Science News Roundup: Elon Musk expects Neuralink's brain chip to begin human trials in 6 months; 'Amazing' goose-necked dinosaur was built like a diving bird and more

It was one of only four examples - and the first since 2011 - of a black hole observed in the act of tearing apart a passing star in what is called a tidal disruption event and then launching luminous jets of high-energy particles in opposite directions into space, researchers said.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

Elon Musk expects Neuralink's brain chip to begin human trials in 6 months

Elon Musk said on Wednesday he expects a wireless brain chip developed by his company Neuralink to begin human clinical trials in six months, after the company missed earlier timelines set by him. The company is developing brain chip interfaces that it says could help disabled patients to move and communicate again, with Musk adding on Wednesday it will also target restoring vision.

'Amazing' goose-necked dinosaur was built like a diving bird

The expansive dinosaur group that included big predators such as T. rex also was populated by a number of oddballs, weirdos and outcasts. A newly described dinosaur from Mongolia - the size of a goose and looking a bit like one, too - fits that description. The dinosaur, called Natovenator polydontus, lived about 72 million years ago during the Cretaceous Period and was built like a diving bird with a streamlined body while possessing a goose-like elongated neck and a long flattened snout with a mouth bearing more than 100 small teeth, scientists said on Thursday. It almost surely was covered in feathers, they added.

Scientists build 'baby' wormhole as sci-fi moves closer to fact

In science fiction - think films and TV like "Interstellar" and "Star Trek" - wormholes in the cosmos serve as portals through space and time for spacecraft to traverse unimaginable distances with ease. If only it were that simple. Scientists have long pursued a deeper understanding of wormholes and now appear to be making progress. Researchers announced on Wednesday that they forged two miniscule simulated black holes - those extraordinarily dense celestial objects with gravity so powerful that not even light can escape - in a quantum computer and transmitted a message between them through what amounted to a tunnel in space-time.

Distant black hole is caught in the act of annihilating a star

Astronomers have detected an act of extreme violence more than halfway across the known universe as a black hole shreds a star that wandered too close to this celestial savage. But this was no ordinary instance of a ravenous black hole. It was one of only four examples - and the first since 2011 - of a black hole observed in the act of tearing apart a passing star in what is called a tidal disruption event and then launching luminous jets of high-energy particles in opposite directions into space, researchers said. And it was both the furthest and brightest such event on record.

(With inputs from agencies.)