New interactive atlas of water scarcity solutions in the US Southwest shares a library of case studies to help adapt to drought

Experienced exam markers may struggle to spot answers generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI), researchers have found.   The study was conducted at the University of Reading, UK, where university leaders are working to identify potential risks and opportunities of AI for research, teaching, learning, and assessment, with updated advice already issued to staff and students as a result of their findings.   The researchers are calling for the global education sector to follow the example of Reading, and others who are also forming new ...

Whether it’s a first-time visit to a zoo or when we learned to ride a bicycle, we have memories from our childhoods kept well into adult years. But what explains how these memories last nearly an entire lifetime?  A new study in the journal Science Advances, conducted by a team of international researchers, has uncovered a biological explanation for long-term memories. It centers on the discovery of the role of a molecule, KIBRA, that serves as a “glue” to other molecules, thereby solidifying memory formation. “Previous efforts to understand ...

North Carolina State University researchers have developed a kirigami-inspired mechanical computer that uses a complex structure of rigid, interconnected polymer cubes to store, retrieve and erase data without relying on electronic components. The system also includes a reversible feature that allows users to control when data editing is permitted and when data should be locked in place. Mechanical computers are computers that operate using mechanical components rather than electronic ones. Historically, these mechanical components have been things like levers or gears. However, mechanical computers can also be made using structures that are multistable, meaning ...

Genova (Italy), 26 June 2024 – Researchers at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT-Italian Institute of Technology) have demonstrated that under specific conditions, humans can treat robots as co-authors of the results of their actions. The condition that enables this phenomenon is that a robot behaves in a human-like, social manner. Engaging in gaze contact and participating in a common emotional experience, such as watching a movie, are the key. The study was published in Science Robotics and paves the way for understanding and designing the optimal circumstances for humans and robots to collaborate in the same environment. The ...

Scientists at the University of Konstanz in Germany have advanced ultrafast electron microscopy to unprecedented time resolution. Reporting in Science Advances, the research team presents a method for the all-optical control, compression, and characterization of electron pulses within a transmission electron microscope using terahertz light. Additionally, the researchers have discovered substantial anti-correlations in the time domain for two-electron and three-electron states, providing deeper insight into the quantum physics of ...

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. -- A new study published by an international multidisciplinary team of researchers including faculty at Binghamton University, State University of New York, documents the first case of Down syndrome in Neandertals and reveals that they were capable of providing altruistic care and support for a vulnerable member of their social group. The research, led by anthropologists at the University of Alcalá and the University of Valencia in Spain, studied the skeletal remains of a Neandertal child, whom they affectionately named “Tina”, found at Cova Negra, a cave in Valencia, Spain long known for yielding important Neandertal discoveries. “The ...

An international team of researchers led by the University of Adelaide has projected future marine heatwaves will cause coral reefs to be at severe risk of bleaching for longer periods than previously seen. Through climate modelling and supercomputing, the researchers discovered that extended bleaching events may significantly disrupt coral spawning. “We found that coral bleaching will start earlier in the year and last longer than previously thought,” said lead author Dr Camille Mellin, from the University of Adelaide’s Environment Institute. “Our results show that by 2080, coral bleaching will tend to start in spring, rather than late summer, which ...

Procrastination, the deliberate but detrimental deferring of tasks, has many forms. Sahiti Chebolu of the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics uses a precise mathematical framework to understand its different patterns and their underlying reasons. Her insights could help tailor individual strategies to tackle the issue. “Why did I not do this when I still had the time?” – Whether it is filing taxes, meeting a deadline at work, or cleaning the apartment before a family visit, most of us have already wondered why we tend to put off certain tasks, even in the face of unpleasant consequences. Why do we make decisions that are harmful to us – against our better ...

Saudi women have obtained their citizenship rights through their own struggle and there is little truth in the widely held idea in the West that their role in the fight for their freedom has been negligible. The finding is part of a new research in the journal Diogenes authored by Zahia Salhi, a professor at Sharjah University’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. The University of Cambridge Press has also posted Prof. Salhi’s research online. “Far from being passive victims of their society, Saudi women are active agents ...

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. -- Binghamton University, State University of New York Distinguished Professor and Nobel Prize Laureate M. Stanley Whittingham has been named a Knight Bachelor “for his services to research in chemistry.” The honor entitles him to be known as Sir Stanley, or Sir Stanley Whittingham, and was announced as part of King Charles III’s official birthday honours list. In his 30-plus-year career, Whittingham has been a pioneer in the development of lithium-ion batteries, for which he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2019. ...