World

Making AI more “human”: A conversation with Northeastern AI professor Lawson Wong

What is “intelligence”? Large language models like ChatGPT have showcased an impressive ability to generate human-like responses that appear highly intelligent. The current trend in AI development seems to revolve around creating increasingly larger models, with billions upon billions of parameters, as a path toward achieving general-purpose AI. However, Yann Lecun, chief AI scientist at […]

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ChatGPT, an AI chatbot and now a published author?

The public has scoffed at students for “cheating” their way through classes with AI homework helpers. Many feel as though it is dishonest to use technology for assignments, so how would those same people feel if they knew that reliable and credible scientific journals are starting to list one of these same “homework helpers” as

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How AI is changing the journalism industry

In the age of Hollywood writers striking over the use of artificial intelligence in writers’ rooms and AI-written articles, many have expressed concerns over the capabilities of artificial intelligence to replace journalists and media producers alike. Instead, some see artificial intelligence as a tool to expand the capabilities of the creative and journalistic industries.  For

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A mass extinction and a floral explosion: Paleobotany in a post-dinosaur world

It is difficult to study evolutionary biology in the modern academic setting without the mention of dinosaurs and their demise. What is often lacking from the discourse in paleontology and its surrounding disciplines, however, is the continuous change in our understanding of the subject.  In a recent study, Jamie B. Thompson, Santiago Ramirez-Barahona, and a

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New snowmaking tech is helping New England ski resorts beat climate change

Preparations for ski season start early in Vermont’s Green Mountains. In early October, Greg Gleason, who runs snowmaking at Killington Ski Resort, gives his staff the all-clear. Over the next four hours the system of artificial snow production on which Vermont’s tourism industry increasingly depends roars to life. Hundreds of thousands of gallons of water

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Oral phenylephrine: placebo, in tablet form

On Sept. 12, 2023, an FDA advisory committee concluded that over-the-counter (OTC) oral phenylephrine — the main active ingredient in Sudafed PE — is ineffective as a treatment for nasal congestion. This finding did not strike healthcare practitioners as “especially surprising” given that its efficacy has been controversial for decades. Despite this, the ingredient is

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Written in our genes

Astrology has long been a topic of interest in society, dating back to the Babylonians and the Greeks. More recently, Millennials and Gen Z have led a resurgence in its popularity. We continue to be enthralled by the idea that some otherworldly source knows everything about us simply from our date of birth. But are

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Opinion: The cultural significance of handwriting is too great to lose to keyboards

The earliest example of physical writing is widely considered to be Cuneiform, a system of wedge-shaped inscriptions dating back to 3000 BCE. Attributed to the Sumerians of ancient Mesopotamia, the informal system was utilized namely for communication and maintaining transactional records. Although this physical remnant of Sumer offers invaluable insight into ancient civilization, most anthropologists

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Forest fires, contaminated waterways, and disrupted migrations: Unspoken consequences of the war in Ukraine

In the year and a half since the Russia-Ukraine War began, there have been an estimated 500,000 casualties between the two sides. Ukraine has also experienced infrastructural damage totaling hundreds of billions of dollars. Yet these aren’t the only significant and tragic losses the region has suffered — the conflict has had a grave and

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