Science & Earth

A team from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, the Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology and the University of Stuttgart used 3D-nanoprinted hollow-core “light cages” filled with cesium vapor to make chip-scale quantum memories, and they demonstrated storage and retrieval of very weak light pulses containing a few photons for several hundred nanoseconds while integrating multiple identical memories on a single chip.

Consumers are increasingly choosing toilet paper made from recycled or sustainably sourced fibers, and advocates estimate that using recycled-content rolls could save more than 1 billion gallons of water and 1.6 million trees in the U.S.

Roughly 95% of the universe is dark matter and dark energy, and Dr. Rupak Mahapatra at Texas A&M is developing semiconductor detectors with cryogenic quantum sensors to search for very rare dark-matter interactions.

A Viewpoint in Genomic Psychiatry highlights a Brazilian cohort of more than 160 centenarians, including 20 validated supercentenarians, and reports that researchers have identified millions of previously undescribed genetic variants in Brazil that could inform studies of extreme longevity.

The National Weather Service reported a wintry mix spreading from the Great Lakes through New England with ice and snow continuing through midweek, and AccuWeather said a larger storm will move east later in the week bringing rain, thunderstorms and snow across many central and eastern states.

Researchers dated hominin remains from Grotte à Hominidés in Casablanca to about 773,000 years ago and report the bones combine Homo erectus-like traits with features seen in Neanderthals and early Homo sapiens, which could place them near the root of the shared ancestry of modern humans and some archaic cousins.

The National Weather Service issued high-surf and small-craft advisories across the U.S. West Coast as Pacific storms generated waves reported up to about 26 feet, and impacts were expected through Thursday.

Unseasonable warmth and Gulf moisture are fueling a large storm expected to bring thunderstorms, heavy rain and isolated severe weather Thursday through Saturday, with significant snow possible in parts of the Upper Midwest.

FEMA has paid more than $195 million for damage from the August Milwaukee-area flood and has approved over 36,500 individual assistance applications as of Jan. 6, 2026.

The Northwest Avalanche Center began publishing avalanche forecasts in 1975 and now issues daily forecasts informed by data from 52 weather stations. The article reports NWAC serves backcountry users and public agencies while facing ongoing funding and staffing uncertainty.

A reactor at the Kashiwazaki‑Kariwa plant in Niigata is scheduled to resume around Jan. 20, marking Tokyo Electric Power Company's first restart since the 2011 Fukushima accident. Currently 14 reactors are operating while others await restart approval.

The U.S. announced it will withdraw from 66 international bodies, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, as part of a broader shift away from multinational climate cooperation. Officials and experts say the moves are likely to reduce U.S. influence on climate policy and scientific assessments.

Construction is under way on small modular reactor projects in Oak Ridge and other sites as federal funding and private backers increase; experts say high costs, new fuels like TRISO and a history of delays make long-term success uncertain.

A winter storm tied to a Kona Low brought snow to the summits of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, and agencies shared video and a timelapse showing snow at the high-altitude peaks.

Researchers report they recovered male DNA with a Tuscan lineage from a red chalk drawing and other artifacts and posted a preliminary paper on bioRxiv; experts say the findings are tentative and not yet peer reviewed.

Chicago launched its first citywide recycling program, the Blue Bag, in December 1995 and discontinued it in 2008; the city's reported waste diversion rate has remained around 9% in recent years.

Logan Airport recorded a 2025 average wind gust of 30.6 mph and 165 days with gusts of 30+ mph, roughly 100 more blustery days than the long-term average.

Japan's Nuclear Regulation Authority has halted the relicensing process for two reactors at the Hamaoka plant after Chubu Electric Power Co. acknowledged it fabricated seismic hazard data; the company has appointed external lawyers to investigate.

Researchers measured gases from halite crystals dated about 1.4 billion years ago and report roughly ten times modern carbon dioxide and about 3.7% of modern oxygen.

A study using seismic stations in Antarctica detected more than 360 glacier seismic events from 2010 to 2023, with about 245 located near the marine end of Thwaites (the Doomsday Glacier) and peak activity during a 2018–2020 speed-up of the glacier's ice tongue.

Astronomers tracked four young planets around the 20-million-year-old star V1298 Tau, measured unusually low densities and modest masses using transits and transit-timing variations, and report the planets are losing atmospheres and are likely to contract into super-Earths and sub-Neptunes.

Community trackers found 22-year-old Mafuko with two newborn sons in Virunga National Park, and park staff reported the mother and babies appeared well; Virunga says extra monitoring and protection measures are in place to support the young family.

Researchers report that infected ant pupae emit a scent that causes worker ants to unpack and disinfect them, which results in the pupae's death. Experiments that transferred the scent to healthy pupae produced the same unpacking response.

A dense fog advisory covers 16 New Jersey counties until 10 a.m., excluding five northeastern counties; clearing is expected later with west-northwest winds and gusts around 20–30 mph and highs in the upper 40s to low 50s.

A study published in Science Advances reports that microbubbles forming on plastic surfaces in rivers and oceans can break off tiny plastic particles into surrounding water, and the article cites an estimate that about 130 million metric tons of plastic waste enter human bodies and the environment each year.

The Met Office has issued yellow ice and snow warnings across much of the UK ahead of Storm Goretti, and snow has already caused school closures and transport disruption.

Prokaryotics and Basilea announced a joint program to develop a novel broad‑spectrum antifungal aimed at severe invasive infections caused by Candida, Aspergillus and rare molds; Basilea will fund development and hold an exclusive global license after a clinical candidate is selected, and Prokaryotics may receive milestone payments and royalties.

Satellite imagery shows an algal bloom in the Hartbeespoortdam reservoir growing, shifting, and fading between June 2022 and July 2023; researchers link blooms mainly to phosphorus in runoff and warmer water temperatures.

Environmental groups opposed an EPA proposal to extend closure deadlines to October 2031 for 11 coal plants, including three in Illinois and one in northwest Indiana. The EPA says the extension addresses grid reliability and has extended the public comment period to Feb. 6 before finalizing the rule.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Michigan report fully programmable, light-powered robots about 200×300×50 micrometers in size that can swim, sense temperature, follow simple programs, and operate for months.