Introduction Since 1980, the U.S. has had a formal system for admitting refugees and asylees—individuals and their families who are unable to return to their country of nationality due to a well-founded fear of persecution for certain protected reasons. The right to seek asylum is rooted in international law, and the system reflects the U.S.’s…
The possible turtle tracks at Monte Cònero, Italy Paolo Sandroni Strange impressions in a rock face in Italy may have been left by a stampede of sea turtles disturbed by an earthquake around 83 million years ago. Free climbers discovered the unusual features in an area that is off limits to the public on the…
A research team from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities College of Science and Engineering and the University of Houston’s Cullen College of Engineering has successfully identified and measured the fraction of an electron involved in catalytic manufacturing. Their findings, published in the open-access journal ACS Central Science, clarify why precious metals such as gold,…
The report looks at whether lockdowns were timely and reasonable, and what impact rule-breaking at the heart of government had on public confidence. Source link
Astronomers have gathered new data on the asteroid 1998 KY26 using observatories across several continents, including the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT). These coordinated observations show that the asteroid is almost three times smaller than earlier estimates and rotates far more rapidly. The object is the planned 2031 destination for Japan’s Hayabusa2…
A recent study published November 19 in Trends in Biotechnology reports that scientists used the gene-editing tool CRISPR to improve how efficiently a fungus produces protein while also lowering the environmental footprint of that production by as much as 61% — all without introducing foreign DNA. The modified fungus has a meatlike flavor and is…
The circumstances which led to the Welsh government’s decision to impose a Christmas 2020 Covid lockdown across Wales were “inexcusable”, says the chair of the UK public inquiry into the pandemic. Baroness Hallet said Welsh ministers had failed to take “decisive action” against an “entirely foreseeable” Covid variant resulting in the lockdown. Prior to the…
It turns out that when an AI-friendly super PAC with $100 million in backing from Silicon Valley bigwigs identifies you as its first target, it ends up generating a lot of attention. “I want to thank [the PAC] for their partnership in raising up the issue of how we regulate an incredibly powerful technology so…
Former cabinet minister Lord Michael Gove has apologised on behalf of the then-government and Conservative Party for “mistakes made” during the coronavirus pandemic. In her long-awaited report published, Baroness Hallett says Boris Johnson, the prime minister at the time, oversaw a “toxic and chaotic” culture in No 10 during Covid. Lord Gove told the BBC’s…
The “swarm” of tens of thousands of earthquakes near the Greek island of Santorini earlier this year was triggered by molten rock pumping through an underground channel over three months, scientists have discovered. They used physics and artificial intelligence to work out exactly what caused the more than 25,000 earthquakes, which travelled about 20km (12…
