Could Bitcoin technology help science?

This year marked the start of a new era in astronomy: one in which scientists can study celestial phenomena through the radiation they emit and the ripples they create in space-time. On 16 October, researchers revealed the first observations of the collision of two neutron stars. This confirmed detailed …

The much-hyped technology behind Bitcoin, known as blockchain, has intoxicated investors around the world and is now making tentative inroads into science, spurred by broad promises that it can transform key elements of the research enterprise. Supporters say that it could enhance reproducibility and …

Many scientists harbour false impressions about uncited research — both its extent and its impact on scholarship. One widely repeated estimate, reported in a controversial article in Science in 1990, suggests that more than half of all academic articles remain uncited five years after their publication.

The spectacular total solar eclipse that swept the United States dominated headlines as it delighted scientists and the public alike in August 2017 (the composite image above shows the event’s progression as seen from Perryville, Missouri). The year also brought innovations in spaceflight and surprising …

Each year, amidst the technological breakthroughs and pioneering research studies that emerge from the scientific community, a few bad eggs warrant headlines of their own. Below is The Scientist’s roundup of some of the most scandalous happenings in the life science over the past 12 months.

Marine monsters Ancient aquatic reptiles called ichthyosaurs ruled the seas for much of the Mesozoic era, when dinosaurs reigned. These marine creatures evolved from land-dwelling reptiles and quickly diversified in the early Triassic period into a vast variety of agile swimmers, including some that were …

“It’s absurd and Orwellian, it’s stupid and Orwellian, but they are not saying to not use the words in reports or articles or scientific publications or anything else the CDC does. They’re saying not to use it in your request for money because it will hurt you. It’s not about censoring what CDC can say to the …

Meanwhile, the WWF issued a statement Tuesday saying that some 115 new species in the Greater Mekong region had been discovered by scientists. It said that scientists from around the world conducted research in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, and discovered 11 species of …