Baby's accent

A recent study into babies' cries has shown that a foetus can pick up its mother's accent in the late stages of pregnancy. The work by a team in Germany, led by Dr Kathleen Wermke, shows that newborns cry in their own regional accent. Adam Walton asks Dr Wermke how she made the discovery and it's significance in language development.

Dark secret

If you were to combine every planet, every star and every galaxy together, it would only fill 5 per cent of the known Universe. So what fills the other 95 per cent? A recent study by an international team of astronomers has provided further evidence for the theory that so called 'dark matter' and 'dark energy' make-up the vast majority of the Universe. Professor Walter Gear, who is head of the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University, lead the research and explains the results.

Alien view

Recently the Vatican's own scientific academy, the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, has been discussing astrobiology. It's a rare excursion, for this esteemed religious body, into the contemplation of life elsewhere in the Universe. A regular contributor to BBC Wales, the Rev Lionel Fanthorpe tells Adam why he can embrace the idea of other worlds and other creatures created by God.

Gadget divide

A helpline service set up to guide those of us bewildered by technology has found that men and women approach gadgets and appliances in a very different way. Crispin Thomas of The Gadget Helpline told Adam that women were more likely to read the instruction manual before calling, and would listened to their helpers for longer. The men made shorter calls - but called back more freguently. Generally, men found it more difficult to ask for help. Now anyone who's shared a car journey with a man could have told you that!