131 articles from FRIDAY 16.9.2022

Climate change from the ground up: Researchers explore sea level rise impact on building foundations

Researchers have considered how flooding from rising sea levels and storm surges will damage the built environment along the coast, but what about climate change's less noticeable impacts below the surface? A new study by civil engineers examines the hidden costs to building foundations due to sea level rise. They propose a method for inspection and repair to lower the cost associated with...

Pythons are true choke artists

Biologists have found that it's not just the size of its head and body that puts almost everything on a Burmese python's menu. They evolved super-stretchy skin between their lower jaws that allows them to consume prey up to six times larger than similar-sized snakes.

Researchers Reveal the Worst Methane Super-Emitters in the U.S.

When it comes to global warming, methane is a monster. It may represent only 11% of the share of greenhouse gasses emitted each year, but during its first 20 years in the atmosphere it is 80 times more efficient at capturing heat than the far more commonplace carbon dioxide. That’s why it’s so important to spot the worst emitters and shut them down—or at least reduce their...

Even smartest AI models don't match human visual processing

Deep convolutional neural networks (DCNNs) don't see objects the way humans do -- using configural shape perception -- and that could be dangerous in real-world AI applications. The study employed novel visual stimuli called 'Frankensteins' to explore how the human brain and DCNNs process holistic, configural object properties.