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Dispatches from the cutting edge of science and technology.

Professor Philip Piper from the ANU School of Archaeology and Anthropology inspects the cast of a hominin third metatarsal discovered in 2007. The bone is from a new species of hominin © Lannon Harley, ANU

New species of tiny hominin discovered in the Philippines

'Sewing machine’ robot paves the way for brain computers © Getty Images

‘Sewing machine’ robot paves the way for brain computers

$© Diffractive Lightsails Grover Swartzlander Rochester Institute of Technology$

Light sails and stingray airships to explore space

Fossil of first known perching bird found © Lance Grande/Field Museum

Fossil of first known perching bird found

Mums to be who exercise may be more likely to have slimmer kids © Getty Images

Mums-to-be who exercise may be more likely to have slimmer kids

MDMA may help psychotherapists to treat post-traumatic stress disorder by rewiring patients’ brains © Getty Images

MDMA may help psychotherapists to treat post-traumatic stress disorder by rewiring patients’ brains

There's no such thing as a sugar rush © Getty Images

There’s no such thing as a sugar rush

What does a black hole look like? © EHT Collaboration

First ever image of black hole revealed

Actors’ brain activity changes when in character (Marlon Brando © Hollywood Photo Archive/Mediapunch/REX/Shutterstock)

Actors’ brain activity changes when in character

More than half of motorists view cyclists as subhuman 'cockroaches' © Getty Images

More than half of motorists view cyclists as subhuman ‘cockroaches’

The GRAVITY instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) has made the first direct observation of an exoplanet using optical interferometry. This method revealed a complex exoplanetary atmosphere with clouds of iron and silicates swirling in a planet-wide storm. The technique presents unique possibilities for characterising many of the exoplanets known today © ESO/L. Calçada

Planet-wide storm discovered on alien world

'Molecular surgery' gives pain-free operations © Getty Images

‘Molecular surgery’ gives pain-free operations

Terminator-style stretchable metal created in lab © Alamy

Terminator-style stretchable metal created in lab

House dust could be causing us to pile on the pounds © Getty Images

House dust could be causing us to pile on the pounds