This week, almost 90 percent of US adults have at least one risk factor for a newly defined medical condition, the ancient Jomon of Japan might be one of the only groups of people outside Africa who had virtually no Denisovan DNA, and Iceland records its first-ever sighting of mosquitos in the country, meaning there’s only one place left on Earth that’s mosquito-free. Finally, we take a look at Dorset’s “wind phone” to find out if talking to the dead can really help with grief.
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Potential Environmental Trigger For Autism Identified, But Don’t Expect MAHA Action
A study of more than 2 million children has found that autism is more common among those whose mothers were exposed to raised sulfate or ammonium pollution during pregnancy. Exposure to ozone early in life was also a factor. The rate of increase was modest, indicating none of these was the largest factor in autism diagnosis. Nevertheless, the association in a study of this size is much more evidence than has ever been found for childhood vaccines or Tylenol, but similar responses are unlikely. Read the full story here
Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS’s Tail Appears To Have Changed Direction
New observations from the Nordic Optical Telescope, in the Canary Islands, Spain, suggest that 3I/ATLAS’s unusual anti-solar tail has changed direction, becoming dominated by a tail that faces away from the Sun. “If the object is an alien spacecraft slowing down, and the anti-tail is braking thrust, then this change from anti-tail to tail would be entirely expected near perihelion,” Avi Loeb wrote, but there is a better explanation. Read the full story here
Up To 90 Percent Of People Have This Health Condition. Just As Many Have Never Heard Of It
Almost 90 percent of US adults have at least one risk factor for a newly defined medical condition – but just as many, nine in 10, have never heard of it before. The American Heart Association hopes to change that by raising awareness of the condition, called cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic (CKM) syndrome. Read the full story here
This Is One Of The Only Groups Of People Outside Africa Who Had Virtually No Denisovan DNA
Pleistocene humans were more than happy to get into bed with Neanderthals and Denisovans, which is why most of us now carry DNA from these extinct species. However, there’s one group of prehistoric people in Japan that appears to have missed out on all the inter-hominin debauchery, giving rise to an ancient community with strangely low levels of Denisovan ancestry. Read the full story here
Only One Place On Earth Now Remains Mosquito-Free As Iceland Records First-Ever Sighting
There are all sorts of things that can ruin a vacation, from missed flights, to food poisoning, and even fights for sun-loungers. Mosquitoes can also cause all kinds of problems, so those looking to escape the noisy pest might choose cooler climes to avoid them. Unfortunately, Iceland might now be off that list as entomologists confirm the presence of mosquitoes on the island. Read the full story here
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Feature of the week:
Wind Phones: Does Talking To The Dead Really Help With Grief?
When someone close to us dies, it can be very hard to adapt to a new world in which that special person isn’t in it. People have reported seeing their loved ones and even speaking to them after they’ve gone, sometimes called “after-death communications” (ADCs). The idea has led to a new red phone box in Dorset that has no connection to a telephone line. Why? Because it’s a “wind phone”. Read the full story here
More content:
Have you seen our e-magazine, CURIOUS? Issue 39, October 2025, is available now. This month, we asked, “What Actually Is Fear?” – check it out for exclusive interviews, book excerpts, long reads, and more.
PLUS, the We Have Questions podcast – an audio version of our coveted CURIOUS e-magazine column – continues. In episode 14, we ask, “Can Burying Scientists Alive In The Snow Help Us Protect Polar Bears?”
The Big Questions podcast has returned, and we’re continuing season 5 with episode 10’s big question: Why Do People Believe In The Paranormal?