Science + Technology – The Conversation – new research, AI, space, psychology and more

A mass of brown-colored maggots crawling in the soil.

Neanderthals likely ate fermented meat with a side of maggots

Melanie Beasley, Purdue University

An illustration of a star, with another, smaller star, partially obscured behind it.

Binary star systems are complex astronomical objects − a new AI approach could pin down their properties quickly

Andrej Prša, Villanova University

A brightly coloured office populated with all kinds of people working at connected desks. There are computer screens and networks in the air in clouds. The image shows the connectivity of a digitally transformed workplace. It was drawn and painted using guache and pencil.

AI will soon be able to audit all published research – what will that mean for public trust in science?

Alexander Kaurov, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington and Naomi Oreskes, Harvard University

a man looks at a set off small devices inside a foam-lined travel case

How the world’s nuclear watchdog monitors facilities around the world – and what it means that Iran kicked it out

Anna Erickson, Georgia Institute of Technology

Imaginary athletes: Creating make-believe teammates, competitors and coaches during play

Tracy Gleason, Wellesley College and Stephanie Madsen, McDaniel College

‘Democratizing space’ is more than just adding new players – it comes with questions around sustainability and sovereignty

Timiebi Aganaba, Arizona State University; Adam Fish, UNSW Sydney; Niiyokamigaabaw Deondre Smiles, University of British Columbia, and Tony Milligan, King's College London

A group of people standing on a ridge, looking at the full Moon

A big ship with a crane arm holding a smaller submarine, which looks like a mechanical capsule.

Microbes in deep-sea volcanoes can help scientists learn about early life on Earth, or even life beyond our planet

James F. Holden, UMass Amherst

Gain-of-function research is more than just tweaking risky viruses – it’s a routine and essential tool in all biology research

Seema Lakdawala, University of Pittsburgh and Anice Lowen, Emory University

Illustration of red DNA helix with one segment illuminated in white

Research replication can determine how well science is working – but how do scientists replicate studies?

Amanda Kay Montoya, University of California, Los Angeles

A group of scientists in lab coats working in a lab and looking through microscopes.

Why drones and AI can’t quickly find missing flood victims, yet

Robin R. Murphy, Texas A&M University and Thomas Manzini, Texas A&M University

What is peer review? The role anonymous experts play in scrutinizing research before it gets published

Joshua Winowiecki, Michigan State University

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Space

An image of a spiral galaxy with a bright center, surrounded by colorful gas clouds and stars.

Sculptor galaxy image provides brilliant details that will help astronomers study how stars form

Rebecca McClain, The Ohio State University and Adam Leroy, The Ohio State University

Spacecraft equipped with a solar sail could deliver earlier warnings of space weather threats to Earth’s technologies

Mojtaba Akhavan-Tafti, University of Michigan

An illustration showing four spacecraft in a pyramid formation following a thin sail which is moving towards a stream of particles coming form the Sun.

Astronomers have discovered another puzzling interstellar object − this third one is big, bright and fast

Darryl Z. Seligman, Michigan State University

A star-filled sky over a ridge with a building on it.

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will help astronomers investigate dark matter, continuing the legacy of its pioneering namesake

Samantha Thompson, Smithsonian Institution

A telescope facility, which is a building with a curved dome on top, sitting on a mountain.

How do scientists calculate the probability that an asteroid could hit Earth?

Toshi Hirabayashi, Georgia Institute of Technology

A small, blurry, bright dot against a dark sky.

Digital life

a large white buidling with tall greco-roman columns

AI-generated child pornography is surging − a legal scholar explains why the fight against it is complicated and how the law could catch up

Wayne Unger, Quinnipiac University

Poll finds bipartisan agreement on a key issue: Regulating AI

Adam Eichen, UMass Amherst; Alexander Theodoridis, UMass Amherst; Sara M. Kirshbaum, UMass Amherst, and Tatishe Nteta, UMass Amherst

illustration showing a blue cliff edge and a red cliff edge with a small plank bridge spanning the gap between them

Grok’s antisemitic rant shows how generative AI can be weaponized

James Foulds, University of Maryland, Baltimore County; Phil Feldman, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and Shimei Pan, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

two smartphones, one on top of the other, both showing an icon of a circle with a diagonal slash through it

Marco Rubio impersonator contacted officials using AI voice deepfakes – computer security experts explain what they are and how to avoid getting fooled

Matthew Wright, Rochester Institute of Technology and Christopher Schwartz, Rochester Institute of Technology

a man in a business suit stands in front of a window and flag

Your data privacy is slipping away – here’s why, and what you can do about it

Mike Chapple, University of Notre Dame

Right hand typing a number into a field on a laptop labelled authenticate your account, left hand holds the smartphone showing the authentication number

More articles about artificial intelligence

New research

Examining mushrooms under microscopes can help engineers design stronger materials

Mohamed Khalil Elhachimi, Binghamton University, State University of New York

Weird space weather seems to have influenced human behavior on Earth 41,000 years ago – our unusual scientific collaboration explores how

Raven Garvey, University of Michigan; Agnit Mukhopadhyay, University of Michigan, and Sanja Panovska, GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences

green glowing band across Europe on globe

This tropical plant builds isolated ‘apartments’ to prevent battles among the aggressive ant tenants it relies on for survival

Guillaume Chomicki, Durham University and Susanne S. Renner, Washington University in St. Louis

Two pairs of ants colored orange and black fighting

Dune patterns in California desert hold clues that help researchers map Mars’ shifting sands

Lauren Berger, Texas A&M University

A photograph of sand ripples and sand dunes. A particularly large dune is in the background.

War, politics and religion shape wildlife evolution in cities

Elizabeth Carlen, Washington University in St. Louis

Man standing on boat releasing fish from a net into the water

Humans and animals can both think logically − but testing what kind of logic they’re using is tricky

Olga Lazareva, Drake University

Rodent climbing the rungs of a small, colorful abacus

Here’s a way to save lives, curb traffic jams and make commutes faster and easier − ban left turns at intersections

Vikash V. Gayah, Penn State

A bird's-eye view of an intersection showing a driver turning left.

Mitochondria can sense bacteria and trigger your immune system to trap them – revealing new ways to treat infections and autoimmunity

Andrew Monteith, University of Tennessee

Yellow blob emanating green threads trapping thin purple blobs and one red blob

Brain and mind

Why it can be hard to warn people about dangers like floods – communication researchers explain the role of human behavior

Keri K. Stephens, The University of Texas at Austin and Hamilton Bean, University of Colorado Denver

a vertical yellow sign with black numbers stands in the middle of flowing water

Expansion of marriage rights to same-sex couples also expanded access to the psychological benefits that come with tying the knot

Alana L. Riso, Binghamton University, State University of New York and Matthew D. Johnson, Binghamton University, State University of New York

a crowd holds an oversized rainbow flag outside a columned building.

Your brain learns from rejection − here’s how it becomes your compass for connection

Begüm Babür, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Child sitting on bench watching other children play with a ball

Stop the ‘good’ vs ‘bad’ snap judgments and watch your world become more interesting

Lorraine Besser, Middlebury

forearms reach out with thumbs-up or thumbs down-gestures against a blue background

Curious Kids

Real kids ask real questions and real experts answer them

Why is heart cancer so rare? A biologist explains

Julie Phillippi, University of Pittsburgh

Who was the first pirate?

Brandon Prins, University of Tennessee

two men dressed as golden age pirates with a sword in foreground and a ship's mast behind

Kids ask the questions. Scholars answer them.

Be sure to include your name, age and where you live. We won’t be able to answer every question, but we will do our best.

Send in your question!

Graphic that says 'connecting experts with curious kids', with words in background saying 'how? why? who?'

Are people at the South Pole upside down?

Abigail Bishop, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Two images, one of a person doing a handstand, and the other that same image inverted, looking like the person is holding up the ground.

How can the James Webb Space Telescope see so far?

Adi Foord, University of Maryland, Baltimore County

Clouds of red, pink and white gas and dust highlight this starscape.