Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Biology: Zoology Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Researchers name prehistoric amphibian ancestor discovered in Smithsonian collection after Kermit the Frog      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have uncovered the fossilized skull of a 270-million-year-old ancient amphibian ancestor in the collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. The team of researchers described the fossil as a new species of proto-amphibian, which they named Kermitops gratus in honor of the iconic Muppet, Kermit the Frog.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General
Published

AI can now detect COVID-19 in lung ultrasound images      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Artificial intelligence can spot COVID-19 in lung ultrasound images much like facial recognition software can spot a face in a crowd, new research shows. The findings boost AI-driven medical diagnostics and bring health care professionals closer to being able to quickly diagnose patients with COVID-19 and other pulmonary diseases with algorithms that comb through ultrasound images to identify signs of disease.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Nanotechnology Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Robotic metamaterial: An endless domino effect      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

If it walks like a particle, and talks like a particle... it may still not be a particle. A topological soliton is a special type of wave or dislocation which behaves like a particle: it can move around but cannot spread out and disappear like you would expect from, say, a ripple on the surface of a pond. Researchers now demonstrate the atypical behavior of topological solitons in a robotic metamaterial, something which in the future may be used to control how robots move, sense their surroundings and communicate.

Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Study reveals 'cozy domesticity' of prehistoric stilt-house dwellers in England's ancient marshland      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Detailed reports on thousands of artifacts pulled from 'Britain's Pompeii' reveals the surprisingly sophisticated domestic lives of Bronze Age Fen folk some 3,000 years ago -- from home interiors to recipes, clothing, kitchenware and pets.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

New archive of ancient human brains challenges misconceptions of soft tissue preservation      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study has challenged previously held views that brain preservation in the archaeological record is extremely rare. The team compiled a new archive of preserved human brains, which highlighted that nervous tissues actually persist in much greater abundances than traditionally thought, assisted by conditions that prevent decay.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Across oceans and millennia: decoding the origin and history of the bottle gourd      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have uncovered intriguing details about the origins and spread of the bottle gourd, one of the oldest domesticated crops. Their work unveils the genetic diversification and population history of this hard-shelled plant that was used to make bottles, instruments, and containers for over 10,000 years by ancient civilizations.

Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Tanks of the Triassic: New crocodile ancestor identified      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Dinosaurs get all the glory. But aetosaurs, a heavily armored cousin of modern crocodiles, ruled the world before dinosaurs did. These tanks of the Triassic came in a variety of shapes and sizes before going extinct around 200 million years ago. Today, their fossils are found on every continent except Antarctica and Australia.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Two artificial intelligences talk to each other      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Performing a new task based solely on verbal or written instructions, and then describing it to others so that they can reproduce it, is a cornerstone of human communication that still resists artificial intelligence (AI). A team has succeeded in modelling an artificial neural network capable of this cognitive prowess. After learning and performing a series of basic tasks, this AI was able to provide a linguistic description of them to a 'sister' AI, which in turn performed them.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Advanced army robots more likely to be blamed for deaths      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Advanced killer robots are more likely to blamed for civilian deaths than military machines, new research has revealed. The study shows that high-tech bots will be held more responsible for fatalities in identical incidents.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Robot ANYmal can do parkour and walk across rubble      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The quadrupedal robot ANYmal went back to school and has learned a lot. Researchers used machine learning to teach it new skills: the robot can now climb over obstacles and successfully negotiate pitfalls.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Mathematics: Modeling Mathematics: Statistics
Published

How do neural networks learn? A mathematical formula explains how they detect relevant patterns      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Neural networks have been powering breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, including the large language models that are now being used in a wide range of applications, from finance, to human resources to healthcare. But these networks remain a black box whose inner workings engineers and scientists struggle to understand. Now, a team has given neural networks the equivalent of an X-ray to uncover how they actually learn.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research
Published

Robotic interface masters a soft touch      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed a haptic device capable of reproducing the softness of various materials, from a marshmallow to a beating heart, overcoming a deceptively complex challenge that has previously eluded roboticists.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Published

Going top shelf with AI to better track hockey data      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers got a valuable assist from artificial intelligence (AI) tools to help capture and analyze data from professional hockey games faster and more accurately than ever before, with big implications for the business of sports.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General
Published

The role of machine learning and computer vision in Imageomics      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new field promises to usher in a new era of using machine learning and computer vision to tackle small and large-scale questions about the biology of organisms around the globe.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Engineering: Robotics Research Mathematics: General Mathematics: Modeling
Published

Method rapidly verifies that a robot will avoid collisions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new safety-check technique can prove with 100 percent accuracy that a planned robot motion will not result in a collision. The method can generate a proof in seconds and does so in a way that can be easily verified by a human.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Earth's earliest forest revealed in Somerset fossils      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The oldest fossilized forest known on Earth -- dating from 390 million years ago -- has been found in the high sandstone cliffs along the Devon and Somerset coast of South West England.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General
Published

AI can speed design of health software      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Artificial intelligence helped clinicians to accelerate the design of diabetes prevention software, a new study finds.

Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Fossil named 'Attenborough's strange bird' was the first in its kind without teeth      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new fossil, named 'Attenborough's strange bird' after naturalist and documentarian Sir David Attenborough, is the first of its kind to evolve a toothless beak. It's from a branch of the bird family tree that went extinct in the mass extinction 66 million years ago, and this strange bird is another puzzle piece that helps explain why some birds -- and their fellow dinosaurs -- went extinct, and others survived to today.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Modeling the origins of life: New evidence for an 'RNA World'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists provide fresh insights on the origins of life, presenting compelling evidence supporting the 'RNA World' hypothesis. The study unveils an RNA enzyme that can make accurate copies of other functional RNA strands, while also allowing new variants of the molecule to emerge over time. These remarkable capabilities suggest the earliest forms of evolution may have occurred on a molecular scale in RNA, and also bring scientists one step closer to re-creating autonomous RNA-based life in the laboratory.