Viruses are a mysterious and poorly understood force in microbial ecosystems. Researchers know they can infect, kill and manipulate human and bacterial cells in nearly every environment[1], from the oceans to your gut. But scientists don’t yet have a full picture of how viruses affect their surrounding environments in large part because of...
Black holes are mysterious, yet also deceptively simple − a new space mission may help physicists answer hairy questions about these astronomical objects
Physicists consider black holes one of the most mysterious objects[1] that exist. Ironically, they’re also considered one of the simplest. For years, physicists like me[2] have been looking to prove that black holes are more complex than they seem. And a newly approved European space mission called LISA[3] will help us with this hunt.
Human differences in judgment lead to problems for AI
Many people understand the concept of bias at some intuitive level. In society, and in artificial intelligence systems, racial and gender biases[1] are well documented.
If society could somehow remove bias, would all problems go away? The late Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman[2], who was a key figure in the field of behavioral economics, argued...
Iron fuels immune cells – and it could make asthma worse
You’ve likely heard that you can get iron from eating spinach and steak. You might also know that it’s an essential trace element[1] that is a major component of hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from your lungs to all parts of the body.
A lesser known important function of iron is its involvement in ...
Read more https://theconversation.com/iron-fuels-immune-cells-and-it-could-make-asthma-worse-229457