Sharks in Brazil Test Positive for a Surprising Contaminant: Cocaine Cocaine has been detected in sharks for the first time, but scientists aren’t sure of the impact By Stephanie Pappas Researchers found cocaine in sharpnose sharks off Brazil. These sharks are in the same genus as the Atlantic sharpnose shark, shown here with a student… Continue reading First ‘Cocaine Sharks’ Discovered off Brazil
Category: Quantum Stuff
Chatbots Aren’t Sentient, but You Should Be Nice to Them Anyway
If you’ve ever caught yourself saying “please” and “thank you” to ChatGPT, you’re in good company. In an informal online survey by Ethan Mollick, an associate professor at the University of Pennsylvania, nearly half of the respondents said they are often polite to the artificially intelligent chatbot, and only about 16 percent said they “just… Continue reading Chatbots Aren’t Sentient, but You Should Be Nice to Them Anyway
How the Higgs Field (Actually) Gives Mass to Elementary Particles
The discovery of the Higgs boson at the Large Hadron Collider in 2012 confirmed what we particle physicists had long suspected: that there is a field permeating the cosmos that generates the masses of elementary particles. Unfortunately, physicists have found it challenging to explain to everyone else how this so-called Higgs field accomplishes its mighty… Continue reading How the Higgs Field (Actually) Gives Mass to Elementary Particles
The Legacy of Lynchings Still Hurts the Economic Prospects of Black Americans
The Legacy of Lynchings Still Hurts the Economic Prospects of Black Americans Despite progress, the long shadow of racial violence continues to undermine economic opportunities for African Americans today By Sotiris Kampanelis A historic marker detailing lynching in Anne Arundel County and in America at Whitmore Park on Calvert Street is seen September 17, 2019… Continue reading The Legacy of Lynchings Still Hurts the Economic Prospects of Black Americans
Mathematicians Have Finally Found the Fifth ‘Busiest Beaver’
Most people probably don’t think of mathematics when they hear “busy beavers.” But these eager little animals symbolize one of the most amazing concepts of the knotty field: not everything can be calculated, no matter how hard you try (or how busy of a beaver you are). The busy beaver function is the first example… Continue reading Mathematicians Have Finally Found the Fifth ‘Busiest Beaver’
How Our Longest Nerve Orchestrates the Mind-Body Connection
It is late at night. You are alone and wandering empty streets in search of your parked car when you hear footsteps creeping up from behind. Your heart pounds, your blood pressure skyrockets. Goose bumps appear on your arms, sweat on your palms. Your stomach knots and your muscles coil, ready to sprint or fight.… Continue reading How Our Longest Nerve Orchestrates the Mind-Body Connection
Dogs Can Smell Your Stress, and It Seems to Make Them Sad
When Dogs Smell Your Stress, They Act Sad Dogs can smell when people are stressed, and it seems to make them feel downhearted By Sara Novak Hailey Seelig/Getty Images Humans and dogs have been close companions for perhaps 30,000 years, according to anthropological and DNA evidence. So it would make sense that dogs would be… Continue reading Dogs Can Smell Your Stress, and It Seems to Make Them Sad
What We Know about Long COVID Right Now
What We Know about Long COVID Right Now Researchers are still working to understand the complicated and debilitating condition dubbed long COVID By Ziyad Al-Aly & The Conversation US Researchers are gaining key insights into the ways that the SARS-CoV-2 virus can lead to long COVID symptoms. The following essay is reprinted with permission from… Continue reading What We Know about Long COVID Right Now
Computer Scientists Prove That Heat Destroys Entanglement
Nearly a century ago, the physicist Erwin Schrödinger called attention to a quirk of the quantum world that has fascinated and vexed researchers ever since. When quantum particles such as atoms interact, they shed their individual identities in favor of a collective state that’s greater, and weirder, than the sum of its parts. This phenomenon… Continue reading Computer Scientists Prove That Heat Destroys Entanglement
Komodo Dragons’ Nightmare Iron-Tipped Teeth Are a Reptilian First
Komodo Dragons’ Nightmare Iron-Tipped Teeth Are a Reptilian First Reptile teeth have long been considered simple and cheap because the animals replace them regularly. That isn’t so, Komodo dragons show By Meghan Bartels An adult Komodo dragon seen at a zoo. Jürgen & Christine Sohns/imageBROKER.com GmbH & Co. KG/Alamy Stock Photo There aren’t many scenarios… Continue reading Komodo Dragons’ Nightmare Iron-Tipped Teeth Are a Reptilian First