Society

In 2023, roughly 60,000 firework shells exploded above Manhattan's East River as part of Macy's Fourth of July show. The resulting air pollutant levels were many times higher in the hours after the display than those seen when smoke from a Canadian wildfire had blanketed the area a month before, according to the results of

A new psychology study has revealed regular seasonal shifts in people's moral values. The research analyzed survey responses from more than 230,000 people in the U.S. over 10 years and revealed that people's endorsement of moral values that promote group cohesion and conformity is stronger in the spring and fall than it is in the

Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) is a dangerous malformation of the lungs and diaphragm that causes almost a third of affected babies to die from underdeveloped lungs. Medical researchers made important progress in understanding the disease. The team has discovered that the dangerous malformation of the newborn lungs is associated with inflammatory processes involving the increased

It may be possible to turn anxiety into a superpower in some scenarios, recent research indicates. The study found that if entrepreneurs preparing to make a funding pitch connected their pitch anxiety to their passion for their venture, judges ranked their performance higher. Perhaps even more importantly, the judges were also more likely to recommend

A new study finds an increase in knowledge could be a bad thing when people use it to act in their own self-interest rather than in the best interests of the larger group. A new study finds an increase in knowledge could be a bad thing when people use it to act in their own

To protect the Amazon and support the wellbeing of its people, its economy needs to shift from environmentally harmful production to a model built around the diversity of indigenous and rural communities, and standing forests. To protect the Amazon and support the wellbeing of its people, its economy needs to shift from environmentally harmful production

Researchers have found that training successive generations of generative artificial intelligence models on synthetic data gives rise to self-consuming feedback loops. Generative artificial intelligence (AI) models like OpenAI's GPT-4o or Stability AI's Stable Diffusion are surprisingly capable at creating new text, code, images and videos. Training them, however, requires such vast amounts of data that

Identifying interventions that could increase vaccine coverage could help save lives. A new paper offers a comprehensive meta-analysis examining what types of vaccination intervention strategies have the greatest effect, and whether different intervention strategies work better in different countries. Vaccines are safe and effective, and help reduce death and illness. But global vaccination rates are

Food in hospitals often does not enjoy a good reputation. The proportion of meat on the plate in particular is too high. Clinics can do a lot to motivate patients to choose a healthier menu, as two new studies show. Food in hospitals often does not enjoy a good reputation. The proportion of meat on

Researchers have developed a formula and easy-to-use assessment tool for estimating fall risks using a database of older adults. Preventing falls among older adults is expected to extend life expectancy and reduce medical and nursing care costs. An aging society has posed a new global problem, the risk of falling. It is estimated that 1

Researchers are using advanced technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose rare diseases and prenatal exposure-related birth abnormalities in two new studies. Researchers at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) and Lawson Health Research Institute are using advanced technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose rare diseases and prenatal exposure-related birth abnormalities in two studies published

New research suggests that an El Nino event may have aided the establishment and spread of a novel cholera strain during an early 20th-century pandemic, supporting the idea that climate anomalies could create opportunities for the emergence of new cholera strains. New research suggests that an El Niño event may have aided the establishment and