Science and Technolgy blog
In the guts of a new type of computer, a bunch of tiny LEDs emit a green glow. Those lights have a job to do. They’re performing calculations. Right now, this math is telling the computer how to identify handwritten…
A reanalysis of the data from the “rubber-ducky” comet 67P, collected nearly a decade ago, suggests comets may have deposited a lot more water on Earth than scientists previously thought.
Angelman syndrome is a rare disease that disrupts the normal development and function of cells, particularly in the nervous system, leading to severe developmental delays and learning disabilities.
Older adults who use the internet regularly report better mental health outcomes, including fewer depressive symptoms, greater life satisfaction, and improved self-reported health, according to new research published in Nature Human Behaviour. Conducted across 23 countries, the study suggests that…
Dodge provided flights from Washington to Phoenix and accommodation so Ars could drive the new Charger Daytona. Ars does not accept paid editorial content. PHOENIX—Dodge gave its development team a relatively simple brief for the new Charger: It had to…
Russian nation-state hackers have followed an unusual path to gather intel in the country’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine—appropriating the infrastructure of fellow threat actors and using it to infect electronic devices its adversary’s military personnel are using on the front…
The macOS 15.2 update that was released earlier today came with a handful of new features, plus something unexpected: an apparently accidental reference to the upcoming M4 MacBook Airs. MacRumors reports that the “Mac16,12” and “Mac16,13” model identifiers reference 13-…
Photobucket was sued Wednesday after a recent privacy policy update revealed plans to sell users’ photos—including biometric identifiers like face and iris scans—to companies training generative AI models. The proposed class action seeks to stop Photobucket from selling users’ data…
Advertising has become a focal point of TV software. We’re seeing companies that sell TV sets be increasingly interested in leveraging TV operating systems (OSes) for ads and tracking. This has led to bold new strategies, like an adtech firm…
On Wednesday, Google unveiled Gemini 2.0, the next generation of its AI-model family, starting with an experimental release called Gemini 2.0 Flash. The model family can generate text, images, and speech while processing multiple types of input including text, images,…
A new theory explains how dozens of mysterious planet pairs discovered by the James Webb Space Telescope, dubbed “JuMBOs,” may have formed.
Apple has announced that it will be releasing the iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 updates to the public later this afternoon, following weeks of beta testing for developers and users. As with iOS 18.1, the headlining features…
Twenty years after the deadliest wave in recorded history, most oceans have warning systems and communities have learned how best to escape the danger.
Comet news, features and articles
As black holes slowly vanish through Hawking radiation, their information may be preserved in subtle space-time ripples, a new theory suggests.
Human bones discovered in a house that burned down 5,700 years ago are providing archaeologists “CSI”-style clues about the deaths of seven people in prehistoric Ukraine.
A recent study published in Social Psychological and Personality Science sheds light on gender differences in psychological well-being among single adults. Researchers found that single women reported higher satisfaction with their relationship status, overall life, and sexual experiences while also…
Eleven months after the Ingenuity helicopter made its final flight on Mars, engineers and scientists at NASA and a private company that helped build the flying vehicle said they have identified what probably caused it to crash on the surface…
If you’ve been too busy punching virtual Nazis to take part in this year’s Ars Technica Charity Drive sweepstakes, don’t worry. You still have time to donate to a good cause and get a chance to win your share of over…
Studies suggest that semaglutide reduces heart attack and stroke and may curb addiction and more. Scientists reflect on the future of GLP-1 drugs beyond weight loss.
Recently, Congress’ Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic released its final report. The basic gist is about what you’d expect from a Republican-run committee, in that it trashes a lot of Biden-era policies and state-level responses while praising a number…
Google reportedly wants the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to end Microsoft’s exclusive cloud deal with OpenAI requiring anyone who wants access to OpenAI’s models to go through Microsoft’s servers. Someone “directly involved” in Google’s effort told The Information that…
“Both understood phages as medicinal agents, which the rest of the medical field viewed as nonsensical.”
Research published in the Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin reveals that claims of censorship or “forbidden knowledge” polarize perceptions and critical thinking based on political ideology. Victoria A. Parker and colleagues explored how censorship claims about controversial topics, such as…
More than half of rural hospitals and more than one-third of urban hospitals did not offer labor and delivery services in 2022.
A new mRNA therapy tested in mice may target the root cause of the potentially fatal pregnancy disorder preeclampsia.
After spending more than $10 billion to try to develop an autonomous robotaxi, General Motors is now calling time on the endeavor. On Tuesday afternoon, the automaker announced that it is done investing in Cruise’s robotaxi development and will instead…
Matt Berkey was becoming suspicious. Berkey, a 42-year-old poker pro known for his presence in some of the highest-stakes cash games in Las Vegas, was playing in a well-known casino poker room over the summer. One player in the game…
Despite recent efforts to restrict them, diversity training programs have become as ubiquitous in American offices as the water cooler. They’re everywhere. But our recent update on the state of diversity training research confirms that these programs have different levels…
Female moths may pick up on the ultrasonic wailing of distressed plants and opt to lay their eggs on different, healthier plants.
With wheels and a choice of two legs or four, the DEEP Robotics Lynx is capable of traversing tough terrain.
A new study has identified six groups of tactics that individuals use to invest in their romantic relationships. Those who employed tactics categorized as emotional and material gestures reported higher marital satisfaction. These individuals also tended to engage more in…
There is, of course, no quantitative way to rank amazing things that happen in space. We cannot measure their absolute magnitude nor assign them a numerical value, and trying to do so is something of a fool’s errand. Are we…
This is another in a year-long series of stories identifying how the burgeoning use of artificial intelligence is impacting our lives — and ways we can work to make those impacts as beneficial as possible. Chatbots talk to people using artificial intelligence, or…
When baby Atlantic puffins in Iceland venture out of the cliffside burrows where they had hatched, they look for the light of the moon. It will guide them to the sea. But nearby town lights sometimes confuse them. This leads…
By searching sparsely populated regions of the galaxy, astronomers have for the first time found the source of a kind of signal that has puzzled them for years.
This 2012 satellite photo shows a series of giant windblown ridges, known as yardangs, and a group of towering sand dunes at the heart of Iran’s Lut Desert.
The patient was diagnosed with takotsubo cardiomyopathy, also known as “broken heart syndrome,” which had an unusual cause.
How does your brain transform written words into spoken ones in mere milliseconds? A new study published in The Journal of Neuroscience has found that a key brain region traditionally associated with speech production is engaged in reading far earlier…
Egypt was added to the list of malaria-free places in 2024, but climate change, conflict and other threats could increase cases especially in Africa.
A male humpback whale swam 8,106 miles (13,046 km) from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean, mingling with other whale populations and potentially having sex with them along the way.
The sword, which has iron rivets in its handle, may be one of the earliest iron artifacts found in Denmark.
Startup Embodied is closing down, and its product, an $800 robot for kids ages 5 to 10, will soon be bricked. Embodied blamed its closure on a failed “critical funding round.” On its website, it explained: We had secured a…
A math problem delineating the largest-size sofa that can fit around a corner has finally been solved, though it may not help you move.
Since the dawn of the generative AI era a few years ago, the march of technology—toward what tech companies hope will replace human intellectual labor—has continuously sparked angst about the future role humans will play in the job market. Will…
Asteroid news, features and articles
Amazon started selling new cars today. The online retailer and Internet giant has had its sights on shifting metal for some time now, and if you live in one of 48 cities in the US, and you’re looking for a…
A location-tracking company that sells its services to police departments is apparently using addresses and coordinates of doctors’ and lawyers’ offices and other types of locations to help cops compile lists of places visited by suspects, according to a 404…
Micron Technology will receive more than $6.1 billion after the US Department of Commerce finalized one of the largest CHIPS Act awards ever to “the only US-based manufacturer of memory chips,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in a press statement.…
Are humans just squishy machines? Can an artificially intelligent robot create a true moral compass for itself? Is there a best time to play The Talos Principle again? The answer to at least one of these questions is now somewhat…
