The latest ambition of artificial intelligence research — particularly within the labs seeking “artificial general intelligence,” or AGI — is something called a world model: a representation of the environment that an AI carries around inside itself like a computational snow globe. The AI system can use this simplified representation to evaluate predictions and decisions… Continue reading ‘World Models,’ an Old Idea in AI, Mount a Comeback
Exodus: Affordability Crisis Sends Americans Packing From Big Cities
This is the first in a two-part series on America’s return to the hinterlands. For much of the past century, in both the United States and elsewhere, the inexorable trend has been for people to move from rural areas and towns to ever larger cities, particularly those with vibrant downtown cores such as New York,… Continue reading Exodus: Affordability Crisis Sends Americans Packing From Big Cities
How One Astronomer Uncovered Nearly 200 Moons—Around Just One Planet
A mere decade ago astronomers knew of just 62 moons around Saturn. Today the ringed planet boasts a staggering 274 official satellites. That’s more than any other world in the solar system—and far too many for most people to keep track of. Astronomer Edward Ashton is no exception, even though he has helped discover 192… Continue reading How One Astronomer Uncovered Nearly 200 Moons—Around Just One Planet
What Is the Fourier Transform?
As we listen to a piece of music, our ears perform a calculation. The high-pitched flutter of the flute, the middle tones of the violin, and the low hum of the double bass fill the air with pressure waves of many different frequencies. When the combined sound wave descends through the ear canal and into… Continue reading What Is the Fourier Transform?
Analog vs. Digital: The Race Is On To Simulate Our Quantum Universe
Ringbauer’s team was building a quantum computer that used not qubits but qudits — each with five possible states. The extra possibilities allowed each particle to hold more information, often reducing the number of steps needed for a complex computation. Not every simulation would benefit from being run with qudits, but the complexity of quantum… Continue reading Analog vs. Digital: The Race Is On To Simulate Our Quantum Universe
Bird Flu Vaccine for Cows Passes Early Test
Bird Flu Vaccine for Cows Passes Early Test Researchers have tested an mRNA vaccine against avian influenza in calves with promising results By Humberto Basilio & Nature magazine As bird flu sweeps across US poultry and cattle farms, researchers are racing to find ways to contain the outbreaks before they ignite a human pandemic. Now,… Continue reading Bird Flu Vaccine for Cows Passes Early Test
Missiles, Markets, and Mutual Interests: Poland and South Korea’s Evolving Defence-Industrial Cooperation
In recent years, South Korea has cemented its ascendancy to the global top table as a defence-industrial player. In Europe, one country has been the primary foothold enabling South Korea’s rise: Poland. Cooperation between the countries is set to grow, with the parties finalising a $6.5 billion deal to supply K2 Black Panther tanks for… Continue reading Missiles, Markets, and Mutual Interests: Poland and South Korea’s Evolving Defence-Industrial Cooperation
The Capuchin Bone Church and More Patrons’ Questions
Podcast: Download MYS381: From bones turned into art to relics made of game consoles, Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli answer questions from participants on their recent Italy pilgrimage on faith, death, relics, simulation theory, saints, and even gelato. The first live recording of Mysterious World with a studio audience! Get all new episodes automatically and… Continue reading The Capuchin Bone Church and More Patrons’ Questions
How Much Ultraprocessed Food Do You Eat? Blood and Urine Record It
How Much Ultraprocessed Food Do You Eat? Blood and Urine Record It A new study suggests blood and urine samples could provide an objective measure of diets and help unravel their connections to disease By Smriti Mallapaty & Nature magazine Diets rich in industrially manufactured food have been associated with several health conditions. Molecules in… Continue reading How Much Ultraprocessed Food Do You Eat? Blood and Urine Record It
India’s Indecisive Turn East
India has enjoyed a privileged relationship with the United States for more than 20 years. The sudden imposition of high tariffs by the United States—first in retaliation for India’s longstanding high tariffs on U.S. exports and then for its continued purchase of Russian oil—thus came as a profound shock in New Delhi. After a phase… Continue reading India’s Indecisive Turn East