In this episode:
Researchers at Google Deepmind have developed an AI that can solve International Mathematical Olympiad-level geometry problems, something previous AIs have struggled with. They provided the system with a huge number of random mathematical theorems and proofs, which it used to approximate general rules of geometry. The AI then applied these rules to solve the Olympiad problems and show its workings for humans to check. The researchers hope their system shows that it is possible for AIs to ‘learn’ basic principles from large amounts of data and use them to tackle complex logical challenges, which could prove useful in fields outside mathematics.
Research article: Trinh et al.
A stiff and squishy ‘hydrospongel’ — part sponge, part hydrogel — that could find use in soft robotics, and how the spread of rice paddies in sub-Saharan Africa helps to drive up atmospheric methane levels.
Research Highlight: Stiff gel as squishable as a sponge takes its cue from cartilage
Research Highlight: A bounty of rice comes at a price: soaring methane emissions
Mass Mortality Events, sometimes called mass die-offs, can result in huge numbers of a single species perishing in a short period of time. But there’s not a huge amount known about the effects that events like these might be having on wider ecosystems. Now, a team of researchers have built a model ecosystem to observe the impact of mass die-offs on the delicate balance of populations within it.
Research article: Tye et al.
An update on efforts to remove the stuck screws on OSIRIS-REx’s sample container, the ancient, fossilized skin that was preserved in petroleum, and a radical suggestion to save the Caribbean’s coral reefs.
OSIRIS-REx Mission Blog: NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Team Clears Hurdle to Access Remaining Bennu Sample
Nature News: This is the oldest fossilized reptile skin ever found — it pre-dates the dinosaurs
Nature News: Can foreign coral save a dying reef? Radical idea sparks debate
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21 November 2019: A new antibiotic from nematode guts, grant funding ‘lotteries’, and butterfly genomes
14 November 2019: A rapid, multi-material 3D printer, and a bacterium’s role in alcoholic hepatitis
Backchat: Nature's 150th anniversary
07 November 2019: The fossil of an upright ape, science in 150 years, and immunization progress around the world
Nature Pastcast, October 1993: Carl Sagan uses Galileo to search for signs of life
31 October 2019: An AI masters the video game StarCraft II, and measuring arthropod abundance
Podcast Extra: Detecting gravitational waves
24 October 2019: Quantum supremacy and ancient mammals
17 October 2019: Mapping childhood mortality, and evolving ‘de novo’ genes
10 October 2019: Estimating earthquake risk, and difficulties for deep-learning
Podcast Extra: Q&A with Nobel Prize winner John B Goodenough
Podcast Extra: Q&A with Nobel Prize winner Didier Queloz
03 October 2019: Leapfrogging speciation, and migrating mosquitoes
Nature PastCast, September 1963: Plate tectonics – the unifying theory of Earth sciences
26 September 2019: Mysteries of the ancient mantle, and the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
Podcast Extra: Absurd scientific advice
Backchat: Covering Climate Now
19 September 2019: XKCD, and Extinction Rebellion
12 September 2019: Modelling early embryos, and male-dominated conferences
05 September 2019: Persistent antibiotic resistance, and modelling hot cities
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