Quickly detecting a lone electron is a difficult task agsandrew/Shutterstock We can now detect single electrons with the resolution of a few trillionths of a second, and this could prove essential for building a new generation of quantum electronic devices. Traditional electronic circuits are filled with many electrons, but interactions between these particles often diminish…

Movie night might mean more than you think South_agency/Getty Images Strangers are more likely to become friends if their brains respond similarly to movie clips, suggesting neural activity can predict relationships. Across cultures, humans tend to surround themselves with like-minded people. This phenomenon, known as homophily, explains why past studies have found neural similarities amongst…

The herpes virus can help treat severe skin cancer Science Photo Library/Alamy Viruses have shown huge potential in treating various kinds of cancer, but the immune response has limited their application to tumours near the body’s surface. Now, scientists have demonstrated that shielding viruses with genetically engineered bacteria bypasses this issue, slowing the growth of…