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Results for " Extreme " 937 found 🔀 AI-powered Shuffle

Scientists Think a Cosmic Particle Accelerator Shot a Mystery Particle Right at Earth

A gigantic "blazar" may have fired a beam of light-speed particles at our planet, creating a 2023 "ghost particle" detection.

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Jun 2 • 7:45 AM EDT • Science • extremetech.com
Intel warns of "crazy" price: Arc G3 Extreme tramples AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme for expensive price

Intel has detailed the performance and power efficiency of its upcoming Arc G3 Extreme SoC. Designed for handheld gaming consoles, the Intel Arc G3 and Arc G3 Extreme rely on Intel's latest Panther Lake CPU architecture and feature 10 and 12 Xe-core iGPUs, respectively. However, the consoles powered by these chips could be extremely expensive.

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Jun 2 • 5:14 AM EDT • Technology • notebookcheck.net
Towards a responsive health system and equitable access to quality RMNCAH services

Indonesia’s vast geography and sociocultural diversity shape the delivery of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health (RMNCAH) services in ways that are both enabling and challenging. Across provinces, significant variation has been observed in how services are planned, resourced, and delivered. These variations in service standards and quality are felt daily in the lives of women, newborns and adolescents. Despite these challenges, progress is visible. National estimates show a drop in maternal mortality ratio, from 331 to 140 per 100 000 live births since 2000, signaling improvements in care quality and access. Fertility has stabilised and contraceptive use has grown, yet unmet reproductive health needs persist, and adolescent pregnancies continue to reflect early marriage and limited access to youth-friendly services.To better understand how Indonesia’s health system has evolved under decentralisation, the Ministry of Health, supported by World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), IPAS and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), conducted a joint external review of RMNCAH programmes. This review draws on multiple sources of evidence, including existing literature, policy documents, national health system data, as well as field visits to six selected provinces to represent Indonesia’s geographic and administrative diversity. During the field visits, review teams observed service delivery in health facilities, spoke with health workers and local leaders and met mothers and families to understand how RMNCAH policies are operationalised. One of the challenges identified was the management of low birthweight (LBW) infants, a major contributor to neonatal deaths, under resource constraints. One midwife described a severe case of extremely LBW twins, one stillborn and the other died after three days of care. She recalled how the surviving infant struggled to swallow and may not have received breast milk, while simultaneous emergencies required the team’s attention, affecting the care provided to the infant.A subsequent review of the case by the district health office revealed insufficient antenatal care, fragmented maternal medical history due to population mobility, referral delays, limited provider capacity in neonatal intravenous access and a heavy workload that constrained proper newborn monitoring. These insights informed recommendations to strengthen both system-wide and service-level responses. Since the early 2000s, Indonesia’s decentralisation initiative has given much of the responsibility for funding, staffing and managing health services to regional governments. While the Ministry of Health sets national clinical standards, daily management of public health facilities falls under regional authorities through the Ministry of Internal Affairs. While this arrangement allows services to be tailored to local needs, it also depends heavily on local capacity for planning, budgeting and management. Health facilities and district health offices are better positioned to translate national priorities into local action when they have access to consistent technical support, helping health workers manage resource constraints and infrastructure gaps.The complexity of Indonesia’s health system governance is no easy feat to navigate. Understanding these dynamics is essential to strengthening policy, improving coordination and ensuring more equitable access to services across Indonesia. Under the leadership of Ministry of Health, recommendations from this exercise will be key in guiding the nation’s roadmap to an equitable and quality health system for RMNCAH.Written by Edit Oktavia Manuama, National Professional Officer (Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health), and Jessie Yunus, National Professional Officer (Gender, Rights, Equity, and Disability Inclusion)

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Jun 1 • 8:00 PM EDT • Health • who.int
All-New ROG XBOX Ally X20 Bundle Raises the Bar for Gaming Handhelds

Discover the all-new ROG XBOX Ally X20 Bundle with a stunning 7.4" OLED Nebula HDR display, AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme, and ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 AR Glasses. Celebrate 20 years of ROG with the ultimate portable gaming setup.

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Jun 1 • 1:34 PM EDT • Technology • press.asus.com
All-New ROG XBOX Ally X20 Bundle Raises the Bar for Gaming Handhelds

Discover the all-new ROG XBOX Ally X20 Bundle with a stunning 7.4" OLED Nebula HDR display, AMD Ryzen AI Z2 Extreme, and ROG XREAL R1 Edition 20 AR Glasses. Celebrate 20 years of ROG with the ultimate portable gaming setup.

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Jun 1 • 1:34 PM EDT • Technology • press.asus.com
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Astrophysicist Paz Beniamini snags science prize — a feather in the cap for underdog Open University

In a first for the 52-year-old institution, Beniamini wins the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel for physics based on his work on 'extreme' events

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Jun 1 • 7:54 AM EDT • Science • ejewishphilanthropy.com
Launch of new WHO Heat–Health Action Plans Guidance

On 11 June 2026, WHO/Europe will launch the new WHO Heat–Health Action Plans Guidance, an international point of reference for systematic, evidence-based health action in preparation for and response to extreme heat. The launch of the new Guidance will take place in Berlin, at a joint hybrid press conference hosted by the Federal Minister for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, together with the WHO Regional Director for Europe, the Senator for Science, Health and Care of the State of Berlin, and a senior representative from the European Commission Directorate-General for Climate Action.

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Jun 1 • 6:24 AM EDT • Health • who.int
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Climate science without a notorious worst-case scenario

(The Center Square) – The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change threw out one of its most extreme emissions scenarios last week, a major development in climate science that will li...

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May 31 • 10:00 AM EDT • Science • yahoo.com
Climate science without a notorious worst-case scenario

(The Center Square) – The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change threw out one of its most extreme emissions scenarios last week, a major development in climate science that

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May 31 • 10:00 AM EDT • Science • thecentersquare.com
MSU Benefitted From Recent Legislative Session

The recently-completed 2026 regular session of the Mississippi Legislature saw encouraging gains for Mississippi State University, the state’s leading research university, as lawmakers invested in the land-grant institution’s core missions and in the university’s world-class faculty and staff. “While the bulk of our operations saw level funding, I’m extremely pleased that the Mississippi Legislature and […]

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May 30 • 12:58 PM EDT • Business • deltabusinessjournal.com
MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ with Intel Arc G3 Extreme appears in early Computex hands-on

MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ spotted at Computex booth with Arc G3 Extreme MSI’s next Claw handheld has appeared in an early Computex hands-on, apparently from the

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May 30 • 8:00 AM EDT • Technology • videocardz.com
Blue Moon 2026: An extremely rare micromoon rises tonight

A rare Blue Moon, the second full moon in May, will also be a "micromoon" near its farthest point from Earth.

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May 30 • 4:00 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
Stanford quantum computing breakthrough uses twisted light to work without extreme cooling

A new room-temperature quantum device uses twisted light to entangle photons and electrons, overcoming one of the biggest hurdles in quantum technology. The breakthrough could pave the way for smaller, cheaper quantum systems with applications ranging from secure communications to future AI and computing platforms.

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May 29 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
This is MSI’s new Claw 8 EX AI Plus gaming handheld

And it’s using Intel’s custom Arc G3 Extreme handheld gaming chip.

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May 29 • 7:11 AM EDT • Technology • theverge.com
AI billionaires brace for pitchforks

Tech titans are keenly aware that the politics of extreme wealth could turn dangerous fast.

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May 29 • 5:40 AM EDT • Politics • axios.com
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Maryland Department of Health reports first heat related death of 2026

The Maryland Department of Health reported the state’s first heat‑related death of 2026 on Thursday. Officials said an adult male in the 70 to 80‑year‑old age range died in Calvert County.

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May 28 • 11:41 AM EDT • Health • fox5dc.com
Intel Charges Into AMD’s Handheld Stronghold With Purpose-Built Arc G3 Extreme, Packing 14 Cores & a 12-Core Xe3 GPU

Intel has finally unveiled its brand new SoCs for gaming handhelds called the Arc G3 Extreme & Arc G3, based on the Panther Lake design.

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May 28 • 10:45 AM EDT • Technology • wccftech.com
FIFA's World Cup Ticket Strategy Is Extreme Version of Wider Approach

FIFA's World Cup ticket strategy has drawn criticism. It's a more extreme version of a profit-maximization approach that is becoming common in sports.

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May 28 • 7:55 AM EDT • Sports • sportico.com
NASA’s Fermi telescope reveals the power source behind monster supernovae

NASA’s Fermi telescope has detected what may be the first confirmed gamma-ray signal from a superluminous supernova — one of the most extreme explosions in the universe. Scientists believe the blast was powered by a rapidly spinning magnetar, an exotic neutron star with unbelievably strong magnetic fields. The event, called SN 2017egm, erupted 440 million light-years away and may help explain why some supernovae become extraordinarily bright.

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May 26 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Scientists are raising new questions about vitamin B12 and cancer

Vitamin B12 has long been seen as a health hero, helping the body make red blood cells, repair DNA, and keep nerves functioning properly. But scientists are discovering that the story may be more complicated than simply “more is better.” While too little B12 can damage DNA and raise cancer risk, some studies suggest that extremely high levels — especially from long-term high-dose supplements — may also be linked to certain cancers or poorer outcomes in cancer patients.

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May 26 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Moderate Muslim activist warns Mamdani promoting extremist politics

Anila Ali says New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani represents an extreme form of Islamism and is damaging both moderate Muslims and Jewish communities in New York ahead of a planned protest outside Gracie Mansion.

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May 26 • 3:18 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
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New Instrument Used Antarctic Ice Sheet to Probe Extreme Universe

The Payload for Ultrahigh Energy Observations (PUEO) is a NASA Astrophysics Pioneers Program mission designed to detect the most energetic particles in the universe.

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May 26 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • science.nasa.gov
Is it getting windier in Kentucky?

Is it getting windier? Long-time listener Barry Zalph thinks it is, at least in Louisville. And he’s not the only one. Redditors and local reporters have noticed a recent uptick in the region’s windstorms, too. But does that point to any larger trends in windiness? And if so, what could be causing it? We talked to meteorologist and extreme weather specialist Scott Gunter to find out. Plus, we dig into whether Tornado Alley is shifting into Kentucky as the climate warms. This episode is part of Nature Quest, our monthly listener-driven segment about climate and the environment. Have a question for us? Send a voice memo to shortwave@npr.org with your name, location and what you’re noticing in the environment around you… it could be our next Nature Quest!Interested in more weather and wind science? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org.Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.

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May 26 • 3:00 AM EDT • Science • npr.org
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The World Cup Problem That Could Disrupt All of Sports

After last year’s dangerously hot and humid FIFA Club World Cup in the US, attention has turned to how soccer’s governing body might handle extreme heat during its largest ever tournament: The 2026 FIFA World Cup, set to kick off June 11. Much of the focus has been on how the temperatures could affect the footballers, but the event is a reminder that the ones in real peril are the fans — and the players of the future.

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May 26 • 12:00 AM EDT • Sports • bloomberg.com
How this age of extreme gerrymandering is transforming American politics

Politicians, no longer content to leave elections to chance, are working to choose their voters as often as every two years.

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May 25 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com
Looksmaxxing may point to deeper body image issues in young men, mental health expert says

A mental health professional explains how sensationalizing the extreme behaviors associated with “looksmaxxing,” rather than treating them as symptoms of mental health issues, can prevent boys and young men from receiving the care they need.

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May 24 • 1:41 PM EDT • Health • pbs.org
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Repeal of EPA’s endangerment finding won’t change the realities of chronic disease

We can expect chronic disease rates to worsen as greenhouse gas emissions trend upward and contribute to more frequent and intense climate impacts like extreme heat and wildfires.

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May 24 • 10:00 AM EDT • Health • thehill.com
Open primaries won’t fix everything. But could they cool the extremes?
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May 23 • 11:34 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
EXCLUSIVE: Tulsi Gabbard resigns from Trump Cabinet

Tulsi Gabbard notified President Trump she is resigning as DNI, citing her husband Abraham's diagnosis with an extremely rare form of bone cancer.

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May 22 • 12:55 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
California politics isn’t just left vs. right. Our analysis found a third extreme

A data analysis of California precincts voting on ballot measures shows that voters are divided beyond left and right.

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May 22 • 7:00 AM EDT • Politics • sfchronicle.com
Surprising lessons for democracy from the Latin American left

Polarization is often created by political elites aiming to gain popularity, but it can also be caused by social conflicts rooted in extreme inequalities, according to a new book about Latin America politics co-authored by two Cornell professors.

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May 21 • 1:55 PM EDT • Politics • news.cornell.edu
The Race to Be the Face of Manhattan Is Extremely Tight

New polling shows a close contest between Micah Lasher and Alex Bores. Downtown, Brad Lander may be on the brink of a landslide.

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May 21 • 11:11 AM EDT • Politics • nymag.com
Pokémon Company Considers Using Government ID To Tackle TCG Scalping

Extreme behaviour calls for an extreme response

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May 21 • 8:00 AM EDT • Technology • nintendolife.com
Why Trump’s ‘anti-weaponization’ fund is so scandalous

President Donald Trump is a studied beneficiary of the Overton window. That is, the many extreme and norm-busting things he does, over time, make things that would once be scandalous appear more mundane and unremarkable.

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May 20 • 1:08 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Why Rangers could target Mavrik Bourque this offseason

This is an extremely important offseason for the New York Rangers. After missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs two seasons in […]

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May 20 • 11:08 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
UC researchers recruit older adults for extreme heat health study

The University of Cincinnati’s Center for Collaboration on Climate & Community for Health (C4H) is recruiting older adults to participate in a study tracking their health during periods of extreme summer heat.

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May 19 • 8:00 PM EDT • Health • uc.edu
String theory suddenly emerged from simple physics rules

Physicists may have uncovered a surprising new clue that string theory—the idea that the universe is built from unimaginably tiny vibrating strings—could be more than just a mathematical fantasy. Instead of assuming strings existed from the start, researchers began with a few simple rules about how particles behave at extreme energies and discovered that the equations naturally produced the telltale fingerprints of string theory all on their own.

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May 18 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Could A Simple Lab Mistake Lead Scientists to Over-Estimate Microplastics?

While microplastics are a very real issue, one new study suggests that the numbers might not be quite as bad as we've feared.

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May 18 • 11:30 AM EDT • Science • yahoo.com
Could A Simple Lab Mistake Lead Scientists to Over-Estimate Microplastics?

While microplastics are a very real issue, one new study suggests that the numbers might not be quite as bad as we've feared.

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May 18 • 11:30 AM EDT • Science • extremetech.com
New MatterChat Model Helps AI to ‘See’ the Language of Science

From writing emails to generating computer code, much of the artificial intelligence prevalent in our daily lives has succeeded by mastering one domain: text. However, this leaves a major blind spot in the physical sciences, where models depend on the high-resolution, three-dimensional data of the physical world, like the intricate lattice of atoms in a crystal. Delivering on the promise of using AI for science requires teaching these data-driven text models to seamlessly “talk to” physics-based models. Now, a new AI framework from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), called MatterChat, solves this problem by creating a specialized “bridge.” It connects the conversational power of a Large Language Model (LLM) with a physics-based AI that models “interatomic potentials”: the complex physical forces between atoms. The resulting system already significantly outperforms general-purpose AI tools like GPT-4 at predicting material properties, and the team hopes it can accelerate scientific discovery by serving as a robust research partner that provides grounded insights and generates step-by-step instructions for synthesizing novel materials. A paper describing this work was recently published in Nature Machine Intelligence. “Traditional simulations can provide the physical rigor required for materials science, yet their computational cost remains prohibitive for high-throughput screening. Conversely, while LLMs excel at rapid knowledge synthesis, they inherently lack the ‘structural vision’ to interpret materials directly from their underlying atomic coordinates,” said Yingheng Tang, a postdoctoral researcher in Berkeley Lab’s Applied Math and Computational Research Division (AMCR) and lead author on the paper. “MatterChat was built to solve this dilemma, empowering LLMs with a structural ‘vision’ that allows researchers to leverage their full potential for solving complex, real-world materials challenges.” Empowering language models to solve complex challenges in materials science To build MatterChat, the Berkeley Lab team drew inspiration from technologies like Vision Question Answering (VQA) and Text-to-Image (T2I) generation. In these tasks, AI must translate high-level text concepts into visual images, or vice versa. Doing so requires developers to build tools that “bridge” two fundamentally different forms of data. The researchers adapted this concept to the physical sciences. With MatterChat, they created a “bridge model” that successfully connects an LLM’s general knowledge with the deep understanding of the atomic-scale world encoded in scientific interatomic potentials. Until now, researchers using LLMs to solve materials problems usually had to feed them raw data files as if they were just strings of text. It’s like asking an AI to understand a complex 3D engine based only on a parts list: the LLM can read the names, but it can’t “see” how the atoms fit together in space. MatterChat solves this by training a specialized AI bridge model, pre-trained on millions of crystal structures and an LLM, to align the LLM’s representation of the world with the interatomic potential’s representation of the world. The bridge model can translate physical insights into a format the LLM can actually understand. By giving the LLM these “scientific eyes”— a scientific “inductive bias” in the terminology of AI — the Berkeley Lab team has transformed it into a robust research tool capable of providing grounded scientific insights into complex materials challenges, such as predicting thermal stability or analyzing electronic band gaps. “We think of atoms as living in a physical space, but from a machine learning perspective, they are just vectors living in some very non-trivially structured manifold in a high-dimensional Euclidean space; and, of course, the same is true for the sentences and paragraphs that we use to express our ideas about those atoms,” said co-author Michael Mahoney, Berkeley Lab’s Scientific Data Division (SDD) AI Initiative Research Lead. “The bridge model basically gets those two structures to ‘talk with’ each other.” As a proof-of-concept of this general approach, the team trained their bridge model on a dataset curated by pairing nearly 143,000 stable atomic structures from the Materials Project with their corresponding physical properties. This training data was automatically assembled using the Materials Project’s API and deliberately enriched with properties fundamental to microelectronics design — like formation energy and bandgap — allowing MatterChat to learn the complex patterns connecting a material’s atomic blueprint to its functional performance. To validate their model, the researchers benchmarked MatterChat against a suite of other AI systems, from general-purpose LLMs to other specialized scientific AI methods. The results show that MatterChat consistently outperformed its competitors across a range of tasks. The model was more accurate in classifying material types and demonstrated superior precision in predicting numerical properties. For example, it excelled at predicting a material’s bandgap, a property critical for designing new electronics from high-capacity energy storage to next-generation computer chips. “Our design is significantly more efficient because we don’t have to build a massive AI model from the ground up,” said co-author Zhi (Jackie) Yao, a research scientist in Berkeley Lab’s AMCR. “Instead, we take two powerful, pre-trained models — a structural encoder for materials physics and an open-source LLM — and use them off-the-shelf. The only component we actually train is the lightweight ‘bridge model’ that translates between them. It’s the difference between building an entire car factory and simply designing a smart adapter that connects a world-class engine to a world-class navigation system. This approach is not only computationally efficient, but also makes the system modular, so we can easily upgrade components or adapt the bridge for other scientific domains in the future.” Crucially, this modular design highlights exactly how institutions like Berkeley Lab and the Department of Energy are carving out a highly valuable niche in the booming AI landscape. Rather than competing with Silicon Valley tech giants to build ever-larger language models from scratch, the lab is focusing on the specialized connective tissue that makes commercial AI useful for hardcore science. Because the bridge model approach underlying MatterChat is forward-compatible, it is perfectly positioned to leverage these parallel tracks of innovation. As Mahoney pointed out, “We expect that industry will continue to develop improved LLMs, and we expect domain scientists and facilities will continue to generate new data. An important part of scientific machine learning is not simply to solve problems on today’s data, but instead to develop general methods that will be forward-compatible with orders of magnitude more data, whether from scientific domains or from LLMs.” According to Yao, the MatterChat project, which was initially developed and enhanced with funding from a Berkeley Lab Laboratory Directed Research & Development (LDRD) Program, will now expand its capabilities. In a collaboration with Fermilab, MatterChat is already contributing to a U.S. Department of Energy Genesis Mission project — called Accelerating eXtreme Environment Specs-to-Silicon (AXESS) — that aims to speed up the development of next-generation, high-speed, radiation-hardened detectors for challenging particle physics experiments by using advanced 3D integrated circuits (chiplets) and AI-driven data analysis. In addition to the LDRD support, the team also credits supercomputing resources at the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), located at Berkeley Lab, with MatterChat’s success. “We are incredibly grateful to NERSC; this research simply would not have happened without access to the Perlmutter supercomputer through their AI for Science program,” said Tang. Wenbin Xu, a NERSC postdoctoral fellow at the time, was also a major co-author of the work, as was Benjamin Erichson, a research scientist in Berkeley Lab’s SDD, highlighting the benefits of AMCR-SDD collaboration on AI for science. ### Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) is committed to groundbreaking research focused on discovery science and solutions for abundant and reliable energy supplies. The lab’s expertise spans materials, chemistry, physics, biology, earth and environmental science, mathematics, and computing. Researchers from around the world rely on the lab’s world-class scientific facilities for their own pioneering research. Founded in 1931 on the belief that the biggest problems are best addressed by teams, Berkeley Lab and its scientists have been recognized with 17 Nobel Prizes. Berkeley Lab is a multiprogram national laboratory managed by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science. DOE’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science.

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May 18 • 11:00 AM EDT • Science • newscenter.lbl.gov
Analysis: Brighton face nervy final day

Brighton travelled to Leeds United knowing a win would secure European football for only the second time in their 124-year history. Leeds - playing with freedom after securing another year of top-flight football - made their life extremely difficult in the first half. Veltman's shot was blocked by Jaka Bijol and a swerving effort from Gross that needed Darlow to save were the only times they threatened before Van Hecke spurned the gilt-edged chance to put them in front in the 44th minute.

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May 17 • 12:50 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Stunning 150-million-year-old stegosaur skull rewrites dinosaur evolution

A spectacular dinosaur discovery in Spain is giving scientists a rare new look inside the world of stegosaurs. Paleontologists uncovered the best-preserved stegosaur skull ever found in Europe, belonging to the iconic plated dinosaur Dacentrurus armatus, which roamed Earth around 150 million years ago. Because stegosaur skulls are extremely fragile and almost never survive intact, the fossil is helping researchers uncover previously unknown details about how these armored giants evolved.

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May 16 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Xizang emerges as frontier for high-altitude science

From cloned yaks to large-scale climate expeditions, China is turning its Qinghai-Xizang Plateau into a major frontier for life sciences and high-altitude research, using the region's extreme environment to advance both fundamental science and applied

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May 16 • 9:58 AM EDT • Science • news.cgtn.com
Antarctica’s sudden sea ice loss is one of the most extreme and confusing events in the modern climate record. Scientists now know why it's happening.

In 2015, after decades of relative stability, Antarctica's sea ice suddenly began to disappear. Sea ice extent reached a record low in 2023, and scientists have now figured out what happened in that period.

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May 15 • 8:51 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
NASA’s Roman Space Telescope could reveal millions of invisible neutron stars

NASA’s Roman Space Telescope could expose a vast hidden population of neutron stars lurking unseen across the Milky Way. By detecting subtle shifts in starlight caused by gravity, the mission may identify and even weigh isolated neutron stars that are otherwise impossible to see. Scientists hope the discoveries will reveal how these extreme objects are born and why they are blasted through space at incredible speeds.

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May 14 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
'Extreme' crystal that formed in 1945 nuclear bomb test is unlike anything scientists have seen

Samples of "trinitite" created during the world’s first nuclear bomb test in 1945 contain unique crystals never seen before.

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May 14 • 6:00 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
England fans at World Cup opener at risk of health complications due to extreme heat - academics

England fans in Texas for next month's FIFA World Cup opener against Croatia are among those most at risk of health complications caused by extreme heat, academics have warned.

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May 14 • 3:27 AM EDT • Health • espn.com
Humid Heat: A Growing Health Risk in a Warming Climate

The combination of extreme heat and humidity is dangerous and becoming more common in our warming climate.

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May 13 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • climatecentral.org
Extreme heat is worsening faster for Black Americans

Bill Cassidy's can't-win conundrum, what RFK Jr. gets right and wrong about antidepressants, and more health news

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May 13 • 7:46 AM EDT • Health • statnews.com
As El Niño Approaches, Scientists Predict Fierce Heatwaves, Wildfires and Floods

Emerging Pacific Ocean heat, combined with ongoing human-caused global warming, is a grim recipe for deadly climate extremes. Heat alone already kills more than 500,000 annually.

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May 12 • 3:40 PM EDT • Science • insideclimatenews.org
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80 years after the Trinity nuclear test, scientists identify new molecule-trapping crystal formed in the blast

Matter behaves strangely under extreme conditions, and often, remnants of these behaviors are left behind even when conditions return to normal. The Trinity nuclear test in 1945 left behind such remnants, ...

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May 12 • 12:50 PM EDT • Science • phys.org
Scientists Subjected Fruit Flies To Hypergravity And Their Behavior Became Counterintuitive

Some of the flies were subjected to extreme hypergravity for 10 whole generations, living out their lives in conditions found around a super-Jupiter.

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May 12 • 10:24 AM EDT • Science • iflscience.com
Locking up key contributor named Eagles' most underrated offseason move

It has been an extremely eventful offseason for the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles made several major additions over the offseason, including edge rusher Jonathan Greenard and wide receivers Hollywood Brown, Dontayvion Wicks and rookie first-round pick Makai Lemon. Locking up defensive tackle Jordan Davis on a three-year, $78 million extension was named Philadelphia's most underrated offseason move by Jeff Kerr of Sports Illustrated.

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May 10 • 5:47 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Billy Bob Thornton reveals the lifelong health battle behind his extreme diet

Billy Bob Thornton opens up about his restricted diet, rare blood type and food allergies that have influenced his unusual eating habits for decades.

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May 9 • 2:53 PM EDT • Health • foxnews.com
Beware: Smart Glasses Are the New Tool for Extortion

One woman was recently told to pay up if she wanted clandestine footage removed from social media.

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May 8 • 2:15 PM EDT • Technology • extremetech.com
“Windows 11 Still Relies on Code From the 1990s…” Microsoft Stock (NASDAQ:MSFT) Slips on Revelation of Windows 11 Code

The old saying goes, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But tech giant Microsoft ($MSFT) may be taking that to an unexpected extreme as it revealed that Windows 11

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May 8 • 1:34 PM EDT • Technology • tipranks.com
Trump's Truth Social lays bare narrow obsessions of an extremely online president

The bulk of the president's social media posts don't make news. But taken together they show what's on his mind as he leads the nation through war and domestic turmoil.

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May 8 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • npr.org
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The night sky could get three times brighter as new satellites launch — all but ruining the Vera C. Rubin Observatory's survey of the universe

Extremely bright satellites and megaconstellations could make the night sky up to three times brighter than it is now, a new study warns. This would seriously hinder astronomical imaging devices, like the enormous camera at the Vera C. Rubin Observatory.

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May 6 • 2:35 PM EDT • Science • livescience.com
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'Food insecurity is no longer just about low-income countries': Environmental economist explains how climate change is pushing agricultural systems to the brink

As a U.N. report warns that extreme temperature swings are disrupting crops and endangering agricultural workers, we spoke with environmental economist Shouro Dasgupta about farming in an overheating world.

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May 6 • 4:56 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
Roku and TCL Accused of Bricking Smart TVs Through Software Updates

A class action lawsuit argues that marketing materials promise reliable performance and ongoing improvements through updates that actually ruined consumers' TVs.

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May 5 • 1:00 PM EDT • Technology • extremetech.com
How States Are Navigating the Intersection of Disasters and Public Health

As state officials seek to address the full scope of extreme weather impacts, they must look beyond physical damage metrics—washed-out roads, downed power lines, and destroyed buildings—to broader health effects that are increasingly evident in emergency rooms, public health data, and community well-being.

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May 5 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • pew.org
Caleb Downs Is the Cowboys’ Best Pick in Years

Caleb Downs very clearly has “it.” It’s extremely premature to make a claim as bold as “best in a decade” before a draft pick touches the field in training camp, let alone at game speed. However, some people have “it”—an aura people can see on film and in real game time. Every draft has a […] The post Caleb Downs Is the Cowboys’ Best Pick in Years appeared first on The Lead.

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May 4 • 3:52 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Trump keeps saying the quiet part out loud on changes to the 2026 election

President Donald Trump’s latest gerrymandering push is an extremely desperate partisan power grab that would invalidate votes already cast.

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May 4 • 1:16 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Greenland ice melt has surged sixfold and scientists are alarmed

Greenland’s ice sheet is now melting in ways never seen before, with extreme events becoming more frequent, widespread, and intense. Since 1990, meltwater production has skyrocketed, and most record-breaking events have occurred in recent years. Scientists say warming temperatures are supercharging these episodes beyond natural climate patterns.

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May 4 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Democrats slammed for 'dehumanizing' rhetoric amid concerns about political-fueled violence

Political analyst Gianno Caldwell discusses dangerous political rhetoric and its consequences, including an assassination attempt on President Donald Trump. He also examines how extreme language and socialist policies impact the country.

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May 3 • 2:23 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Scientists built a memory chip that breaks the rules of miniaturization

A new kind of memory device may finally solve the problem of overheating and battery drain in electronics. By shrinking components to an extreme scale and redesigning their structure, researchers found a way to reduce energy loss instead of increasing it. The result is a tiny memory unit that improves as it gets smaller—something once thought impossible. This could pave the way for ultra-efficient smartphones, wearables, and AI systems.

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May 2 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencedaily.com
Comey Indictment Shows Justice Dept. Got the Message From Bondi’s Firing

In naming only an interim successor as acting attorney general, President Trump has established even greater incentives to execute his most extreme demands, current and former officials say.

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Apr 30 • 6:46 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Museum of Science and Mystic River Watershed Association Honored with 2026 Boston Climate Leader Award for Research and Innovation

BOSTON, April 30, 2026--The Museum of Science, in partnership with the Mystic River Watershed Association, has been selected as a recipient of the 2026 Boston Climate Leader Awards in the Community Organization category for Research and Innovation. The award recognizes the organizations’ groundbreaking work engaging communities in climate research and advancing understanding of extreme heat as an environmental justice issue.

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Apr 30 • 10:29 AM EDT • Science • finance.yahoo.com
A New Jersey Republican hasn’t voted in weeks, sparking questions over lengthy absence on Capitol Hill

Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. of New Jersey has not voted in Congress in weeks, sparking questions over when he will return to Capitol Hill as he faces a competitive race for reelection back home and Speaker Mike Johnson oversees an extremely narrow House majority in Washington.

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Apr 30 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Brain scans reveal 3 ADHD subtypes, including a more extreme form

A study analyzing 1,154 children and adolescents breaks new ground in how to think about the growing diagnosis.

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Apr 30 • 6:00 AM EDT • Health • washingtonpost.com
Democrats Regret Creating Independent Redistricting Commissions After Supreme Court Ruling

A decade ago, the party sought independent redistricting commissions. Now, in an era of extreme gerrymandering, such efforts could slow Democrats as they try to keep up with Republicans.

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Apr 30 • 5:04 AM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Viewpoint: A career in science is possible, and worth it

Starting a career in science is exciting, but also demanding, with researchers often faced with intense competition, long working hours and high levels of stress. A pioneer in the field of mass spectrometry, Carol Robinson has been there. She speaks with Science|Business on the importance of creating a supportive environment, particularly for women.Robinson did not wake up one day thinking that she would become a scientist. It was only late in school that she developed an interest in chemistry. “The more you work at something, the more you think, actually, this is fascinating. So, I went much further and deeper than I ever needed to pass the exam. And then I loved it,” she says. “I thought, I’m going to give it my all. I’m going to enjoy it while I’m here. But I didn’t think this would be my career for 50 odd years.”She left school at 16 to become a lab technician with the drug company Pfizer, which is where she first worked with mass spectrometry. Fascinated, she was encouraged to take a part-time degree and then a PhD. She went on to do pioneering work in native mass spectrometry, a technique that is used to study protein structures in their natural state, paving the way for breakthroughs in drug discovery. She also broke new ground by becoming the first female professor of chemistry at the University of Cambridge, and then the first female professor of chemistry at the University of Oxford, her current home.She now wants to show young researchers that a career in science is worth it. “Sometimes, I believe the culture isn’t very encouraging, and that’s something I have worked on,” Robinson says.In 2021, she launched the Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery at Oxford, whose acronym gives a sense of what she hopes it will achieve. “Maybe it is corny,” she says. “It’s just a reminder that I would like it if we could all be kind to each other and supportive, especially for early-career researchers of either gender, because there’s quite a big attrition rate in science, and maybe it just doesn’t feel like a very friendly place to work.”And yet, a career in science comes with a lot of flexibility. “There are few careers where you have that amount of freedom, to go to conferences, to the library. Just because you didn’t see me didn’t mean I wasn’t working,” she says. “And I’m excited to come in every day. So, I don’t want people to think it’s a terrible place.”Gender equality is also important when it comes to the quality of science as a career. “The more women we have, the better it becomes,” Robinson adds.Imposter syndromeAccording to EU data, women outnumber men in university education but account for just about a third of graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem). And while the number of women working as scientists and engineers in the 27-member bloc is on the rise, their representation remains below that of men, at 41%. This discrepancy is even more pronounced in top-tier functions across these fields, where women fill just 20% of positions.Having supervised many young scientists, Robinson sees that women continue to have a greater propensity than men to doubt their abilities, a feeling she once shared. “When I was doing my PhD at the University at Cambridge, I really felt like an imposter,” she says. “I don’t think I ever felt I deserved to be there or owned it and was proud. I just thought I was lucky.” Later on, she adds, “I was always that person who said, I can’t apply yet because my CV is not strong enough.”She has now made it her job to encourage women to break with this imposter syndrome. For example, rather than calling for volunteers to give a lecture in the groups that she mentors or teaches, which nearly always results in men stepping forward, she goes straight to the women, “because I know they won’t push themselves forward.”But the gender gap in science is not just down to imposter syndrome. The “obvious” reason, Robinson says, and the reason that is on everybody’s mind when discussing workplace gender equality, is the balance between work and raising a family. Her own path was to choose between the two, taking an eight-year break after completing a postdoctoral training fellowship to bring up three children. And she continues to advise women not to work part-time while they raise a family. “You’ll just get half the pay and continue to work full-time because you are not able to fit everything in,” she says. “You should be able to have a family and come back to have the career that you want.”The solution is for men to also take career breaks. “That kind of evens it up, so that it’s not such a big thing for women,” Robinson says. “I always encourage men in my groups to do that. I think it’s important to take your share of the duties.”Support produces resultsAccording to the Women in Stem Network, a UK advocacy group, countries with strong childcare systems and equal pay policies retain more women in technical careers. In Europe, these are primarily found in the Nordic region and parts of central Europe.At the EU level, the European Commission asks all Horizon Europe applicant organisations to have a gender action plan in place. Since this criterion was introduced in 2021, the share of women leading consortia has increased to 31%, against 23% in Horizon 2020. Their overall participation, however, has risen just 1%, to 38%. After trying to weaken the requirement for gender action plans in 2025, the Commission now intends to adopt a plan for supporting women in research and innovation.Related articlesCommission scraps plan to water down gender requirements in HorizonHow gender balance can swing who wins Horizon Europe fundingRobinson herself has benefited from three Advanced Grants from the European Research Council. “I was extremely honoured and privileged to get those, because they really allowed me to fuel my passion,” she says. “Without that, it would have been a much harder slog.”Beyond applying gender rules, she says that more work is needed on translational enterprise, where women are, once again, largely underrepresented. The European Patent Office found that only 13.8% of applications were filed by women in 2022. “We have so many more women doing amazing science; why do they feel it’s not a thing to have a company?” she asks.She founded her own spin-out company, OMass Technologies, in 2016, and remains chair of its scientific advisory board now that it trades as OMass Therapeutics. As for research, Robinson is now studying how changes in the brain may be linked to depression, using port-mortem tissue. “We’re hoping to publish soon,” she says. “We had to consult with a lot of people who knew a lot more about the brain than we did. So, we’ve learnt a lot, and that’s always a lot of fun to learn a new thing. That’s what keeps you going.”

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Apr 29 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencebusiness.net
Significant rise in valley fever cases in El Paso linked to extreme weather, dust, study finds

A new study by researchers at The University of Texas at El Paso has identified a significant rise in Valley fever cases in El Paso over the past decade and found strong connections between the disease ...

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Apr 29 • 8:40 AM EDT • Health • medicalxpress.com
Learn How to Stay Safe in Extreme Heat at Citywide Keep Austin Cool Day Events

The City of Austin is getting ahead of the heat this summer by hosting Keep Austin Cool Day. The day aims to raise awareness of the dangers of heat and its health impacts, and to distribute resources to help keep Austinites cool.

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Apr 29 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • austintexas.gov
James Harden says Cavs 'extremely confident' after losses to Raptors

James Harden considers the Cavaliers' problems in Game 3 and 4 losses to the Toronto Raptors as "self-inflicted and things that we can control."

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Apr 28 • 2:47 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
We need AI, but the political backlash cannot be ignored

The rapid development of data centers to support AI has sparked a grass-roots political backlash, threatening to result in extreme measures such as the ban on data center development imposed by Mai…

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Apr 28 • 12:00 PM EDT • Politics • thehill.com
Texas' Top Criminal Court Has Stymied the State's 'Junk Science' Law. Will SCOTUS Intervene?

If the U.S. Supreme Court renders a decision in favor of Charles Flores and others, it would likely force the Court of Criminal Appeals to relax its extremely strict handling of appeals based on shoddy and outdated science.

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Apr 28 • 10:24 AM EDT • Science • texasobserver.org
Why Sustainability In Business Is Entering A More Operational Phase

Sustainability is still embedded across many corporations, which are now grappling with extreme weather events, driven by climate change.

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Apr 28 • 5:06 AM EDT • Business • forbes.com
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How Trump’s America Produces Normie Assassins

The only extremism suspected would-be assassins like Cole Tomas Allen share is an extreme response to Trump’s deranging politics.

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Apr 27 • 4:35 PM EDT • Politics • theintercept.com
Why Doesn't Star Trek Ever Leave The Milky Way Galaxy?

Throughout the many adventures of Star Trek, it's extremely rare that the Enterprise (or any other ship) leaves the Milky Way galaxy. But why is that?

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Apr 26 • 8:00 AM EDT • Technology • slashfilm.com
Five Formula 1 drivers who have taken on extreme sporting challenges

Tomorrow is the London Marathon, so there’s no better time to look at some drivers who’ve taken on some extreme sporting challenges.

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Apr 26 • 2:48 AM EDT • Sports • formula1.com
Pokemon Z development build found, footage released

Brand new footage of Pokemon Z – which was never released – has now been shared. It goes without saying, but this was an extremely early development build. MDTravisYT posted about the discovery on social media. It’s noted that the source code has an “upper_fake” branch that compiles as VERSION_Z. This has a “unique” title screen alongside some “new” mega...

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Apr 24 • 11:14 PM EDT • Technology • nintendoeverything.com
Scientists revive ancient 24,000-year-old ‘zombie worm’ from Arctic ice

Scientists revived a 24,000-year-old microscopic organism frozen in Siberian permafrost, offering new insights into how life endures extreme conditions.

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Apr 24 • 9:42 PM EDT • Science • foxnews.com
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New York City is at major risk of flooding that could leave 4.4 million people exposed to extreme damage, study finds

The new flood risk index identified eight cities along the U.S. East Coast that are at high or very high risk of floods causing extreme damage.

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Apr 24 • 11:11 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
'A completely new reality': Bolder measures are needed to prevent extreme water shortages in cities like Phoenix and Las Vegas that depend on the Colorado River

Cities fed by the Colorado River have taken huge steps to reduce their water consumption over the past few decades, yet water shortages are projected to grow more intense. What can be done?

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Apr 24 • 11:00 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
El Niño could be here by May, new forecast reveals —‬ here's what it means for summer weather

The climate event is poised to supercharge weather extremes and push global temperatures to new highs.

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Apr 24 • 10:44 AM EDT • Science • livescience.com
Fires, floods and extreme weather will imperil a third of all life on land in the next 60 years

This forecast does not look good.

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Apr 24 • 9:46 AM EDT • Science • nypost.com
Could an Earthly Fungus Contaminate Mars? NASA May Have Found One Hardy Enough.

Researchers identified a species that can survive radiation, extreme heat and simulated Martian soil, posing a new challenge for protocols intended to keep the red planet pristine.

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Apr 24 • 5:02 AM EDT • Science • nytimes.com
Focusing in on human health research at annual space meeting

Long-duration spaceflight can chip away at an astronaut’s health, prompting scientists to find new ways to make living in space easier on the body. The journey to outer space is incredibly dangerous, but crews must also face day-to-day hazards, such as exposure to cancer-causing radiation, microgravity and extreme isolation. Understanding and ...

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Apr 22 • 9:02 AM EDT • Health • news.osu.edu
Christian nationalists more likely to oppose gun regulations and support political violence, study finds

A new article finds that for Christian nationalists with a high gun-owner identity, there is an instilled culture of personal and community protection that makes them more likely to endorse extreme actions like violence.

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Apr 22 • 8:00 AM EDT • Politics • news.ku.edu
Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred Review

An extremely satisfying conclusion to Diablo's latest demonic saga.

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Apr 21 • 12:00 PM EDT • Technology • ign.com
Shaky political science: using "simulated" elections over real-world elections

[Dear DSOS readers – this article is the latest in our “Shaky Political Science” series. In our 38 page report, “Shaky political ‘science’ misses mark on ranked choice voting,” released in early December, we examined over 40 studies focused on ranked choice voting. We found that many of these studies suffered from puzzling research methodologies, poorly constructed surveys, unrealistic simulated elections, cherry picked data, and faulty analyses that often were contradicted by results from real-world elections (a link to our full paper is here). Here are links to the first three articles in our series: the first one summarizing the overall results of our report, the second one analyzing a study co-authored by University of Minnesota academic Larry Jacobs, which was one of the most error-prone of all the research we reviewed in our report, and a third article showing an admirable example of two political scientists holding two other political scientists accountable for their flawed, sloppy research]. In this fourth article in our “Shaky Political Science” series, we shine a spotlight on seven studies that were web-hosted and funded by New America’s Political Reform Program and its Electoral Reform Research Group (the ERRG is an ad hoc committee headed by New America’s Political Reform Program and joined by the American Enterprise Institute, the Unite America Institute and Stanford University’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law). This research consortium has been led by Lee Drutman, senior fellow with New America’s Political Reform Program. These seven studies are simply not credible from any objective standard about how political “science” is supposed to illuminate our understanding of either ranked choice voting or politics in general. The feature that six of these seven studies have in common is that they all used surveys – artificial, simulated elections -- to attempt to say something cogent or interesting about ranked choice voting (RCV) elections. None of them used real world data from actual RCV elections – either the 1000+ elections in the US or the many thousands of elections from places like Australia, Ireland and elsewhere where RCV has been used for 100 years. While a few of these studies conclude with some mixed positives about RCV, our analysis here is content neutral. The idea that, with a political reform like RCV, you can ask respondents in a mock, artificial election to vote with that method, with only the barest of explanation about how RCV works or its likely impacts (i.e. no spoiler candidates, majority winners, voters liberated to pick their favorite candidates, coalition-building), and then ask them their thoughts/reactions about voting in that system, with fake candidates and no real campaigning, no real exposure to an actual election or actual candidates, rests on some very puzzling assumptions. The findings of these seven studies actually are contradicted by the findings from many other studies based on real-world RCV elections. These New America studies also failed to list the real-world RCV studies in their own citations, instead including those studies that reinforced their conclusions. The seven studies featured in this article were chosen because they form a cohesive cohort which precisely illustrates one of the main points of our research paper, namely that using surveys, i.e. artificial elections, or mathematical/theoretical models, instead of real-world data, is in fact “shaky political science.” Below are summaries of our analysis of five of the seven New America studies. You can read our complete analysis of all seven studies at our paper, “Shaky political ‘science’ misses mark on ranked choice voting.” Choosing to “Vote As Usual” by Andre Blais, Carolina Plescia, and Semra Sevi. New America. (Blais et al., 2021). This study, web-hosted and funded by New America’s Political Reform Program and its Electoral Reform Research Group, used two surveys in which respondents completed ballots for simulated elections using plurality, approval, RCV and point (Score) voting. In both cases the authors provided the respondents with only minimal explanation of each method. For example, the entire explanation for RCV was “For this vote, rank the candidates from your first to your last choice (you do not need to rank them all). This is called the ranked vote.” That’s it. The study did not provide any context or explanation to survey respondents about why she/he might want to rank multiple candidates. Participants were not even told that ballots would be tabulated using an “instant” runoff, not to mention any description of RCVs ability to eliminate the spoiler effect or liberate voters to rank their favorite candidates without fear of helping the “greater evil” candidate to win. That’s like taking an iPhone back in time to 1970 and asking someone if they like it better than their rotary phone without explaining how it works. Their first survey targeted states that held 2020 Super Tuesday Democratic primaries and used the real candidates’ names in the survey; the second survey used fictitious candidates. In other words, they surveyed respondents who had only ever participated in plurality elections, had no history or background with using RCV or any of the other methods, had no clue about its likely impacts, and did not communicate how the alternative methods would be counted, and then asked them: “How satisfied are you with using each system?” Predictably, the winner was plurality elections, the system used for president, Congress, gubernatorial and state legislative elections – in other words, the method they have been using, year after year, all their voting lives. With so little explanation of RCV and its impacts, this study is simply not credible in discovering anything useful about real-world RCV elections. It merely shows that a basic voter education campaign is needed when adopting a new election system. Additionally, the result contradicts many other post-election surveys following real RCV elections, asking opinions from voters who had just participated in a RCV election, that showed a great deal of satisfaction with RCV (see details on that in Studies 22-25 in our paper, as well as the four studies cited in the review for Study 28). Share Other studies on “satisfaction” and “understanding” make similar mistakes, in terms of basing their surveys on inadequate explanation to respondents and lack of education about context. How could any survey ever hope to measure accurately, in essence simulate a real-world election, without actual campaigning candidates, the media writing about those candidates, organizations endorsing candidates and voters being inundated with crucial information? More than anything, what these “studies” based on surveys show is that if you ask voters about something they don’t know very much about, and fail to adequately educate them, their responses will unsurprisingly reflect their confusion. Equally puzzling is that New America’s Electoral Reform Research Group, headed by political scientist Lee Drutman, found this to be a credible enough study that they not only published it but highlighted it in Drutman’s own discussion of research related to ranked choice voting. This pattern was repeated in study after study featured by New America’s Electoral Reform Research Group. For example in Ranked-Choice Voting and Political Expression: Voter Guides Narrow the Gap between Informed and Uninformed Citizens by Cheryl Boudreau, Jonathan Colner, and Scott MacKenzie, the researchers based their analysis on a survey which found that respondents who were asked to vote in a simulated RCV election, with minimal explanation of RCV or how it works, displayed less evidence of being informed about how to use RCV effectively, with the least informed voters ranking fewer candidates. As pointed out under the study above, in a real election voters are informed by a wide variety of methods, including public education by the election administration, by interested political groups, the media, and the candidates themselves who benefit from voters being aware of how to vote in the new system. In Support for Ranked-Choice Voting across Race and Partisanship by Joseph Anthony, David C. Kimball, Jack Santucci and Jamil Scott, the researchers used respondents from different parties and races voting in simulated plurality and RCV elections, who indicated their satisfaction with each voting method. Instead of using real world election results, the authors fell back on the easy, armchair and less reliable academic research methodology of making up mock elections. As with the other studies, little explanation was given of how RCV works or what its implications might be (electing majority winners or eliminating spoilers, for example). Unsurprisingly, this study found that respondents were not very satisfied with RCV. However, when the authors added an explanation that RCV has a tendency to elect more women and people of color, they found that this greater explanation increased the preference for RCV. The more voters were familiar with it, and the more they understood potential positive impacts – surprise! -- the more they were open to switching away from the status quo. Of note, the results from this study are thoroughly contradicted by a number of other studies whose data was obtained from real RCV elections with real voters. Those studies show a great deal of satisfaction with RCV. More “fake election” research An interesting wrinkle on this “research by fake elections” approach, which only served to illustrate how unreliable such “research” can become, was taken in Ranked-Choice Voting, Runoff, and Democracy: Insights from Maine and Other U.S. States by Joseph Cerrone and Cynthia McClintock_,_ also web-hosted and funded by New America’s ERRG. It gets high marks for creativity, but an eye-roll for thinking this could possibly add anything meaningful to our understanding of real world RCV elections. This study tried to determine whether RCV, plurality or two-round runoff elections provided greater voter satisfaction and acceptance of election results. To determine that, the authors conducted a survey asking if voters were satisfied with a fictional newspaper report of an election, with three different versions given to respondents – plurality, runoff and RCV, with variations of Republican/Democrat winners and variations of “come-from-behind” winners,” i.e. candidates not initially in first place but who win the “runoff.” Again, a minimal explanation of RCV or how it works was given, and the survey showed that respondents had the greatest unfamiliarity with RCV than the other methods. The unsurprising result? Respondents were much more satisfied with “come-from-behind” victories in a traditional two-round runoff election than in RCV, even though RCV is also a runoff system but with a single round of counting. Interestingly, the dissatisfaction with RCV disappeared for those who were more familiar with RCV. In fact, among those respondents who were “very familiar” with RCV, they were equally satisfied with RCV, runoff and plurality. Surprise, surprise. Again, what this study revealed, more than anything, is not only the inadequacy of the explanation for RCV given by the authors of this study, but the failure of the research format itself, thinking that such an artificial mock election could somehow simulate what actually happens in the real world in a real RCV election. Those four studies reviewed above are fitting examples of inadequate and shaky political “science.” Other studies reviewed in our paper from the New America/Electoral Reform Research Group cohort which also used mock elections included: Ranked-Choice Voting is an Acquired Taste by Joseph Anthony and David C. Kimball. New America. (Anthony et al., 2021). Ranked-Choice Voting is No Refuge for Extreme Candidates by Melissa Baker. New America. (Baker, 2021). Also included in this New America cohort is Does Ranked-Choice Voting Reduce Racial Polarization? by Yuki Atsusaka and Theodore Landsman, which actually did use real-world election results data but applied an odd and unconventional methodology to the data which relied on shaky assumptions and non-real-world scenarios that were too divorced from reality. To determine levels of “racially polarized voting,” the researchers imagined “ethnic parties,” by which they mean political parties for each ethnic group, which was especially odd since the election data they were using came from nonpartisan RCV races. But then they made an even odder assumption, namely that since race and ethnic characteristics of studied voters were not available, the authors tried to infer that information based on who voters selected and the racial make-up of voters in each district. This amounted to little more than vague and ambiguous guesswork dressed up with a bunch of mathematical equations used to give it a veneer of scientific appearance. Indeed, it seemed to assume racial polarization in order to prove racial polarization. Based on this questionable methodology, the authors concluded that RCV doesn’t reduce racial polarization. But the premise of this study missed an obvious reality: since RCV incentivizes more candidates to run and can result in more diverse fields of candidates, one would expect more racially-polarized voting in voters’ top rankings, not less, because more voters would have someone on that ballot who represents their racial or ethnic identity and more freedom to vote for their real first choice. By encouraging more diverse candidates and eliminating the spoiler effect, RCV facilitates voting for a favorite candidate of your own race and then selecting a second choice with the best likelihood of winning. The real measure is what voters do with their additional rankings – do they consider other candidates and vote “for the best of the rest”? This study didn’t tell us anything useful about that. But readily available data shows this is common in real RCV elections, and candidates act on this knowledge by engaging with voters outside their racial group. So the authors of this study failed to consider or account for what actually happens in real-world elections, and their conclusions are tainted by this failure. New America has contributed a great deal over the past 2.5 decades to our understanding of many policy areas, including politics and political reform (full disclosure: Steven Hill, one of the authors of this article and of the “Shaky Political Science” research paper and series, is a former senior fellow and former director of New America’s political reform program, 2005-2010). So it was especially disappointing that New America funded and published such a large batch of dubious studies about ranked choice voting. The stated praiseworthy goal of its Electoral Reform Research Group was to inspire new academic research about ranked choice voting that would shed light and help the public better understand the impacts of RCV. Instead, the ERRG research did just the opposite. It produced dubious research that created more confusion and misinformation. In so doing, New America’s political reform program contributed to “shaky political science.” Steven Hill and Paul Haughey Share Upgrade to $5 subscription Thanks for reading DemocracySOS, a reader-supported digital portal for the pro-democracy movement. Subscribe for only $5 per month to receive full benefits and to support our work. Subscribe

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Apr 21 • 9:31 AM EDT • Science • democracysos.substack.com
'Everyone's nervous': Wells Fargo CEO on how businesses and consumers feel about the economy

Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf said on Monday that the US economy right now is “extremely strong,” but he also acknowledged how bad sentiment is among Americans consumers and businesses.

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Apr 20 • 2:29 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
2025 major champion puts 30-gram driver shaft into play

Miyu Yamashita opts for an extremely lightweight shaft profile to make some performance gains this week at the JM Eagle Championship.

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Apr 19 • 6:02 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Savannah named among Top 12 U.S. cities to watch on environmental health

Savannah has been named one of 12 cities to watch on environmental health through a national initiative recognizing work on extreme heat, air quality and infrastructure.

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Apr 18 • 12:52 PM EDT • Health • wtoc.com
The extreme positions Trump proposes

President Donald Trump this month threatened to strike Iranian infrastructure in ways that might well be war crimes. It’s his latest extreme move that polls show his GOP base has embraced.

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Apr 18 • 4:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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Dimensity 9600 Pro Beats A19 Pro And Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 By 25% In Benchmarks, But Extreme Heat May Erase That Gap

A tipster shared the first single-core and multi-core scores of the Dimensity 9600 Pro, revealing it’s much faster than the A19 Pro and Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5

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Apr 17 • 8:47 AM EDT • Technology • wccftech.com
Rewriting political memory in Chile

Chile has elected extreme-right candidate José Antonio Kast as its new president. His victory, argues Anitta Kynsilehto, may reflect a broader process of rewriting political memory in the post-dictatorship era, suggesting that Chileans' memories of 'never again' moments are beginning to fade

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Apr 17 • 4:13 AM EDT • Politics • theloop.ecpr.eu
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Windows 11 Speeds Up Storage, Lifts 32GB FAT32 Limit After 3 Decades

This should help storage management feel faster and more user-friendly.

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Apr 15 • 7:00 AM EDT • Technology • extremetech.com
Ocean eddies are amplifying climate extremes in coastal seas, study finds

New research reveals a powerful yet overlooked driver of climate change: Intensifying ocean eddies.

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Apr 14 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • news.miami.edu