Science
From mathematics and AI to medicine and psychology, The Optimist Daily features the latest news on discoveries, technological advances, and breakthroughs in the world of science. Our Science section is here to engage and enlighten you.
Turning ashes into action: how memorial reefs could restore Britain’s seabeds
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Funerals are surprisingly polluting. A single burial emits around 833 kilograms of CO2, while a typical cremation releases about 400. Add in the environmental toll of concrete, steel, and embalming chemicals, and the traditional funeral industry starts to Read More...
A splash of good news for oceans: new plastic dissolves in seawater in just hours
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In a world drowning in plastic, scientists in Japan may have found a lifeline. Researchers from the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science and the University of Tokyo have developed a new type of plastic that can dissolve in seawater within hours without Read More...
Scientists use mRNA to expose hidden HIV in breakthrough step toward cure
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A team of scientists at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity in Melbourne made a significant stride in the decades-long search for a cure for HIV. The researchers have developed a novel method for exposing hidden HIV within white blood cells Read More...
Urban mining: how Europe is turning e-waste and concrete into circular gold
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Buried somewhere in your drawer, that outdated smartphone may be worth more than you think. Not because it's vintage, but because it holds slivers of lithium, cobalt, and rare earth metals… the very stuff Europe desperately needs. Urban mining, the Read More...
Record-breaking donation launches global hub for endometriosis research in Sydney
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A transformative $50 million [AUD] donation to the University of New South Wales (UNSW) is set to establish the world's largest endometriosis research institute. Named the Ainsworth Endometriosis Research Institute (AERI), the initiative will focus on faster Read More...
The fungi on your face might be brewing the next great antibiotic
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In the ongoing search for new antibiotics, researchers may have found an unlikely ally: the fungi quietly snacking on our skin oils. According to a new study led by scientists at the University of Oregon, a common yeast called Malassezia, known more for Read More...
What trees can teach us about volcanoes: a new view from space
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The next time a volcano begins to stir, the first signs might come not from smoke or rumbling earth, but from the trees nearby. According to a new NASA-Smithsonian study, trees growing near volcanoes become visibly greener as underground magma releases carbon Read More...
A new way to stack bricks could help clean Bangladesh’s air
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In the cool, dry winters of Bangladesh, the country’s 8,000-plus brick kilns roar to life. Coal-fed and open-air, they bake nearly 30 million bricks annually, filling the skies with thick black smoke in the process. But a new study has found that a few Read More...
The tortilla that doesn’t need a fridge will help Mexico’s most vulnerable
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM In a brightly lit lab at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), food scientist Raquel Gomez peers through a microscope at microorganisms doing some heavy lifting: enriching tortillas with probiotics and preserving them for weeks without a Read More...
A jelly with a scent of hope: how a nanoparticle gel could help save coral reefs
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM When the ocean gets too warm, coral reefs bleach, weaken, and sometimes die. And right now, they’re in serious trouble. Over 80 percent of the world’s reef area has experienced heat stress since early 2023, leading to what researchers are calling the Read More...