News
Why Google Deep Mind is hiring a philosopher to study machine consciousness
7+ hour, 23+ min ago (855+ words) Google Deep Mind has hired philosopher Henry Shevlin in a move that highlights how questions of machine consciousness and AI agency are increasingly moving from theory into mainstream AI development. Shevlin, who has been Associate Director at the Leverhulme Centre…...
Snapchat messaging is now on Apple Watch
10+ mon, 1+ week ago (176+ words) Snapchat on Thursday officially launched a native app for the Apple Watch, bringing its signature fast-paced messaging to users' wrists. The app will allow users to view incoming chats and reply instantly, without pulling out their phones. You will, however,…...
Embryo fossil found in South Africa is world's oldest proof that mammal ancestors laid eggs
11+ mon, 3+ week ago (773+ words) Researchers have identified a 250-million-year-old Lystrosaurus embryo from South Africa as the oldest evidence that mammal ancestors laid eggs, offering new insight into their reproduction and mass-extinction survival. Julien Benoit, University of the Witwatersrand; Jennifer Botha, University of the Free…...
Scientists finally witness 'first contact' that may have sparked complex life on Earth
3+ day, 16+ hour ago (809+ words) Scientists in Shark Bay, Western Australia, have imaged Asgard archaea and bacteria directly interacting, offering a real-world model for how complex cells and eukaryotic life may first have evolved. Brendan Paul Burns, UNSW Sydney and Kymberley Oakley, Indigenous Knowledge On…...
Magic mushrooms: New African species sheds light on the history of the famous fungus
5+ day, 17+ hour ago (806+ words) Magic mushrooms" are consumed recreationally and for medicinal purposes around the world. These fungi gained their fame as magic" because they produce chemical compounds (called psilocybin and psilocin) which have psychedelic effects. The most famous species of these mushrooms, due…...
Emperor penguins declared endangered as climate crisis hits Antarctica
10+ mon, 1+ week ago (450+ words) Antarctica's emperor penguins, one of the continent's most recognisable species, are now classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced on Thursday. According to IUCN scientists, melting sea…...
Cambodia unveils statue for mine-sniffing hero rat Magawa
6+ day, 12+ hour ago (286+ words) Cambodia has unveiled a statue of the landmine-hunting rat, Magawa, the Tanzanian rat famed for detecting over 100 mines and other unexploded ordnance covering an area equivalent to 20 football pitches. Apopo's Cambodia Programme Manager, Michael Raine, said the monument for Magawa…...
International Energy Agency warns rare earth shortage could slow electric vehicles, AI and robotics growth
10+ mon, 2+ week ago (414+ words) The IEA warns that concentrated rare earth supply, dominated by China, threatens electric vehicles, AI data centres and robotics, putting up to $6. 5 trillion in annual economic activity at risk. Rapid progress in technologies such as electric vehicles, artificial intelligence (AI)…...
From doodles to digital: How AI can turn your child's art into a storybook
11+ mon, 1+ week ago (505+ words) Parents are discovering a new way to preserve childhood memories and even create potential small businesses by turning their children's artwork into fully illustrated storybooks using artificial intelligence (AI). What once required design skills, coding knowledge, or professional illustrators can…...
Planting trees to remove carbon can harm the environment or protect it: Study highlights trade'offs
11+ mon, 1+ week ago (918+ words) A new study maps where large'scale tree planting and energy crops for carbon removal overlap with biodiversity refuges and hotspots, showing both risks to ecosystems and options for biodiversity'sensitive planning. Global efforts to limit climate change require deep cuts to…...