Nicola Williams

Nicola Williams

Live Science Contributor

Nicola Williams holds a PhD in the History of Science from the University of Leeds, U.K. and currently works as a science writer across an array of subject areas broadly spanning, but not limited to, biology, physics, medicine and technology. 

Latest articles by Nicola Williams

A man holding a test tube with a reddish substance inside (left), a close up photo of the mineral-like substance (right)

'Holy grail' of solar technology set to consign 'unsustainable silicon' to history

By Nicola Williams published

Solar energy breakthrough sees scientists stabilize perovskite crystals for use in future solar panels, promising more efficient and sustainable green technology.

Engineering
Portrait of a male common chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes).

Y chromosome is evolving faster than the X, primate study reveals

By Nicola Williams published

The male Y chromosome in humans is evolving faster than the X. Scientists have now discovered the same trend in six species of primate.

Evolution
Photo of a silverback gorilla walking on all fours in a field in front of trees, looking into the camera.

The same genetic mutations behind gorillas' small penises may hinder fertility in men

By Nicola Williams published

Scientists have used the gorilla genome to probe for previously unknown genes that may contribute to infertility in men.

Genetics
Iridogorgia magnispiralis, a deep-sea octocorals that are known to be bioluminescent.

Glow-in-the-dark creatures appeared in Earth's oceans 540 million years ago

By Nicola Williams published

Bioluminescence traces back to the Cambrian era — 540 million years ago — and could have been used for communication, courtship and camouflage among the earliest ocean creatures.

Animals
white woman in a blue surgical gown laying down as she's sliding into an MRI scanner

AI pinpoints where psychosis originates in the brain

By Nicola Williams published

Scientists have moved a step closer to understanding the basis of the hallucinations and delusions that characterize schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Mind
close up of the face of a Rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) pictured outside

New 'atlas' of a monkey brain maps 4.2 million cells

By Nicola Williams published

Scientists have published a new atlas of a primate brain with single-cell resolution.

Neuroscience