== very limited content
The Underground World of Black-Market AI Chatbots is Thriving

So-called malicious LLMs can earn their makers tens of thousands of dollars per month.

== paywall?
The First Nuclear Clock Will Test if Fundamental Constants Change

An ultra-precise measurement of a transition in the hearts of thorium atoms gives physicists a tool to probe the forces that bind the universe.

OpenAI Japan Exec Teases ‘GPT-Next’

OpenAI Japan teases GPT-Next, OpenAI’s new model that is 100x more powerful than GPT-4, while also teasing a more advanced model named Orion for 2025.

Part of Brain Network Much Bigger In People With Depression

Research suggests expanded frontostriatal salience network could be risk factor for developing condition.

Baby poo study reveals mysteries of newborn guts

Baby poo fell into three distinct microbiological profiles, with different “pioneer bacteria” being abundant in each.

When bats were wiped out, more human babies died, a study found

Researchers find infant deaths increased after farmers used more pesticides to compensate for rise of pests.

Saturn’s Rings Will Vanish Temporarily In Six Months

This phenomenon occurs due to the unique tilt of Saturn’s axis.

The Rise of DIY, Pirated Medicine

Four Thieves Vinegar Collective has made DIY medicine cheaper and more accessible to the masses.

== just in case anyone interested
DJI Neo hands-on: A powerful and lightweight $200 drone

It’s simple to use but offers advanced features like smartphone and voice control.

He saw a suspicious pit on Google Maps

‘Looking at the topography, it’s very suggestive of impact,’ says French scientist.

What killed and ate a really big shark?

Study suggests porbeagle sharks, thought to be apex predators, may also be prey

== people truly amaze me
Cars from Bricks

A garage full of model cars from lego bricks.

The unknown story of Scotland’s ‘Stonehenge’

Forgotten for centuries, Kilmartin Glen in Argyll is one of Britain’s most important archaeological landscapes – but most people have never heard of it.

== paywall?
Electric vehicles are the future. What happens to our gas-guzzling cars?

The world’s fight against climate change has a used car problem.

== paywall?
The UK is building an alarm system for climate tipping points

The Advanced Research and Invention Agency is providing £81 million to get scientific teams looking for telltale signs of spiraling climate shifts.

Northern Lights Imperiled Infrastructure From Power Grids To Satellites

Really big solar action can interfere with GPS systems and power grids.

Logging is the 3rd highest emitter in Canada. It should be measured that way, a new report says.

UN experts and environmental groups continue to call on Canada to report true climate cost of logging.

== yjc, like the archeological stuff
(https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3vx2nvk6kgo)

John Ralph, an amateur volunteer, was delighted with his find.

How Do Gold Nuggets Form?

Forget panning for gold nuggets. Most gold is mined from quartz ore deposits, but how exactly large chunks of gold form within quartz was a mystery.

Scientists Reveal How They Identified The Ancestor of All Life on Earth

Billions of years before all of that happened, however, the common ancestor of all living organisms, the last universal common ancestor (Luca), must have existed.

== yjc, lengthy
Was this hermit mathematician a forgotten genius whose ideas could transform AI – or a lonely madman?

In isolation, Alexander Grothendieck seemed to have lost touch with reality, but some say his metaphysical theories could contain wonders.

== firewall?
Scientists Are Growing Some Very Precious Dirt

A type of soil filled with microorganisms is key to desert ecosystems. Climate change (and hikers) are coming for it.

Wildfires Are Contaminating Water Supplies

Wildfires don’t just destroy forest—they can increase sediment in rivers and reservoirs, spark algae blooms, and pollute watercourses with dangerous chemicals, leaving water providers to grapple with long-term consequences.

== yjc
Europe Jumps On the Train

More and more people are using this form of travel to get around the continent, using high-speed routes and a network of night trains that continues to expand.

== strikes me as potentially going down the road to civil oppression; paywall?
How “personhood credentials” could help prove you’re a human online

A system proposed by researchers from MIT, OpenAI, Microsoft and others could curb the use of deceptive AI by exploiting the technology’s weaknesses.

A Simple Blood Test Predicts a Person’s Heart Disease Risk 30 Years Out, Study Finds

Including additional markers in the blood test gave scientists a more complete picture of patients’ long-term heart disease risk.

Does Dark Matter Come From Black Holes Formed Before the Big Bang?

The secrets of black holes and dark matter could lie before the Big Bang, a new study of “bouncing” cosmology hints.

33,000 mussels were carefully moved by hand from site of Montreal’s new Île-aux-Tourtes Bridge

Biologists used slotted spoons to move mussels before machinery churned up lakebed.

== yjc, often think about what our families’ current youngest children are likely to experience in their 30s
Is It Ethical to Have Children in the Face of Climate Change?

Indeed, one of the conversations I’ve had a lot during my pregnancy is about whether it’s ethical or even wise to bring a new person into the world at a moment of escalating crises.

Oceanographers Mapping Underwater Mountain Find Flying Spaghetti Monster

Oceanographers discover an underwater mountain that hosts a diverse marine ecosystem.

Scientists Detect Invisible Electric Field Around Earth For First Time

Scientists have finally detected and measured a weak electric field surrounding Earth that was first theorized over 60 years ago.

Whooping cough cases are soaring to new heights in Canada

Bacterial infection roaring back post-pandemic after global drop in immunity, scientists say.

== Canadian perspective, specifically Ontario
Environmentalists pin hopes on tiny fish to stop Highway 413

Redside dace, an endangered species, lives in area where highway to be built.

== yjc, couldn’t resist sending this one, sorry
I found the book lover’s dream holiday in Scotland

The volunteer-run enterprise lets visitors live the dream of running their own bookshop.