Number 273
Seeking ‘Superbug’ Antibiotics, Scientists Use AI to Synthesize Molecules from Neanderthals
Neanderthals are extinct. But their molecules are back and they just might save our lives.
Asteroid Pieces Brought to Earth May Offer a Clue to Life’s Origin
‘I fully expect the cosmochemistry community is going to go to town on this.’
== in case any of you wanted to give this thing a go
Microsoft Releases Phi-2, a Small LLM That Outperforms Llama 2 and Mistral 7B
A question remains whether such emergent abilities can be achieved at a smaller scale using strategic choices for training, e.g., data selection.
Researchers Develop World’s First Antenna For Ultra-Secure 6G
Researchers call it the ‘Holy Grail’ for physicists and engineers.
== yjc, been experimenting with computer generated art myself this past year or so
Vera Molnar, Pioneer of Computer Art, Dies At 99
Experimenting with algorithms, she began to employ the principles of computation in her work even before she gained access to an actual computer.
Sun Releases Strong Solar Flare
Thursday’s flare temporarily disrupted radio communication on Earth for a couple of hours, with multiple pilots reporting communication problems.
Marketing Company Claims That It Actually Is Listening To Phone and Smart Speakers To Target Ads
“What would it mean for your business if you could target potential clients who are actively discussing their need for your services in their day-to-day conversations? No, it’s not a Black Mirror episode—it’s Voice Data, and CMG has the capabilities to use it to your business advantage.”
Stop Planting Trees, Says Guy Who Inspired World to Plant a Trillion Trees
Ecologist Thomas Crowther’s research inspired countless tree-planting campaigns, greenwashing, and attacks from scientists. Now he’s back with a new plan for nature restoration.
== yjc, bureaucrats–bah humbug
Foul-smelling ginkgo seeds wreak havoc after city plants female tree in error
Saint-Léonard resident says he has to rake up hundreds of rotting, putrid ginkgo seeds every fall.
Scientists Pinpoint Cause of Morning Sickness To Hormone Made By Fetus
Researchers find clues to the cause of extreme nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.
== so sad, but not like it is a youngster
NASA’s Voyager 1 Probe In Interstellar Space Can’t Phone Home
Right now, the only data the probe is sending back to Earth is binary gobbledygook.
Google DeepMind Uses LLM To Solve Unsolvable Math Problem
They had to throw away most of what it produced but there was gold amongst the garbage.
== yjc
The accessible musical instrument trying to find its soul
Music is said to be a language that transcends all others. But traditional instruments are not always as inclusive as they could be. Now, another instrument is about to open up the music scene like no other as it is officially recognised by the classical music world.
== 2 articles looking at different aspects of feline behaviour
Cats purrfectly happy to play fetch, research finds
Playing fetch is part and parcel of a dog’s life - but now scientists have found many cats enjoy it just as much.
In case you weren’t aware, outdoor cats are stone-cold killers
Cats left outside hunt and scavenge more than 2,000 species globally, study finds.
Are Tiny Black Holes Hiding Within Giant Stars?
Phenomenon could account for universe’s mysterious dark matter.
European Union Lawmakers Agree To New Rules That Bolster Gig Worker Rights
The deal that’s been provisionally agreed means a presumption of an employment relationship between a gig worker and a platform will be triggered when two out of a list of five “indicators of control or direction are present,”
Why do these mosquitoes keep perching on the nostrils of frogs who want to eat them?
Observations of Australian mosquitoes’ feeding habits could pave way for frog conservation
After breaking trains simply because an independent repair shop had worked on them, NEWAG is now demanding that trains fixed by hackers be removed from service.
== lengthy, but likely worth a read
What colour do you see?
New research is uncovering the hidden differences in how people experience the world. The consequences are unsettling.
Scientists Discover Nuclear Fission Amongst the Stars
As we’ve acquired more observations, the cosmos is saying ‘hey, there’s a signature here, and it can only come from fission.’
Microsoft Targets Nuclear To Power AI Operations
The company is also training LLMs to help hasten the regulatory process for nuclear projects.
== well, it was interesting to me
Lazarus Cyber Group Deploys DLang Malware Strains
Latest offensive cyber group to switch to atypical programming for payloads.
Researchers fuse lab-grown human brain tissue with electronics
A system that integrates brain cells into a hybrid machine can recognize voices.
Google’s App Store Ruled an Illegal Monopoly, as a Jury Sides With Epic Games
A judge will now decide on what fixes to require at the company, but appeals could delay the impact of the case for years.
== had an article on the Lorraine deposit before
Could there be a gold rush for buried hydrogen?
Earlier this year Professor Jacques Pironon was searching for methane in the Lorraine Basin, northeast France, when his team made an unexpected discovery.
== opinion piece
Why the US Needs a Moonshot Mentality for AI - Led by the Public Sector
in an op-ed on WSJ argue that AI is too important to be left entirely in the hands of the big tech companies.
Apple Offers Developers MLX Framework for Machine Learning
The MLX framework was released on GitHub amid the generative AI storm.
In the Face of Extreme Weather, Scientists Look to Adapt Crops
Do wild varieties of overlooked grains, fruits, and vegetables hold the key to developing more resilient agriculture?
== news item dated December 11th
Mistral Says Mixtral, Its New Open Source LLM, Matches or Outperforms Llama 2 70B and GPT3.5 on Most Benchmarks
Open source model startup Mistral AI released a new LLM last week with nothing but a torrent link
== yjc
With 23% of US Office Space Vacant, Some Landlords Are Defaulting on Mortgages
Office landlords, hit hard by the work-from-home revolution, are resorting to a desperate measure in the real estate world: “handing back the keys.”
UK’s First Carbon Capture Plant Turns CO2 Into Jet Fuel
machine which will run on solar power to recover 50 tonnes of CO2 from the air per year.
Hidden Impacts of Ferocious Volcanic Eruption Finally Revealed
But there was far more to the fallout than satellite images could possibly capture or observers could report.
== lengthy
New Internet Standard L4S: the Quiet Plan to Make the Internet Feel Faster
Engineers and major companies are pushing a technology called L4S that they say could make the web feel dramatically faster. But how?
Researchers made VR goggles for mice to study how their brains respond to swooping predators
They’re calling the system ‘Miniature Rodent Stereo Illumination VR,’ or iMRSIV.
Huge sea monster emerges from Dorset cliffs
The skull of a colossal sea monster has been extracted from the cliffs of Dorset’s Jurassic Coast.
How divers are using antibiotics to save sick corals
The illness affects more than 30 species of coral, often killing them within weeks of becoming infected.
Unique B.C. caribou feeding program bolstering at-risk population
10 years ago, there were about 64 animals in a herd north of Prince George; today there are more than 130.
China Starts Up World’s First Fourth-Generation Reactor, Readying Giant Nuclear Ship
A modular 200 megawatt (MW) high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor (HTGCR) plant.
The technology used to power the giant container could prove safer and more efficient than the uranium reactors currently used to power warships
Scientists Have Reported a Breakthrough In Understanding Whale Language
Researchers have identified new elements of whale vocalizations that they propose are analogous to human speech, including vowels and pitch.
The EU has reached a historic regulatory agreement over AI development
The decision puts Europe at the forefront of the technology’s regulation efforts.
Here’s why food waste is a major climate change issue
Food loss and waste releases methane, a gas 80 times more potent to the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
Ah we're drinking and we're dancing
and the band is really happening
and the Johnny Walker wisdom running high