Science & Society

Artificial Intelligence

Does AI steal art or help create it? It depends on who you ask

With AI image generators on the scene, artists see both power and peril ahead.

Artificial Intelligence

AI image generators tend to exaggerate stereotypes

The racism, sexism, ableism and other biases common in bot-made images may lead to harm and discrimination in the real world.

Humans

Common high-school textbooks promote unscientific views on gender

Inaccurate descriptions of sex and gender may lead to sexism or prejudice toward people who don’t seem to represent gender norms.

Tech

This computer scientist is making virtual reality safer

Niall Williams creates algorithms that lowers the odds of motion sickness and bumping into obstacles while using virtual reality headsets.

Math

Scientists Say: Correlation and Causation

There is a correlation between countries where people eat more chocolate and those that produce more Nobel Prize winners. But beware assuming that one variable causes the other.

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is making it hard to tell truth from fiction

Experts worry that by making it harder to tell what’s true, AI can threaten people’s reputations, health, fair elections and more.

Earth

Earthquake sensor: Taylor Swift fans ‘Shake It Off’

Scientists determined dancing fans were behind the seismic waves recorded during Swift’s August concerts.

Math

Cake-cutting math offers lessons that go far beyond dessert plates

As a way to study how to fairly share a limited resource, cake-cutting can inform splitting up chores, drawing fair voting districts and more.

Artificial Intelligence

Here’s why AI like ChatGPT probably won’t reach humanlike understanding

Unlike people, this type of artificial intelligence isn’t good at learning concepts that it can apply to new situations.

Animals

Dancing spiders inspired this biologist to teach others

Inspired by his research in animal communication, Echeverri began exploring ways to teach others about science while finishing his Ph.D. Today, he shares his passion for spiders as a science communicator.

Humans

Let’s learn about fingerprints

Researchers are still making new discoveries about how our fingerprints form — and how to use them to solve crimes.

Tech

Scientists Say: Digital Footprint

Your digital footprint contains both what you post online — and information about your online activity collected by others.