BBC Science Focus - November 2023

En este asunto

DR KATIE MACK
The JWST has seen galaxies that should be ‘impossible’. But we don’t need to rewrite the rules of astrophysics just yet.

DEEP AND BROODY
Join the Planet Earth III team to pay a visit to the octopus garden that’s hidden 3,000m below the surface of the Pacific Ocean.

THE SCIENCE OF DOCTOR WHO
Discover how the Doctor is putting the science into science fiction..

ULTRA-BRIGHT LIGHT BREAKTHROUGH COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING

Creating an ultra-bright light in a small space is harder than it sounds... But scientists think it may be possible

2 mins

Hitting The Snooze Button May Boost Brain Function

Good news for snoozers: new research reveals that if you snooze, you don't lose

1 min

SCIENTISTS PLAN TO MELT MOON DUST TO LAY LUNAR ROADS

Triangular paving stones’ could be made on the Moon using the Sun's rays and might solve the problems caused by Moon dust

1 min

A MAP OF THE BRAIN CELLS THAT MAKE US UNIQUE MARKS "A PIVOTAL MOMENT IN NEUROSCIENCE"

Benchmark study maps over 3,000 cell types in the human brain

2 mins

MYSTERIOUS AFTERGLOW POTENTIALLY CAUSED BY MASSIVE COLLISION OF PLANETS

Scientists have a probable cause for the unexplained brightness

1 min

THE BURNING 'RING OF FIRE' ECLIPSE.…..THAT WENT DOWN, DOWN, DOWN THE AMERICAS

The burning ring produced by the Sun and Moon crossing paths won't be seen again in the US until 2039

2 mins

PLANT APOCALYPSE

The race is on to document and protect the world's plant and fungi species... and everything is at stake if we lose

4 mins

DID THE JAMES WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE JUST SPOT GALAXIES THAT SHOULDN'T EXIST?

Given the age of the Universe, the galaxies we've just been shown appear to be too old. So, what's gone wrong?

3 mins

SAYING NO TO DRUGS CAN BE HARD, ESPECIALLY WHEN OUR BRAINS HAVE EVOLVED TO SAY 'WHY NOT?'

The Stoptober’ push to quit smoking is useful, but we need to look at why people start... especially when it's harder drugs

3 mins

WOMB TRANSPLANTS ARE NOW A REALITY AND THEY'RE CHANGING PEOPLE'S LIVES

There’s new hope for the thousands of women who are unable to conceive or carry their own child

3 mins

REALITY CHECK - THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE HEADLINES

SICK DAYS: WE'RE TAKING MORE THAN EVER. SO WHAT'S KEEPING US AWAY FROM WORK?

3 mins

ANTIGRAVITY: A RECENT TEST RESULT MIGHT HAVE RULED IT OUT

Hoverboards and flying cars may be off the cards... but dark energy may yet come to the rescue

3 mins

BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER:WHY IS IT STIGMATISED?

Despite being recognised for decades, the condition remains misunderstood and undertreated as a result

3 mins

Sony WF-1000XM5: An audio home run, but in a smaller package

Alex Hughes tries out Sony’s tiniest earbuds to date to see if it’s possible to pack a bigger musical punch into a smaller package

4 mins

These vibrating vests bring music to life for deaf gig-goers

Haptic tech is making music accessible to people with impaired hearing

4 mins

DEEP & BROODY

On the side of a hill next to some thermal springs 3,000m beneath the surface of the Pacific Ocean, scientists have discovered the world's biggest octopus nursery. Join them as they explore it on Planet Earth III

8 mins

HOW TO MAKE THE MOON ON EARTH

The expense and prestige involved in sending landers and rovers to the Moon means you can’t afford for them not to work when they get there. But the lunar landscape is like nothing here on Earth. So how, and where, do you test equipment that’s bound for the Moon?

7 mins

The Power of Caffeine

For many, caffeine is considered a guilty pleasure. But there is growing evidence that our daily fix isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it might actually be doing us some good

8 mins

THE SCIENCE OF DOCTOR WHO

At 60 years old, Doctor Who, the BBC Show following the adventures of the regenerating Time Lord, continues to be highly enjoyable fiction. But it's science fiction. The Doctor's primary tool is a sonic screwdriver, not a magic wand. The Gallifreyan takes science seriously. And so should we...

9 mins

HAMMERHEAD BAT

With a face that wouldn't look out of place among the Notre Dame gargoyles, the hammerhead bat is what the French would call 'jolie laide'.

2 mins

CAN I REALLY DIFFERENCE MAKE A BY RECYCLING?

Recycling is not a silver bullet that will halt climate breakdown. Not even close. Its potential impact - a saving of around 11 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) over 30 years if the whole world recycles more than 80 per cent of its municipal waste - is dwarfed by the amount of greenhouse gases currently released by fossil fuels and industry: 36.8 gigatonnes in 2022 alone.

2 mins

WHAT IS THE DEADLIEST CREATURE IN THE UK?

Mosquitoes are infamously the world's most deadly animal, killing up to a million people every year via the diseases they spread, such as malaria and dengue fever. In the UK, however, our 36 native mosquito species pose little in the way of threat, so they don't feature in the three-way tie for the title of UK's deadliest creature.

1 min

DEAR DOCTOR

IS IT REALLY BETTER TO HOPE FOR THE BEST, BUT BRACE FOR THE WORST?

2 mins

WHAT IS ASHEN LIGHT?

The 'ashen light', or AL, is a faint, mysterious glow, or colouration, seen in the night-side hemisphere of the planet Venus.

1 min

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BBC Science Focus Magazine Description:

BBC Focus Magazine is the magazine of popular science and technology that explains the wonders of the Universe through stunning photography and accessible articles. Contributors include the very best writers and science experts, with columns every issue from renowned science writer Robert Matthews, TV presenter and scientist Helen Czerski, and science fiction author Stephen Baxter. From archaeology to neuroscience, climate change and particle physics, BBC Focus Magazine keeps you up to speed with the cutting-edge science and gadgets that will change our world.