Be careful where the enemy insistently tries to hit you, this is actually his weakest point. (Bernard Werber, Ants)
SUSTAINABILITY
The data shared on X by a user named Michael Thomas revealed the electricity consumption data of Microsoft and Google. The data showed that companies consumed 24 TWh (terawatt hours) of electricity in 2023. Alarming data revealed that both companies spend more electricity than more than 100 countries. DETAIL
The Times reports that “the founder of Just Stop Oil has received the longest ever jail sentence for non-violent protest under laws designed to crack down on public disruption”. DETAIL
New research finds a link between the survival rates of young migratory shorebirds and changes in sea surface temperature (SST), with warmer SSTs one year indicative of lower survival rates the following year. DETAIL
Climate change is making the monsoon more dangerous. People in South Asia and India can expect more extreme weather. DETAIL
IPCC scientist Sonia Seneviratne: 'We need to let go of the climate of the past'. In an interview, the Swiss climatologist notes that extreme weather events are becoming commonplace. She fears that tipping points with unpredictable consequences may soon be reached. DETAIL
The corporate predecessor to America’s largest refiner of oil, Marathon Petroleum, explained in a company periodical nearly 50 years ago that global temperature rise potentially linked to “industrial expansion” could one day cause “widespread starvation and other social and economic calamities”. DETAIL
Two studies suggest the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation could collapse by the middle of the century and wreak havoc with the climate, but such predictions are controversial. DETAIL
HEALTH
A new study from researchers at Imperial College London reports that being a ‘night owl’ may be associated with better cognitive ability than being a ‘morning lark.’ DETAIL
A novel intranasal antibody treatment shows potential in fighting tau protein buildup, which is a key factor in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. A single dose of this treatment in aged mice with tau pathology significantly reduced tau accumulation and improved cognitive function. DETAIL
Researchers from a university in Japan have announced the development of a system capable of resuming blood circulation in an injured heart within three minutes. According to the team from Tohoku University in Japan, the inspiration for creating such a system came from the fatal July 2022 shooting of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe. DETAIL
Researchers at Tel Aviv University and Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center succeeded in reading a patient’s thoughts with a speech-brain-computer interface, a groundbreaking new study. A silent participant imagined saying a syllable. Depth electrodes, according to a press release, implanted deep in his brain transmitted the thoughts as electrical signals to a computer which then vocalized them. DETAIL
The ingredient retinol, which is widely added to anti-ageing skincare products, may improve skin health through its effect on the skin microbiome. When applied topically, retinol gets converted into a nutrient called retinoic acid. Lab studies suggest that retinoic acid prevents water loss and degradation of the protein collagen, which may reduce the physical signs of ageing. DETAIL
Meta allows a group of researchers to examine some of Instagram's data to determine whether social media is psychologically harming young users. DETAIL
In the research published in the journal "Nature", it was stated that the drug developed as an antibody against Interleukin-11, a protein group that plays an important role in the development of the human body and is believed to trigger aging, was successful in laboratory animals and extended their lives by 25 percent. DETAIL
DIGITAL / TECHNOLOGY / SCIENCE / ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
South Korea will begin deploying drone-melting laser weapons designed to shoot down North Korean unmanned aerial vehicles this year. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) told AFP that the new laser weapons — dubbed the "Star Wars Project" by the South — are invisible and noise-free, require no additional ammunition, operate solely on electricity and cost only about 2,000 won ($AU2.15) per shot. DETAIL
When you think of a battery, you probably don't think of stretchy material. But batteries will need this shape-shifting quality to be incorporated into flexible electronics, which are gaining traction for wearable health monitors. Now, researchers in ACS Energy Letters report a lithium-ion battery with entirely stretchable components, including an electrolyte layer that can expand by 5,000%, and it retains its charge storage capacity after nearly 70 charge/discharge cycles. DETAIL
A fully constructed rover that was due to blast off to the moon next year will instead be dismantled due to budgetary issues, NASA has announced – leading researchers to question whether the space agency is truly committed to landing a crewed spacecraft on the moon in 2026, as it currently claims. DETAIL
Language-focused artificial intelligence company DeepL today introduced its new generation language model. The new generation language model is specially designed for translation and text editing. With its new generation LLM, the company brings together three features in the field of translation: reducing the risk of misinformation, proprietary data and a human model. According to the information shared by the company; This new solution reduces the risk of misinformation by leveraging an LLM specifically designed for the language. The solution in question offers human-like translation services for various usage areas. DETAIL
A team of Australian scientists have cooked up a new AI-driven camera system that can detect whether you are too drunk to drive a vehicle. But the project isn't quite ready for wide use with only 75 percent accuracy, according to the researchers out of Edith Cowan University in Western Australia, who had presented this camera project at a computer vision conference earlier this year. DETAIL
Researchers have presented new evidence for the presence of two gases that are closely related to life on Earth in the atmosphere of Venus. DETAIL
ENERGY / TRANSPORTATION
Mingyang Smart Energy, maker of the world's largest wind turbines, has just unveiled its latest gigantic floating offshore wind turbine creation. The OceanX is a two-headed, deep-water behemoth capable of generating during Cat 5 hurricanes. DETAIL
BMW and DeepDrive are road-testing an electric motor with dual rotor technology. Following a pilot project with “promising results on the test rig,” the partners are now planning an initial field test. DETAIL
Researchers in China have successfully recycled silicon from solar panels and reused them to improve the performance of lithium-ion batteries. DETAIL
A team of engineers at Beihang University, working with a colleague from Center of Advanced Aero-Engine, both in China, has developed a micro-aerial vehicle that flies using direct sunlight. They reported their results in the journal Nature. DETAIL
CYBERSECURITY
Cybersecurity firm Kaspersky says it's shutting down all of its operations in the United States, just weeks after the Commerce Department banned the use of the company's software in the country. DETAIL
Google parent Alphabet is in advanced talks to acquire cybersecurity startup Wiz for roughly $23 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. DETAIL
HUMAN / CURIOSITY
Missy Elliot isn’t just an international hip-hop star. She’s now an interplanetary one. NASA transmitted lyrics from Elliot’s 1997 hit ”The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” to Venus using its Deep Space Network.