Latest Stories
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Cliffs, caves and monsters in Minecraft update
Is Minecraft good for us? Last week, fans tuned in to learn about its exciting new plans for next year. Now there is a fierce debate about how much time we should spend glued to our screens.
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All aboard! The hydrogen revolution is here
Could hydrogen be the fuel of the future? A growing number of trains, cars and buses are running on the element. Experts think it has the power to change our transport systems forever.
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The sinister rise of ‘deepfake’ videos
Are “deepfakes” a threat to democracy? In an online video, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg lays out his plan for world domination. However, it is not really him. The video is a fake.
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The smart speakers that know if you’re sick
Would you trust Alexa to diagnose you when you’re sick? Experts predict that, within 10 years, smart speakers will be able to detect illnesses by listening to our behaviour. But what about our...
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‘Smart skin’ makes virtual touch a reality
Should touch become digital? A new thin, wireless skin could allow us to reach through a computer and touch what is on the other side. Is it wonderful or disturbing?
- Science
- Reading Band 14+
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The living robot! Part-frog, part-machine
Using the cells of a frog and artificial intelligence, scientists have made a creature small enough to travel inside a human body. Half-machine, half-animal, it is an entirely new life form.
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Why we need to teach robots to be good
Artificial intelligence is taking over more and more of the boring jobs in life. It is incredibly useful. But now that robots take so many decisions for us, they need to be moral as well.
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Humans ‘could feel at home’ on new alien planet
Have we found another Earth? Astronomers have discovered a distant planet previously missed by telescopes. The exoplanet has many of the properties needed to make a second home in space.
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Epic inventions fight climate crisis
As Earth Day celebrates its 50th birthday, the climate crisis is a global environmental problem. But the new technology being developed to combat the emergency is something worth celebrating.
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Welcome to the planet where it rains iron
Scientists may have discovered the most extreme climate yet. This distant gas giant has exotic weather featuring heat of more than 2,000C, ultra-high winds, and iron rain!
- Science
- Technology
- Reading Band 8
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Daring mission to find life on Mars
It’s official! A new American mission will launch next year. It will fly to the Red Planet to search for signs of life. If there ARE little green men up there, we will soon find them.
- Science
- Technology
- Reading Band 14+
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Science and engineering ‘can save the world’
As a special science week starts, the world faces many environmental challenges. Scientists and engineers seem most likely to find the answers. But will they succeed?
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Why driverless cars will be the end of an era
Has your family bought its last car? According to BBC journalist Justin Rowlatt, the answer maybe yes. He argues that electric, self-driving vehicles will soon make owning cars pointless.
- Technology
- Science
- Reading Band 14+
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The bold plan to build a new home on the Moon
Would you want to live on the Moon? Fifty years since we first walked on the Moon, humanity is considering going back — this time to stay. What would life on a Moon base be like?
- Science
- Reading Band 14+
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Artificial stars could redesign the night sky
The night sky is already filled with light from street lights, planes and satellites, making it difficult to star gaze. Some warn that if businesses are allowed near the sky, we may lose sight...
- Technology
- Reading Band 11