nature Magazine -June 29, 2023 issue: RNA molecules can adopt complex 3D structures, but whether DNA can self-assemble into similar 3D folded structures has been less clear. In this week’s issue, Luiz Passalacqua and his colleagues use a DNA mimic of green fluorescent protein (GFP) to investigate this question.
Freely accessible large language models have accelerated the pace of innovation, computer scientists say.
The craze for generative artificial intelligence (AI) that began with the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT shows no sign of abating. But while large technology companies such as OpenAI and Google have captured the attention of the wider public — and are finding ways to monetize their AI tools — a quieter revolution is being waged by researchers and software engineers at smaller organizations.
The artist discusses artistry, artificial intelligence, and the human experience.
Chatbots and image generators, newly on the rise, have sparked our imaginations—and our fears. As artificial-intelligence machines sharpen their ability to translate written prompts into images that accurately capture both style and substance, some visual artists worry that their specialized skills might be rendered irrelevant.
A new crop of biotech startups want to revolutionize human reproduction.
In 2016, two Japanese reproductive biologists, Katsuhiko Hayashi and Mitinori Saitou, made an announcement in the journal Nature that read like a science-fiction novel. The researchers had taken skin cells from the tip of a mouse’s tail, reprogrammed them into stem cells, and then turned those stem cells into egg cells.
Drug syndicates and other criminal groups bought into the idea that a new kind of phone network couldn’t be infiltrated by cops. They were wrong—big time.
Many criminals have been convicted as a result of encrypted-phone stings—more than four hundred in the U.K. alone.Illustration by Max Löffler
World Economic Forum (March 25, 2023) – This week’s top stories of the week include:
0:15 NASA launches space based pollution monitor – It’s called TEMPO, which stands for Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution. Built by Ball Aerospace, TEMPO will measure levels of major air pollutants every hour from a geostationary orbit 22,000 miles above the equator. It will monitor a huge region of North America from Canada’s oil sands in northern Alberta to below Mexico City at a resolution of up to 4 square miles. Air pollution poses a major threat to human and planetary health as 99% of the global population breathes air that exceeds WHO health guidelines. Air pollution carries a total economic cost of more than $8 trillion. Therefore, monitoring it is critical to understanding its impacts. Though TEMPO is due to launch in April 2023, watch to learn more about how it will monitor air pollution from space.
1:58 8 best countries for working women – The Economist ranked 29 OECD nations according to the role and influence of women in the workplace. Iceland scores well on numerous factors. From low childcare costs to education attainment for women to female representation at senior levels. At the current rate, it will take 132 years to close the global gender gap How does your country support women at work?
3:23 What is the polycrisis? – Today we are once again beset by seemingly unconnected crises. Such as the war in Ukraine, the climate crisis and the aftermath of COVID-19. “So economics, politics, geopolitics and then the natural environment blowing back at us – and those 4 things, they don’t reduce to a single common denominator. They don’t reduce to a single factor. And that’s why I think the polycrisis term has a real utility descriptively as much as anything else, because it’s kind of hand-waving, of course, it’s kind of arm waving. It’s going, look, there’s a lot of stuff happening here all at once. And that precisely is what we’re trying to wrap our minds around.”
6:54 Are Chatbots going to take our jobs? – “I get this question asked 10 times a week, which is that, look, is conversational AI going to take away jobs? And my consistent answer is no. And the best analogy I will give to you is banks and ATMs. So prior to the technology of ATMs, the most common reason why people would walk into a bank would be to take out money. So imagine there’s no ATMs and 90% of the reason why somebody goes inside the bank is to say, I need to take out some cash, I need to take out some money. As a result, you know, you and I don’t even remember these days, but banks used to be crowded. There used to be long lines and so on. Here comes the ATM, which automates really what should be a very simple task.”
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The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. We believe that progress happens by bringing together people from all walks of life who have the drive and the influence to make positive change.
A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, how chatbots will influence the lucrative business of internet search, the parable of Adani (11:25) and why France is arguing about work, and the right to be lazy (19:50).
Boomers Daily 