139 articles from THURSDAY 18.5.2023

Perfection: The Enemy of Evolution

Evolution is a sequence of design changes happening on their own in a discernible direction; it never weds itself to a single point on a drawing board. An evolving system or animal is free to simply go with what works. Not so much that its performance suffers greatly, but enough that it opens access to other options near the so-called optimal design. With scientists often looking to nature for...

Out of the frying pan: Coyotes, bobcats move into human-inhabited areas to avoid apex predators -- only to be killed by people

Conservationists have argued that the presence of wolves and other apex predators, so named because they have no known predators aside from people, can help keep smaller predator species in check. New research shows that in Washington state, the presence of two apex predators -- wolves and cougars -- does indeed help keep populations of two smaller predators in check. But by and large the apex...

Amputees feel warmth in their missing hand

An unexpected discovery about temperature feedback has led to new bionic technology that allows amputees to sense the temperature of objects ¬-- both hot and cold -- directly in the phantom hand. The technology opens up new avenues for non-invasive prosthetics.

In years after El Niño, global economy loses trillions

Researchers report that the financial toll of the climate pattern known as El Niño can persist for several years and cost trillions in lost income worldwide. The study, which is among the first to evaluate the long-term costs of El Niño, found that the 1982 and 1997 events led to $4.1 trillion and $5.7 trillion in lost income in the five years following them. With El Niño projected to return...

Half of world's largest lakes losing water

Fifty-three percent of the world's largest freshwater lakes are in decline, storing less water than they did three decades ago, according to a new study. The study analyzed satellite observations dating back decades to measure changes in water levels in nearly 2,000 of the world's biggest lakes and reservoirs. It found that climate change, human consumption and sedimentation are responsible.

Wiring up quantum circuits with light

The number of qubits in superconducting quantum computers has risen rapidly during the last years, but further growth is limited by the need for ultra-cold operating temperatures. Connecting several smaller processors could create larger, more computationally powerful quantum computers -- however doing so poses new challenges. Researchers have now demonstrated quantum entanglement between optical...

Forgetfulness, even fatal cases, can happen to anyone

Researchers set out to understand how and why forgetfulness can occur -- whether it be forgetting your cellphone or, even worse, forgetting your child in the backseat of the car. Researchers set up an experiment to better understand this lapse in what researchers call prospective memory, or the ability to remember critical but routine behaviors.

Smart material prototype challenges Newton's laws of motion

Engineers have developed a prototype metamaterial that uses electrical signals to control both the direction and intensity of energy waves passing through a solid material. Potential applications of this innovative design include military and commercial uses, such as controlling radar waves by directing them to scan a specific area for objects or managing vibration created by air turbulence from...