By identifying 'living fossils' embedded in modern speech, some researchers argue that human language evolved gradually through a process of 'survival of the wittiest'. The theory holds that verbal humour was sexually selected in place of physical fighting, drawing on visual brain regions to build the foundations of complex modern grammar.
Engineering evolution through gene drives forces a balance of risk and benefit that each country will resolve differently — the safest aircraft, as one framing puts it, is the one that never takes off. With field data on both the promise and the hazards expected soon, scientists argue public debate must prepare now.
Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-1, the country's first private orbital-class rocket, successfully placed technology payloads and postcards into orbit. Named 'Mission Aagaman', meaning arrival, the flight marks India's entry into a small group of nations with demonstrated private orbital launch capability.
Health authorities reported that deaths in the Paris region more than doubled during June's heatwave. The extreme heat swept across Europe, breaking all-time temperature records in several countries and placing severe strain on health systems.
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved a first-of-its-kind pill to lower cholesterol in patients at high risk of cardiovascular disease. The regulator assessed the drug under a programme offering ultra-fast reviews for promising medicines judged to serve the public interest.
The first 1,000 days, from conception to a child's second birthday, form a critical window for lifelong health. Doctors say awareness of monsoon-season health hazards and infections, combined with simple protective steps, can substantially improve outcomes for newborns during the wet months.
Hepatitis C can now be cured in most cases with modern antiviral treatment. Delayed diagnosis remains the central problem, allowing the infection to progress silently and continuing to drive liver disease and deaths worldwide despite the availability of effective therapy.
More than a century ago a small group of chimpanzees on the Spanish island of Tenerife reshaped scientific understanding of intelligence, solving problems through insight rather than trial and error and challenging assumptions about human uniqueness. Their experiments became famous, but the animals' own fate after being moved to Berlin ended in tragedy.
India's first private orbital rocket, Vikram-1, was set for lift-off with a flight sequence spanning 14 distinct phases from launch through orbit injection. The full mission duration from lift-off to payload deployment was planned at 15.46 minutes.