Your nearest psychopath might be your father-in-law, your boss, your financial adviser or even that guy your daughter is thinking about dating.

The most untruthful people are likely to look you straight in the eye and give confident, thought-out replies, research claims.

Scientists just can't agree on whether video games will save you or kill you.

Parents, we report, are being urged to read to their kids over the holidays, or ensure they keep reading, to maintain their mental development.

Scientists have demonstrated how robots can learn much like tots do.

Experts meet in Washington to set out a safe path ahead for technology that could lead to designer babies.

New Zealand boosted its efforts in the field with the opening of AUT University's state-of-the-art neurocomputing lab - the NeuLab.

Pacific Edge widened its first-half loss, spending more on the roll-out of products across America.

A research agenda focused on tackling the biggest issues facing New Zealand has been praised by the visiting head of one of France's largest research institutes.

A test that spots one of the deadliest female cancers with unprecedented accuracy has been developed by scientists.

Smoking cannabis during pregnancy produces infants who score better on one measure of brain development, according to a study of NZ children.

Scientists in Australia have replicated a sticky brown prehistoric "goo", believed to be the source of life on Earth, and discovered it has significant health benefits.

Drinking three to five cups of coffee a day might help you live longer.

Humans who have had their DNA genetically modified could exist within two years after a private biotech company announced plans to start the first trials into a ground-breaking new technique.

The rugby party continues as we welcome home the All Blacks with their newly- engraved Webb Ellis cup.

The spuds Matt Damon's stranded astronaut Mark Watney grew in The Martian may be closer to science fact than science fiction, say Kiwi and Australian researchers.

Researchers are attempting to go inside the minds of infants to get a baby's-eye-view of the first years of life.

Clergymen attempting to prove claims that a skull found in a Worcestershire church vault is that of William Shakespeare have been thwarted by a senior church lawyer who has barred them from carrying....

Family members could be kept alive forever virtually so living relatives could interact with their avatars, an academic has suggested.

The Herald's science writer Jamie Morton on this week's scientific breakthroughs.

Designer babies is getting closer to reality as scientists in China claim they're the first to use gene editing to create "designer dogs."

Women using IVF are a third more likely to develop ovarian cancer, the biggest study of fertility treatment in the world has discovered.

A set of 47 human teeth found in China is giving scientists food for thought.

Cryonics: The preservation of animals and humans at ultra-cold temperatures is booming in the US, notwithstanding the $100,000 minimum price tag.

Pig organs could soon be transplanted into human patients after Harvard University scientists found a way to genetically modify pig DNA to be more compatible with humans.

It's been called the "Genghis Khan" of the ant world, and for good reason.

Deleting a gene could extend life by up to 60 per cent, say scientists.

Controversial findings by scientists suggest that some boys turn homosexual during childhood because of genetic changes triggered by their environment.

A team of researchers discovered the hog-nosed rat during a expedition in a remote and mountainous area of Indonesia two years ago.

A new study published this week challenges that notion and puts forth a theory that the 'high' feeling joggers experience can be known as a 'self-produced marijuana'.