Science News
Is A.I. Raising the Chances of Biological Warfare?
Current chatbots aren’t likely to help lone actors invent a deadly pathogen, experts say. But newer models, trained in biology, may need stronger safeguards.
Global Warming Will Breach the 1.5 Degree Celsius Limit. Now What?
As global temperature increase shoots past 1.5 degrees Celsius, the vulnerable countries that fought for that Paris Agreement target face a brutal new reality.
Most People Don’t Think About Culverts. Their Failure Can Be Deadly.
Scientists simulated what happens when the pipes and tunnels that divert rainwater fail. In one scenario, 30 percent of local residents couldn’t reach an E.R.
A Mastodon Tooth Is Discovered in a California Creek
A researcher surveying a San Mateo County creek stumbled upon a preserved Pacific mastodon molar estimated to be at least 10,000 years old.
As Millions of Birds Migrate, Residents Are Asked to Turn Off the Lights
Birds are drawn to lights, and more than a billion die each year after crashing into buildings, experts said.
Court Strikes Down Trump Order to Keep an Aging Coal-Burning Plant Running
The 64-year-old Michigan power plant was set to retire. Then the Trump administration intervened in a way that overstepped its authority, a court ruled.
Mercury Is Shrinking, and Faster Than We Thought
New estimates using the planet’s surface wrinkles show that our smallest planet is growing even smaller, at a faster clip than expected.
Racing to Contain Invasive Green Crabs in Puget Sound
Tribes and scientists are mounting an urgent trapping effort to keep European green crabs from devastating a corner of Puget Sound.
How Did a Heart Drug With So Much Promise Fall So Flat?
Cardiologists are struggling to figure out why a drug that should have prevented heart attacks didn’t work at all.
A.I. Could Possibly End Humanity. How Are Humans Supposed to Process That?
The technology is far from the only existential risk our species faces. But weighing such cosmic fears can become a mind-bending exercise.
Choking Global Trade
Low rainfall and shrinking rivers are causing shipping bottlenecks, and higher prices, around the world.
The Mathematician Crushed Between OpenAI and Anthropic Over a Math Problem
Tristan Buckmaster was on the path toward an important proof when one of the A.I. giants used its staggering resources to get there first.
How the New iPhone Duo’s Glass Screen Bends Without Breaking
The screens of foldable phones are a triumph of materials science and microengineering.
The Iran War Is Pushing Global Coal Use to Record Highs
Five years after virtually every world leader agreed to “phase down” the burning of coal for climate reasons, the fuel is more widely used than ever.
Could Your Chatbot Be Stealing Ideas From You? It’s a Thorny Question.
A controversy around OpenAI’s latest math proof raises a fear that might become increasingly common: that A.I. tools could take valuable insights from one user and hand them to another.
August Ties for Hottest Month on Record
Sweltering summer temperatures put last month on par with July 2023 for global warmth, scientists said. More records could be broken in the months ahead.
States File 2 Lawsuits Over Trump’s Cuts to Endangered Species Act
Two lawsuits seek to reverse the Trump administration’s moves to open the habitats of imperiled wildlife to commercial activities.
Scientists Discover the Earliest Evidence of Drug Use in Really Old Teeth
A hunter-gatherer who lived in Indonesia as early as 25,000 years ago may have regularly sucked on betel nuts to release their psychoactive properties.
Toxic PFAS Cleanups at Military Sites Face Decades of Delay
The Pentagon has again postponed PFAS cleanups at hundreds of military sites, in some cases up to 19 years, prompting bipartisan anger in Congress.
A New Drug Lifts the Fog of Sleepiness for Those With Narcolepsy
The first-of-its-kind drug offers a reprieve for people who live with the debilitating sleep disorder.