks, from the cold depths of space to the heat of the bedroom
17 May 2017
Jet engines that compress gas into a plasma have been successfully tested at ground level for the first time
