Researchers observed the primates switching social groups and passing information on where to find the ripest fruit Spider monkeys share tips about where to find food by changing their social groups in a “clever system for sharing insider knowledge”, research has shown. They were observed to frequently switch subgroups of three or more individuals in a way that enabled them to share information about the location of fruit trees and timing of when they would ripen. Continue reading...

A nonprofit organization in the United Kingdom has attracted thousands of members by encouraging residents to “get fit by doing good.”

A bold and colourful new shoot-'em-up for the 48K Sinclair Spectrum, from Ionian Games

This week’s best wildlife photographs from around the world

Putting together a go bag doesn't have to be daunting or expensive. Here's how to create a functional kit that doesn't require much money, time or effort.

GeoKarst is a new EU-funded project highlighting a unique landscape of caves, gorges and medieval villages near Trieste

Brown Swiss in Austria has been discovered using tools in multiple ways – something only ever seen in humans and chimpanzees Scientists have been forced to rethink the intelligence of cattle after an Austrian cow named Veronika displayed an impressive – and until now undocumented – knack for tool use. Witgar Wiegele, an organic farmer and baker from a small town in Carinthia near the Italian border, keeps Veronika as a pet and noticed that she occasionally played with sticks and used them to scratch her body. Continue reading...

Online ads that appeared before the holidays linked to a website featuring a photo of a woman hand-knitting a Christmas sweater.

YouTube video by Ronnie Friend

This hormone-fuelled tale of the training college for space voyagers is like Grange Hill, with phasers – and it has a female lead unlike any captain before

8 track album

One of the best-preserved ancient Roman homes on the Palatine Hill is opening to the public for the first time.

Exclusive: Some scientists say many detections are most likely error, with one high-profile study called a ‘joke’ High-profile studies reporting the presence of microplastics throughout the human body have been thrown into doubt by scientists who say the discoveries are probably the result of contamination and false positives. One chemist called the concerns “a bombshell”. Studies claiming to have revealed micro and nanoplastics in the brain, testes, placentas, arteries and elsewhere were reported by media across the world, including the Guardian. There is no doubt that plastic pollution of the natural world is ubiquitous, and present in the food and drink we consume and the air we breathe. But the health damage potentially caused by microplastics and the chemicals they contain is unclear, and an explosion of research has taken off in this area in recent years. Continue reading...

New research shows exercise is as effective as medication at reducing symptoms of depression. And you don't need to run a marathon to see benefits. So how much is enough?