AI making waves in marine data collection

AI making waves in marine data collection

AI-assisted annotation helps users in marine biodiversity observations from real-time video feeds. Credit: Wave Labs Numerous measurement stations around the world provide us with data about air quality, allowing us to enhance it. Although we are increasingly collecting data from marine areas, access to such data is considerably more challenging. Signals are poorly transmitted through … Read more

Study finds pronghorn population declining due to human development

Study finds pronghorn population declining due to human development

Credit: CC0 Public Domain Global species diversity is in decline almost everywhere, largely due to human-driven development and resource use. Typically, conservation efforts have targeted the most endangered species, which can lead to some tough choices on how to balance limited resources. But there’s an argument to be made that it is more effective and … Read more

Ultrablack thin-film coating could make next-gen telescopes even better

Ultrablack thin-film coating could make next-gen telescopes even better

The team’s ultrablack coating can be applied to curved surfaces and magnesium alloys to trap nearly all light. Credit: Jin et al. Sometimes, seeing clearly requires complete black. For astronomy and precision optics, coating devices in black paint can cut down on stray light, enhancing images and boosting performance. For the most advanced telescopes and … Read more

Migration of hominins out of Africa may have been driven by the first major glaciation of the Pleistocene

Migration of hominins out of Africa may have been driven by the first major glaciation of the Pleistocene

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain A pair of planetary scientists, one with the University of Milan, the other with Columbia University, has found evidence that the exodus of hominins out of Africa approximately 1 million years ago may have been driven by the first major glaciation of the Pleistocene. In their study, reported in Proceedings of … Read more

Wolverines vanished from California a century ago. Is it time to bring them back?

Wolverines vanished from California a century ago. Is it time to bring them back?

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Wolverines could be poised for a comeback in California. A new bill seeks to reintroduce the solitary, muscular carnivores to the state’s mountainous regions, where they were hunted, poisoned and trapped into oblivion more than 100 years ago. Wolverines are exceedingly rare in the lower 48 states and received federal protection … Read more

Four astronauts from four countries return to Earth after six months in orbit

Four astronauts from four countries return to Earth after six months in orbit

This undated photo provided by NASA shows four Expedition 70 crew mates posing in the pressure suits they will wear when they return to Earth aboard the SpaceX Dragon “Endurance” spacecraft. From left, Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mohgensen, NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut … Read more

News reports that don’t report magnitude of scientific findings could mislead the public

News reports that don’t report magnitude of scientific findings could mislead the public

Credit: CC0 Public Domain When media coverage doesn’t include the numerical magnitude of a scientific study’s effect, the risk of readers developing biases increases significantly, according to a new University of Michigan study. The study is published in the journal Psychological Science. People may incorrectly assume that the findings are of greater importance and impact … Read more

How parents can set children up for reading success

How parents can set children up for reading success

Dr. Laurie Gauger talks with students in her Speech Pathology Language Disorders class. Credit: Betsy Brzezinski One of life’s greatest pastimes may be settling in with a terrific book. In honor of March’s National Reading Month, Laurie Gauger, Ph.D., an assistant clinical professor of speech, language, and hearing sciences at the University of Florida College … Read more

Scientists use spent brewer’s yeast to filter out metal from waste streams

Scientists use spent brewer’s yeast to filter out metal from waste streams

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain When we recycle electronic devices we can no longer use, we expect to make the most out of the precious natural resources that went into building them. But electronic waste is notoriously difficult to recycle because it’s hard to separate the different metals in the waste from each other. Scientists have … Read more

Researchers devise new ways to engineer carbon-based semiconductors for electronics of the future

Researchers devise new ways to engineer carbon-based semiconductors for electronics of the future

By wrapping a carbon nanotube with a ribbon-like polymer, Duke researchers were able to create nanotubes that conduct electricity when struck with low-energy light that our eyes cannot see. In the future, the approach could make it possible to optimize semiconductors for applications ranging from night vision to new forms of computing. Credit: Francesco Mastrocinque … Read more