SCIENCE
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U.S. pledges $5 billion to boost AI in government-backed scientific research
Overall federal funding for scientific research is set to decline in 2027, the most senior White House science figure said on Wednesday. The government, however, pledged to spend $5 billion on promoting artificial intelligence in science. Michael Kratsios, the White House’s science and technology adviser, told the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology that the money will be drawn…
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America is embarking on a risky experiment with GLP-1s and aging
More than one in 10 Americans takes a GLP-1 medication for weight loss. As more people take a GLP-1, or glucagonlike peptide 1, receptor agonist, such as Wegovy, so, too, do more older adults—and those numbers are set to skyrocket. Last week the Trump administration launched the Medicare GLP-1 Bridge program, a new initiative that would set the cost of…
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A super-Earth exoplanet’s leaking helium could be evidence of a complex atmosphere
A rocky planet that’s the right distance from its star to be hospitable to life likely has an atmosphere, a new study claims. The exoplanet, known as LHS 1140 b, is about 49 light-years away from Earth, which means it is a relatively close neighbor, given that the Milky Way is more than 100,000 light-years across. The world was found…
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Scientists spot sugar in interstellar space for the first time ever
Scientists have spotted something sweet at the heart of the Milky Way. Erythrulose, a sugar found in raspberries, kiwis and many red fruits, also apparently exists in a giant molecular cloud of gas and dust near the center of our galaxy, some 26,745 light-years from Earth. This marks the first time a sugar has been seen in interstellar space. The…
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China’s Long March 10B rocket successfully launches—and lands—in a global spaceflight milestone
On Friday China made a giant leap in its ongoing effort to be a dominant player in 21st-century spaceflight by successfully launching and recovering the first stage of its Long March 10B orbital rocket on that vehicle’s maiden flight. The feat places the nation in an elite club, bringing China alongside the U.S.-based aerospace firms SpaceX and Blue Origin as…
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Should you be taking creatine? Here’s what the science says
Of all the dietary supplements out there, creatine is perhaps the one with the most fervent fan base. Long a favorite among athletes looking for a workout boost, creatine has been credited with tamping down perimenopausal mood swings, controlling blood sugar and perhaps even helping recovery from concussions. But what does the science say? It’s important to note that creatine…
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For July 4, NASA unveils an astronomical fireworks show, complete with sound effects
NASA is lighting the cosmos in red, white and blue in honor of the 250th birthday of the United States—and the show even comes with sound. The imagery shows the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, the dusty nebula NGC 3603, the spiral galaxy Messier 94 and the galaxy cluster ZwCl 0024+1652. Data from the Hubble Space Telescope, the James Webb Space…
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The Rubin telescope just began the largest cosmic time-lapse in history
The biggest and best movie of the universe began production this week—at the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile, rather than in Hollywood. This unique telescope is using the world’s largest digital camera to scan the entire southern sky every few nights, assembling what will become the most lavishly detailed time-lapse of the cosmos humanity has ever envisioned. Rubin…
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How to tell a comet from an asteroid and a meteor from a meteorite
The following essay is reprinted with permission from The Conversation, an online publication covering the latest research. Have you ever been out at night and seen a streak of light blast across the sky and disappear? Ever wonder where that shooting star came from, or how it got to be in your sky? As the director of the Peters Observatory…
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France just hit its hottest day ever recorded
A historic heatwave is slamming France: On Wednesday, national temperature averages reached an all-time high of 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) across day and night, according to Météo-France, the country’s national weather service—breaking the previous all-day temperature record, set in July 2019 at 29.4 degrees C (84.9 degrees F). The national average temperature collates readings from 30 stations across…
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