Spending quality time with dogs can reduce a person’s stress and anxiety levels, a small study has found. Scientists scanned the brains of 30 people as they groomed, fed and played with a four-year-old poodle – and found they “reported feeling significantly less fatigued, depressed and stressed after all dog-related activities”. The brain activity of 15 men and 15 women ...
The CEO of TikTok has said that a US ban on the platform “would take billions of dollars out of the pockets of creators and small businesses”. Shou Zi Chew, who a source said is visiting Washington DC this week, added the company will exercise its legal rights to prevent a ban after a bill passed in the House. Representatives ...
If you’re into skincare, you will have heard of squalene (or squalane). It’s in moisturisers, make-up and cleansers but is also used in vaccines and medicines. Now, scientists have linked squalene to around 390 species of sharks and rays being threatened with extinction, according to new research. The authors are calling for better regulation of the industry. “It’s very easy ...
Members of the European Parliament have voted overwhelmingly to approve a new world-leading set of rules on artificial intelligence. They are designed to make sure humans stay in control of the technology – and that it benefits the human race. So what’s changing? The rules are risk-based. The riskier the effects of an artificial intelligence (AI) system, the more scrutiny ...
The US has moved a step closer to banning TikTok with a vote in the House of Representatives. The House has passed a bill that would lead to the app being banned in the US if its Chinese owner does not sell. The legislation will now go to the Senate. But how would a ban work, what would it mean ...
TikTok’s chief executive has appealed to US users directly to stop a bill that could see the social media app banned in America. Shou zi Chew appealed to the public via – what else – a video posted on the app. “Keep sharing your stories, share them with your friends, share them with your family, share them with your Senators,” ...
The UK’s intelligence, security and cyber agency GCHQ has released a puzzle to appeal to potential new recruits who can “think out of the box”. The visual puzzle, which is a nod to the agency’s historic links with code-breaking, asks people to identify the letters contained in the picture before putting them together to reveal a hidden message. There are ...
Google is restricting its AI chatbot from answering election-related questions in countries where voting is taking place this year, as the company tries to avoid spreading disinformation. Now, when you ask Gemini an election-related question, it responds with: “I’m still learning how to answer this. In the meantime, try Google Search.” The response appears for questions around voting, politicians and ...
Four astronauts from four different countries have safely returned to Earth as they splashed down near Florida after 199 days in orbit. NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 went around the planet 3,184 times during their more than six months on the International Space Station (ISS). The group was made up of NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen from ...
A rocket in Japan has exploded seconds after lift-off, with flames and smoke engulfing the blast area. Debris fell from the sky, with charred pieces of rocket littering the ground after the explosion. The blast was triggered by Space One, the Tokyo-based startup behind the launch, after a fault was spotted in the rocket. There were no injuries reported and ...