Science

Nora McDonald, George Mason University - Social media apps regularly present teens with algorithmically selected content often described as “for you,” suggesting, by implication, that the curated content is not just “for you” but also “about you” – a mirror reflecting important signals about the person you are. All users of social media are exposed to these signals, but researchers understand that teens are at an especially malleable stage in the formation of personal identity. Scholars have begun to demonstrate that technology is having generation-shaping effects, not merely in the...

Berlin (ots) - A recent study by Wageningen University & Research, Netherlands, analysed the fate of compostable packaging in an industrial composting plant. The results show that the tested EN13432 certified products break down within a...

EU researchers are coming up with advanced technologies to spot early signs of fatigue and erratic behaviour in people behind the wheel. By Tom Cassauwers - When Carlo Polidori is driving and starts rubbing...

Berlin (ots) - A recent study by Wageningen University & Research, Netherlands, analysed the fate of compostable packaging in an industrial composting plant. The results show that the tested EN13432 certified products break down...

EU researchers are coming up with advanced technologies to spot early signs of fatigue and erratic behaviour in people behind the wheel. By Tom Cassauwers - When Carlo Polidori is driving and starts rubbing the back of his neck, he knows it’s probably time to take a break. The act is a sign that he’s getting tired behind the wheel. Polidori, who is president of the Italian Association of Road Safety Professionals, drove for decades without being aware of his habit. He spotted it in 2022 when joining an EU project to come up with an advanced electronic device that can check people’s driving performance. Drowsy signs  ‘Before, I had no idea that...

Derek Mitchell, University of Leeds - When people think of honey bees, they often think of classic wooden hives, in which beekeepers are having to breed more and more bees just to keep managed populations stable. These man-made boxes, designed to facilitate pollination and honey production in an era before animal welfare was considered, are the hives in which scientists study honey bees. However, these boxes have little in common with the wild nests that featured in honey bee evolution. Are we are missing something from the evolution of wild bees that might help managed bees today? Honey bees, originally a tropical insect, colonised cold climates 600,000 years ago by evolving...

Derek Mitchell, University of Leeds - When people think of honey bees, they often think of classic wooden hives, in which beekeepers are having to breed more and more bees just to keep managed populations stable. These man-made boxes, designed to facilitate pollination and honey production in an era before animal welfare was considered, are the hives in which scientists study honey bees. However, these boxes have little in common with the wild nests that featured in honey bee evolution. Are we are missing something from the evolution of wild bees that might help managed bees today? Honey bees, originally a tropical insect, colonised cold climates 600,000 years ago by evolving...