Geologists hail 'Zealandia' – the lost continent the size of India beneath the sea
The '8th continent' is 5m km2 in size but only just visible above sea level.
30,000 excess deaths linked to NHS and social care cuts
Death rates in 2015 were higher than previous years, with a larger than usual spike in January.
Emotions are generated by the conscious brain, not the subconscious
A new theory of emotion overturns established view of where feelings arise in the brain.
The world's oceans are slowly losing their oxygen, expanding 'dead zones'
Climate change is thought to be the main driver for the steady loss of oxygen from the seas.
Paradox of the 'iceberg armadas' in the depths of the last Ice Age resolved
Understanding how ice sheets behaved during the Ice Age can refine our predictions of how fast Antarctica will melt with climate change.
Malaria vaccine with chemically weakened parasite cells shows full protection at 10 weeks
In a trial, recipients of the highest dose of PfSPZ-CVac developed full immunity.
California: Ventura fault capable of devastating earthquakes and tsunamis
Earthquakes generated at the fault could be as large as magnitude 8.
Transylvania: Mystery body unearthed buried face down holding five huge coins
The high-status man was buried more than 100 years ago in an unusually careless way.
Endangered green turtle numbers only half of official estimates
Despite revised estimate of green turtle populations, their number is steadily growing
Why you can never find your keys when they're right in front of you
We're not very efficient at searching for things but a few 'super-searchers' defy the trend.
China: Heavily pregnant dinosaur-like reptile fossil discovered
The find is the first in its group – which includes dinosaurs – to have given birth to live young.
There's a massive lake of liquid carbon sitting under Yellowstone
Estimates of the total amount of carbon held on Earth may have to be revised upwards.
Sierra Leone: Ebola 'superspreaders' accounted for over 60% of cases
Understanding people and contexts which increase the risk of superspreading could help contain future epidemics.
Changes to Earth's magnetic field recorded in 600-year-old Judean pottery
As ceramics cooled, the magnetic minerals in them would align with the geomagnetic field.
Deepest ocean trenches full of toxins outlawed in 1970s
Polluting chemicals used as flame retardants are concentrating in the most remote parts of the ocean.
Racists are assumed to be sexist and sexists assumed racist
People in one stigmatised group feel threatened by prejudice directed at a different group.
How rebel monkeys start huge fights and others police them
It only takes a few macaques to create mayhem, if they manage to evade the monkey police.
ISS: Rare blue jet lightning that shoots upwards into space filmed in amazing detail
Astronauts at the International Space Station capture lightning above an enormous thundercloud.
South-east Asia: Sea levels could rise 'much higher and more quickly' risking 100m homes
Natural weather and climate phenomena caused historic sudden sea level changes.
Black Mirror coming true? Tiny drones to replace bees as pollinators in Japan
A sticky gel and animal hairs attached to a miniature drone is a step towards artificial pollination.
Overfishing and climate change trapping African penguin in population spiral
The clues the penguins use to find food are no longer fitting in warmer, over-fished seas.
Italy: Ancient death rituals uncovered in 13,000-year-old painting stones
The stones were broken to destroy their symbolic power, but the fragments were treasured.
Just how wrong is our map of the world?
It is impossible to map a round world on a flat surface without some serious distortions.
Israel: 12th Dead Sea Scroll cave of Qumran discovered
Archaeologists found a fragment of parchment tucked away in a corner of the cave.
Three strange new uranium minerals discovered in Utah's abandoned mines
The minerals leesite, leószilárdite and redcanyonite are forms of 'uranium rust'.
Great Barrier Reef: 27m high tsunami caused world's biggest underwater landslide
300,000-year-old corals stretching for 20km tell the story of the historic event.
Great Dying could have been caused by stirring up sulphides from the deep oceans
Sulphides are toxic to marine life at concentrations of just a few hundred parts per million.
Martian mystery deepens as Curiosity rover finds CO2 levels not high enough for liquid water
NASA scientists say that a greenhouse gas effect from carbon dioxide couldn't have warmed Mars enough to melt its ice.
What are armyworms and why are they so harmful?
Armyworms are a crop pest native in the Americas but have recently become an invasive species in Africa.
'Climategate 2' allegations don't stand up to scrutiny
A 2015 paper finding that there was no 'global warming hiatus' has been verified in independent studies.
