Could some of the mysterious dark matter shaping galaxies actually be made of black holes?

New research is drawing an important distinction. A study reported this week finds that extraordinarily large “stupendously large black holes” cannot make up a major fraction of dark matter. But another theoretical model proposes something even more unusual: ancient black holes may have survived from a cosmic phase before the Big Bang.

The idea remains unproven, but researchers say future observations of gravitational waves and the cosmic microwave background could help test it.

The universe may have a much stranger history than we once imagined. 🌌

🎵 Can music change how we experience taste? A new brain-imaging study finds that combining music with sweet or sour tastes changes activity in several brain regions. Sweet-associated music also increased pleasantness ratings in one comparison, although the results do not prove that music makes complete meals taste better.

The findings reveal a fascinating connection between sound and taste—and why more research is needed to understand how music shapes our sensory experiences.

Global markets were mixed on October 23 as AI-related stock losses and rising oil prices shaped investor sentiment. Nvidia, Meta and Tesla fell on Thursday, while Unifi’s technical indicators, Constellium’s earnings outlook and Eni’s stronger results and higher buyback target offered separate company-specific developments.

Read the full stock-market update for the key figures, risks and outlook.

What if you could smell something through the internet? 👃🌐

Scientists have developed Scentronic, an AI-assisted system that can detect selected odors, transmit their digital information online and recreate recognizable scent cues through a wearable device.

The researchers tested coffee, beer, red wine, cake and orange, and also demonstrated a digital cup that combines smell and taste inside a mixed-reality experience.

The technology is still limited — it does not reproduce every smell's full chemical composition — but the study shows how the internet could eventually carry information from one of our most overlooked senses.

Could smell become part of the next generation of digital communication?

AI hardware may be taking inspiration from the brain to tackle one of modern computing’s biggest challenges: moving huge amounts of data between memory and processors.

A new Advanced Functional Materials review examines emerging post-CMOS artificial neurons built with technologies such as memristors, spintronic devices, phase-change materials and ferroelectric transistors.

Some experimental devices have demonstrated remarkably low reported energy per spike, but major challenges remain before these technologies can reach large-scale commercial systems.

The goal is promising: build computing hardware that processes information more like biological neural networks while reducing energy and data-movement demands.