COVID Moonshot’s groundbreaking research introduces new nonpeptidic inhibitors for SARS-CoV-2, showcasing global collaboration and open science in advancing coronavirus therapeutics. Although the group’s work has been freely available since its inception in March 2020, the COVID Moonshot Consortium is finally formally reporting its results. The COVID Moonshot – an open-science, crowdsourced, and patent-free drug discovery [...]
Summary: Researchers developed an AI-based method to track neurons in moving and deforming animals, a significant advancement in neuroscience research. This convolutional neural network (CNN) method overcomes the challenge of tracking brain activity in organisms like worms, whose bodies constantly change shape. By employing ‘targeted augmentation’, the AI significantly reduces the need for manual image [...]
How significantly do the ideas of Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk shape today’s digital economy? A study by an economic sociologist at the University of Basel has analyzed speeches, book contributions and articles from Silicon Valley from Silicon Valley, demonstrating the emergence of a new spirit of digital capitalism. What justification is there for earning a [...]
Key Points LLMs, akin to GPS in travel, drive intellectual exploration with precision, efficiency, and engagement. GPS frames a physical journey, while LLMs foster intellectual growth and empowerment. LLMs guide knowledge acquisition, but unstructured creative thought remains essential. Let's go on a trip. One of the first steps is to punch in your destination [...]
The Candida auris fungus is spreading across the globe at an "alarming" speed. This species of fungus, which can cause fatal infections in risk groups and was first discovered only 10 years ago, can now be found all over the world. In nearly all cases, infections are contracted in hospitals, and the fungus has [...]
Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are often depicted as sentient agents poised to overshadow the human mind. But AI lacks the crucial human ability of innovation, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have found. While children and adults alike can solve problems by finding novel uses for everyday objects, AI systems often lack the ability [...]
Think of them as the Energizer Bunnies of the heart, tiny natural batteries that keep this vital organ beating 100,000 times a day as it pumps 2,000 gallons of blood throughout the human body. But when those batteries—heart muscle cells called cardiomyocytes—short circuit and die, the damage can be devastating. The damage to the heart muscle is [...]
Human fingers and toes don't grow outward as you might expect. Instead, our dexterous digits are 'sculpted' within a larger foundational bud. Now the first human cell atlas of early limb development has at last revealed in exquisite detail exactly how that happens. Prior to this, our understanding of vertebrate limb development has been largely based [...]
Polymer solar cells, known for their light weight and flexibility, are ideal for wearable devices. Yet, their broader use is hindered by the toxic halogenated solvents required in their production. These solvents pose environmental and health risks, limiting the appeal of these solar cells. Alternative solvents, which are less toxic, unfortunately, lack the same [...]
A University of Michigan-led study based on a review of genetic and health information from more than 276,000 people finds strong support for a decades-old evolutionary theory that sought to explain aging and senescence. In 1957, evolutionary biologist George Williams proposed that genetic mutations that contribute to aging could be favored by natural selection [...]
