World’s richest 1% emit as much carbon as bottom two-thirds: report
The richest one percent of the global population are responsible for the same amount of carbon emissions as the world’s poorest two-thirds, or five billion people, according to an analysis published Sunday by the nonprofit Oxfam International. ⌘ Read more

Experts warn ‘green growth’ in high income countries is not happening, call for ‘post-growth’ climate policies
The emission reductions in the 11 high-income countries that have “decoupled” CO2 emissions from Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fall far short of the reductions that are necessary to limit global warming to 1.5°C or even just to “well below 2°C” and comply with international fairness principles, as required by the Paris Agreement, according to a paper published in The Lancet Planetary Health j … ⌘ Read more

More human than human: Measuring ChatGPT political bias
The artificial intelligence platform ChatGPT shows a significant and systemic left-wing bias, according to a new study led by the University of East Anglia (UEA). The team of researchers in the UK and Brazil developed a rigorous new method to check for political bias. ⌘ Read more

Machine learning model sheds light on how brains recognize communication sounds
In a paper published today in Communications Biology, auditory neuroscientists at the University of Pittsburgh describe a machine learning model that helps explain how the brain recognizes the meaning of communication sounds, such as animal calls or spoken words. ⌘ Read more

‘Denoising’ a noisy ocean: Researchers use machine learning to listen for specific fish sounds
Come mating season, fishes off the California coast sing songs of love in the evenings and before sunrise. They vocalize not so much as lone crooners but in choruses, in some cases loud enough to be heard from land. It’s a technique of romance shared by frogs, insects, whales, and other animals when the time is right. ⌘ Read more

Neural network learns how to identify chromatid cohesion defects
Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have used machine learning to automate the identification of defects in sister chromatid cohesion. They trained a convolutional neural network (CNN) with microscopy images of individual stained chromosomes, identified by researchers as having or not having cohesion defects. After training, it was able to successfully classify 73.1% of new images. Automation promises better statistic … ⌘ Read more

Study examines potential use of machine learning for sustainable development of biomass
Biomass is widely considered a renewable alternative to fossil fuels, and many experts say it can play a critical role in combating climate change. Biomass stores carbon and can be turned into bio-based products and energy that can be used to improve soil, treat wastewater, and produce renewable feedstock. ⌘ Read more

Kangaroo fecal microbes could reduce methane from cows
Baby kangaroo feces might help provide an unlikely solution to the environmental problem of cow-produced methane. A microbial culture developed from the kangaroo feces inhibited methane production in a cow stomach simulator in a Washington State University study. ⌘ Read more

Messier 85’s complex globular cluster system explored by researchers
Using the Gemini North telescope, astronomers have conducted photometric and spectroscopic observations of a galaxy known as Messier 85. The observational campaign revealed more details about its complex globular cluster system. The findings are reported in a paper published January 5 on arXiv.org. ⌘ Read more

We’ve unveiled the waratah’s genetic secrets, helping preserve this Australian icon for the future
When the smoke cleared after the Black Summer bushfires of 2019-20, the bush surrounding the Blue Mountains Botanic Garden Mount Tomah was charred. Among the casualties was a NSW waratah, Telopea speciosissima, that had recently become the first of its species to have its genome sequenced. We have published this genome in the journal Molecular Ecology Resources. ⌘ Read more

Global firms fall short on forest protection vows: report
Global companies and financial institutions with the highest potential for curbing deforestation are largely failing to do so, undermining pledges to protect forests made at the COP26 climate summit in November, a report said Thursday. ⌘ Read more

Emotionally manipulative political ads fail at swaying new voters, but excel at ensuring party loyalty
Both Democrats and Republicans in US elections are more likely to be emotionally moved or angered by political advertising produced by the party to which they identify. This suggests that most ads today do little to sway the other side, but rather help motivate a party’s faithful to support a candidate through actions such as making a campaign donation or showing up at the ballot box. ⌘ Read more

Mosquitoes’ mating game discovery provides new clues to combat malaria
Male mosquitoes beat their wings faster when swarming at sunset to better detect females and increase their chance of reproducing, finds a novel study led by UCL scientists. ⌘ Read more

Microplastic pollution linger in rivers for years before entering oceans
Microplastics can deposit and linger within riverbeds for as long as seven years before washing into the ocean, a new study has found. ⌘ Read more

Using ion soft landing to solve hard energy problems
Every technology that runs our world requires energy on demand. Energy must be stored and be accessible to power electronic devices and light buildings. The wide range of devices that require energy on demand has led to the development of numerous strategies for storing energy. ⌘ Read more

Black hole in the center of the Milky Way unpredictable in the long term
The black hole at the center of the galaxy not only flares irregularly from day to day, but also in the long term. This was revealed by an analysis of 15 years of data by an international team of researchers led by Alexis Andres from El Salvador. Andres started his research in 2019 as a summer student at the University of Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and dug into it in the years that followed. The research is to be published … ⌘ Read more

Twelve for dinner: The Milky Way’s feeding habits shine a light on dark matter
Astronomers are one step closer to revealing the properties of dark matter enveloping our Milky Way galaxy, thanks to a new map of twelve streams of stars orbiting within our galactic halo. ⌘ Read more

Essential role of O2-bridged bicyclic compounds in formation of secondary organic aerosol
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are important precursors for secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. As a significant aromatic compound of VOC, 1,3,5-trimethylbenzene (1,3,5-TMB, C9H12) mainly comes from vehicle exhaust, solvent use and industrial emissions. The oxidation reaction of 1,3, 5-trimethylbenzene is mainly initiated by hydroxyl radical (OH) in atmosphere. ⌘ Read more

Underwater noise pollution in Yangtze River threatens porpoises and fish
Although the Yangtze River has a high biodiversity and is a key river for global biodiversity conservation, little attention has been paid to underwater noise pollution in the world’s busiest inland river in terms of shipping. ⌘ Read more

First fossil pods of genus Mucuna in legume family discovered in northern Vietnam
Mucuna is a pantropical genus with approximately 105 extant species of climbing lianas (vines) and shrubs in the legume family (Fabaceae), the third-largest family of flowering plants. Although the genus Mucuna is well represented in modern tropical regions, fossil records of this genus are limited and hence relatively poorly studied. ⌘ Read more

Investigating benthic marine redox conditions from late Permian to earliest Triassic
Researchers from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NGIPAS), China University of Mining and Technology and Nanjing University revealed benthic marine redox conditions and driving mechanisms from Late Permian to the earliest Triassic at Shangsi, South China through high-resolution sedimentological and ichnological studies. ⌘ Read more

Highly efficient dye-sensitized, lanthanide-doped, upconversion luminescent nanoprobes
Lanthanide (Ln3+)-doped upconversion (UC) nanocrystals (NCs) have attracted considerable interest due to their superior optical features. Unfortunately, the relatively low luminescence intensity is a major drawback that seriously hinders their practical applications. ⌘ Read more

Plants rely on the CLASSY gene family to diversify their epigenomes
What determines how a cell’s genome is regulated to ensure proper growth and development? Turns out, the parts of the genome that are turned on or off in each cell-type or tissue play a major role in this process. Now, a team at Salk has shown that the CLASSY gene family regulates which parts of the genome are turned off in a tissue-specific manner. The CLASSYs essentially control where the genome is marked by DNA methylatio … ⌘ Read more

Coastal ecosystem being destabilized by climate change, study shows
Ecological communities on the Oregon coast are being subtly destabilized by the pressures of climate change despite giving an appearance of stress resistance, new research by Oregon State University shows. ⌘ Read more

Invasive species ‘hitchhiking’ on tourist and research ships threaten Antarctica’s unique ecosystems
Marine life hitching a ride on ocean-crossing ships poses a threat to Antarctica’s pristine ecosystems, with the potential for invasive species to arrive from almost anywhere across the globe, say the authors of a new study. ⌘ Read more