Featured news
Published on 20 Aug 2026
Warming waters draw summer ‘feeding frenzies’ by whales off Greenland
Schools of baleen whales now feast regularly on capelin in rapidly warming Greenland Sea
Social science
Published on 21 Aug 2026
The hidden high costs of ‘free-to-play’ videogames show players need better protection, scientists say
We know playing slot machines can trigger uncontrolled spending and addictive behaviors in some people. But what about paid-for features in ‘free-to-play’ games? Microtransactions like loot boxes or paid progression within a game can add up quickly and easily. In their new article in Frontiers in Public Health, Dr Markus Meschik and his colleagues investigate who spends the most among children playing these games, and how the heaviest spenders are affected, showing higher rates of traits associated with gambling disorder and gaming disorder. In this guest editorial, Meschik and coauthor Dr Mark Griffiths break down the hidden threat of microtransactions, and how regulation could tackle it.
Featured news
Published on 18 Aug 2026
Ancient Egyptian tomb shows how burial trends changed over hundreds of years
Placement of mummies in a Theban tomb – from individual placement to stacking of bodies – shows how burial practices and their symbolic implications changed over time
Featured news
Published on 13 Aug 2026
New fossil evidence challenges the story of mammalian birth
The microscopic structure of fossilized bones helps solve ‘inscrutable mystery’ about the reproduction of ancestor of true mammals
