Technology

Obama’s 2012 reelection tied to better mental health in educated Black men, study suggests

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Obama’s 2012 reelection tied to better mental health in educated Black men, study suggests

Former President Barack Obama. Credit: White House/Pete Souza Following Barack Obama’s reelection as U.S. president in 2012, the mental health of college-educated Black men improved significantly, while those who didn’t attend college reported worse mental health, according to new research from Rice University sociologists. “Four More Years! Or So What? The Mental Health Significance of … Read more

Startups are using ‘rock dust’ to make agriculture carbon friendly

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Startups are using ‘rock dust’ to make agriculture carbon friendly

Agriculture is responsible for more than 10% of global carbon emissions, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. But while agriculture is a massive carbon offender, it could now be part of a solution, as startups are trying new ways of using nature to save itself. Farmers have long spread crushed lime on their fields … Read more

How microorganisms communicate food shortages

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How microorganisms communicate food shortages

Yeast cells diffuse compounds to promote the growth of other cells in the vicinity. Credits: Shin Ohsawa/FMI To grow and survive, tiny organisms such as yeast must sometimes adapt their nutrient sources in response to changes in the environment. FMI researchers have now found that yeast cells communicate with each other to use less favorable … Read more

New shark species named for late Microsoft co-founder

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New shark species named for late Microsoft co-founder

FIU Ph.D. student Cindy Gonzalez prepares to release a tagged bonnethead off the coast of Belize. Credit: Florida International University A hammerhead shark species discovered by FIU scientists finally has a name and its namesake is the late Paul G. Allen, philanthropist and cofounder of Microsoft. The existence of the new species, Sphyrna alleni, was … Read more

Imperiled Delta smelt gain 3,400 acres of habitat in largest ever tidal restoration project in California

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Imperiled Delta smelt gain 3,400 acres of habitat in largest ever tidal restoration project in California

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain With a dramatic scoop of an excavator, water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta surged onto a 3,400-acre stretch of land this week for the the first time in a century. This ceremonial levee breach at Lookout Slough, north of Rio Vista, on Wednesday was attended by nearly 200 spectators who … Read more

Microsoft GitHub gives clients option to keep sensitive code in EU

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Microsoft GitHub gives clients option to keep sensitive code in EU

Microsoft-owned GitHub says that 90% of the world’s open-source projects are stored on its code repository platform. Jonathan Raa | Nurphoto via Getty Images Microsoft-owned developer platform GitHub on Tuesday said it is giving enterprise users the ability to limit the storage of their sensitive software code to data centers located in the European Union. … Read more

First observation of ultra-rare particle decay could uncover new physics

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First observation of ultra-rare particle decay could uncover new physics

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Scientists at CERN have discovered an ultra-rare particle decay process, opening a new path to find physics beyond our understanding of how the building blocks of matter interact. The NA62 collaboration presented at a CERN EP seminar the first experimental observation of the ultra-rare decay of the charged kaon into a … Read more

Caroline Ellison could face no jail time for role in FTX collapse

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Caroline Ellison could face no jail time for role in FTX collapse

Caroline Ellison, former chief executive officer of Alameda Research LLC, center, arrives at court in New York, US, on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023.  Yuki Iwamura | Bloomberg | Getty Images Caroline Ellison was the star witness in the criminal case against disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. On Tuesday, she will face her own sentencing. Ellison’s role … Read more

Increasing protein in staple crops could help alleviate global protein shortage

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Increasing protein in staple crops could help alleviate global protein shortage

Overexpression of the OsNF-YC4 gene increased protein content in rice plants. Credit: New Phytologist (2024). DOI: 10.1111/nph.20141 A Mississippi State biologist’s research in improving global nutrition and sustainability is featured this week in New Phytologist. Ling Li, an associate professor in the MSU Department of Biological Sciences, has spent more than a decade studying rice … Read more

Microsoft’s first-mover advantage in AI is fading. Why we’re OK with that

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Microsoft’s first-mover advantage in AI is fading. Why we’re OK with that

Microsoft is no longer the only game in town in generative AI. That’s OK because competition is healthy. Amazon , Meta Platforms and Apple are eating away at Microsoft’s once-sizable lead in the heated artificial intelligence arms race, according to D.A. Davidson research analysts. As a result, the analysts cut their rating on the Redmond, … Read more