NASA plans to bring Crew-11 home from the International Space Station soon because an astronaut is having a serious medical issue.

The great tragedy of the settled climate science era, now facing increased scrutiny, is the draining of public confidence in once revered scientific institutions. Covid was hardly a high point in m... Read more The great tragedy of the settled climate science era, now facing increased scrutiny, is the draining of public confidence in once revered scientific institutions. Covid was hardly a high point in medical science, while climate fear mongering is in danger of becoming a social joke. ‘Boiling’ oceans and constant risible records are mixed with obvious pseudoscience such as human ‘attribution’ claims. The blast from Hunga Tonga may well help in blowing away much of this fake news for good. Show less

  Rhododendron mulunense  Y.S.Huang & X.X.Mao,in Hou, Huang, Luo, Chen et Mao, 2026.木论杜鹃  ||  DOI: doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.269.175011 &n... Read more   Rhododendron mulunense  Y.S.Huang & X.X.Mao,in Hou, Huang, Luo, Chen et Mao, 2026.木论杜鹃  ||  DOI: doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.269.175011   AbstractRhododendron mulunense, a new species of Rhododendron (Ericaceae) within subsect. Maddenia in sect. Rhododendron and endemic to karst areas of Guangxi and Guizhou Province, SW China, is described and illustrated. The new species most closely resembles R. wumingense, particularly in scale density on the abaxial leaf surface and in flower color and shape, but can be readily distinguished by its hairless shoots and leaves, larger tubular-funneled corolla, and longer and thinner white tube flushed with pink. According to the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, the threatened status of the new species is assessed as “Endangered, EN C2a(i), D.” We provide detailed documentation of its morphological characteristics, geographical distribution, digitized holotype voucher, and comparative photographs, along with a diagnostic table. An identification key is provided as a primary tool to enable taxonomic discrimination of this species from its congeners.Key words: Conservation, morphology, Rhododendron mulunense, Rhododendron wumingense, taxonomyRhododendron mulunense. A. The habitat of this new species in type localities; B. Flowering plants; C. Leaves; D–F. Flowering branchlets, inflorescences, and flowers; G, H. Dissection of corolla; I. Flower buds; J. Stamens and style; K. Styles and ovaries; L. Dissection of ovary; M. Stigmas; N. Poorly developed stamens; O. Normal stamens; P, Q. Anther abaxial and adaxial surface; R. Tube base; S. Flower bud scales; T. Dehiscent capsule. Photographs by Yu-Song Huang. Rhododendron mulunense Y.S.Huang & X.X.Mao, sp. nov.Diagnosis. Resembles Rhododendron wumingense Fang but distinguishable by the absence of indumentum on young shoots, leaf margins, and petioles (vs. sparsely setose), longer and larger leaves (4.2–7.4 × 2.3–3.8 vs. 3.5–4.5 × 1.8–2.4 cm), relatively sparser scales on abaxial leaf surfaces (1–4 vs. 1–3 × their own diameter apart), corollas that are tubular funneled (vs. broadly funneled), longer and wider (5.9–7.5 × 4.7–7 vs. 3.1–4.5 × 3.3–4.9 cm) with slender tubes (2.9–3.9 × 0.5–1.2 vs. 1.9–2.5 × 1.7–2.4 cm), outer surface of corolla tubes white flushed with pink (vs. yellowish green) and pubescent but not scaly (vs. sparsely scaly and hairless) (Figs 1, 2, 4; Table 1).Etymology. The specific epithet of this newly described species refers to its type localities at Guangxi Mulun National Nature Reserve, part of the South China Karst landscape registered in UNESCO’s World Heritage List.Vernacular name. Simplified Chinese: 木论杜鹃; Chinese pinyin: mù lùn dù juān.Ying Hou, Yu-Song Huang, Liu-Juan Luo, Zheng-Ren Chen, Xing-Xing Mao. 2026. Rhododendron mulunense (Ericaceae), A New Species from the Karst Mountains of Guangxi and Guizhou Provinces, China. PhytoKeys. 269: 99-112. DOI: doi.org/10.3897/phytokeys.269.175011  [08-01-2026] Show less

JASON WILCOX has likened his role to the manager behind the scenes at Manchester United. Director of football Wilcox’s description of his position at the club infuriated former coach Ruben Amorim. ... Read more JASON WILCOX has likened his role to the manager behind the scenes at Manchester United. Director of football Wilcox’s description of his position at the club infuriated former coach Ruben Amorim. Training ground sources say Wilcox billed himself as “like a manager” and stressed that Amorim was the coach. It is unclear whether Wilcox told... Show less

In 1902, President Teddy Roosevelt instructed his US Department of Agriculture to create a set of nutrition guidelines for a population that was gaining increased access to more foods, thanks to ra... Read more In 1902, President Teddy Roosevelt instructed his US Department of Agriculture to create a set of nutrition guidelines for a population that was gaining increased access to more foods, thanks to railways, but were more and more often in cities.Wilbur Olin Atwater, Ph.D., did just that, and it was great, and we could have stopped there. Yet that is not the way of government. His recommendations were entirely sensible. Think about calories first. Eat meat and vegetables, limit fatty and carbohydrate foods. It was immensely popular but popularity breeds jealousy and now a desire by scholars to 'make their mark on history' and feel proud they have changed the world every five years.read more Show less

Coelotes fani Zhou, in Wang, Jiang et Zhou, 2026.  DOI: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.14.e178386AbstractBackground: The genus Coelotes Blackwall, 1841, ... Read more Coelotes fani Zhou, in Wang, Jiang et Zhou, 2026.  DOI: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.14.e178386AbstractBackground: The genus Coelotes Blackwall, 1841, comprises 156 species, primarily distributed in East Asia, including Japan (64 species), China (56 species) and Korea (1 species). Currently, only two species of this genus have been recorded in Guangxi, China.New information: A new coelotine species, Coelotes fani Zhou, sp. nov. (♂♀), is described from the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China. This includes a detailed description, diagnosis, illustrations and a distribution map of this species.Keywords: Asia, coelotine spiders, distribution, morphology, taxonomyCoelotes fani Zhou, sp. nov. Hegui Wang, Runze Jiang, Guchun Zhou. 2026. A New Species of Coelotes Blackwall, 1841 (Araneae, Agelenidae, Coelotinae) from Huaping National Nature Reserve, northeast Guangxi, southern China. Biodiversity Data Journal. 14: e178386.  DOI: doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.14.e178386 [09 Jan 2026] Show less

MANCHESTER UNITED have joined the race for Blackburn Rovers wonderkid Igor Tyjon. The England youth international, 17, has turned down the chance to sign a professional contract at Ewood Park after... Read more MANCHESTER UNITED have joined the race for Blackburn Rovers wonderkid Igor Tyjon. The England youth international, 17, has turned down the chance to sign a professional contract at Ewood Park after a host of Prem clubs came calling. Blackburn have repeatedly tried to tie the English striker down over the course of this season, but... Show less