Over 100,000 people in the US alone are waiting for a kidney transplant. One possible solution to the donor shortage may be to grow human kidneys in pigs by first creating human-pig hybrid embryos New Scientist newscientist.com/article/239107…

Hurrah!!

Loved this Friday essay: homesick for ourselves – the hidden grief of ageing theconversation.com/friday-essay-h… The Conversation - Australia + New Zealand

Rare and prized pink diamonds found in Western Australia emerged when a supercontinent broke up around 1.3 billion years ago. Understanding how these formed could help to find precious hidden deposits buried elsewhere. newscientist.com/article/239251…

In the future, bulletproof vests and surgical thread could be made by genetically engineered silkworms producing pure spider silk. newscientist.com/article/239273…

Mice with partial rat brains have been born from hybrid embryos, marking the first time that the brain of one species has been grown in another from the embryonic stage. newscientist.com/article/239234…

The greater broad-nosed bat mostly lives along the coast and foothills of New South Wales, Australia. It was thought to mainly eat insects, but an analysis of its droppings has found remains of other bats. newscientist.com/article/239335…

What a beauty! Check out the New Scientist #microbiome special newscientist.com/article/239530…

Did you know that you share 12% of your gut microbes with the people you live with? And that couples exchange 80 million bacteria on average during a 10-second kiss? Read more in our New Scientist special on the microbiome this week. newscientist.com/article/239538…

It's standard in the UK, US and Australia to kill male chickens from egg-laying breeds as soon as they hatch as they can't lay eggs so offer no commercial value. Europe, however, is now screening egg sex so males can be terminated before they hatch. newscientist.com/article/239478…

We are looking for an Australian-based news reporter at New Scientist to cover me for 12 months while I'm on maternity leave. Can be done from anywhere in Australia: jobs.newscientist.com/job/1401918475…

📢Space reporters 📢 I'm light on space news stories atm so very open to pitches. Drop me a line on [email protected] if you've got something you'd like to write for New Scientist. You can see the sort of thing we do here (tagged news) newscientist.com/subject/space/

Climate change may be improving the quality of Bordeaux wines by increasing the frequency of wet winters and hot, dry summers, which assist the growth and flavour development of grapes. But there is a limit newscientist.com/article/239669…

73% of South Australia's electricity now comes from solar and wind - the highest proportion of any major grid in the world. I visited to find out how they've achieved this clean energy transition in such a short time and what lessons they can give us. newscientist.com/article/mg2603…

The world has made real progress in bending down the curve of future emissions. While we remain far from on track to meet our climate goals, the positive steps we’ve made should reinforce that progress is possible and despair is counterproductive. carbonbrief.org/analysis-globa…

A new bowel cancer screening test that analyses RNA in your poo is more accurate than existing stool tests (like those mailed to older adults in UK/Australia) while being cheaper + more convenient than a colonoscopy. It has been submitted for FDA approval. newscientist.com/article/239997…

Mammal embryos must separate early on into 2 cell types that become the fetus & placenta. It was unclear whether this would be possible in space due to the low gravity, but an experiment on the ISS shows it is, hinting pregnancy may be possible in space. newscientist.com/article/239906…

Genital herpes has been linked to accelerated shrinkage of the outermost layer of the brain, which may raise the risk of cognitive decline or even Alzheimer's disease. newscientist.com/article/240254…

An electronic pill that monitors your breathing and heart rate from inside your gut could help to detect sleep apnoea and even opioid overdoses. newscientist.com/article/240336…

What a thrill to win the UK Medical Journalists' Association's award for cancer reporting for my New Scientist piece on genetically-engineered bacteria for treating cancer: tinyurl.com/2rc5rn74 Thanks Medical Journalists' Association and editor Alison George! #MJAAwards