Lifeboat Foundation

Could Earth end up with a runaway greenhouse effect like Venus someday, and what could this mean for finding life on exoplanets? This is something a recent study published in Astronomy & Astrophysics hopes to address as an international team of researchers used a 3D global climate model to investigate if Earth is destined to develop a runaway greenhouse effect like the planet Venus, which precious studies speculate was once much like Earth long ago. This study holds the potential to bring awareness of the long-term consequences of climate change and what steps can be taken to mitigate the effects.

A Runaway greenhouse effect can turn a habitable planet like Earth with a surface liquid water ocean into an inhospitable planet like Venus. (Credit: Thibaut Roger / UNIGE)

“Until now, other key studies in climatology have focused solely on either the temperate state before the runaway, or either the inhabitable state post-runaway,” said Dr. Martin Turbet, who is a research scientist at CNRS laboratories of Paris and Bordeaux and a co-author on the study. “It is the first time a team has studied the transition itself with a 3D global climate model and has checked how the climate and the atmosphere evolve during that process.”

OSLO, Dec 18 (Reuters) — A volcano erupted late on Monday in southwest Iceland, spewing lava and smoke across a wide area after weeks of intense earthquake activity, the country’s Meteorological Office said, threatening a nearby town.

Fearing a significant eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula, authorities last month evacuated the nearly 4,000 inhabitants of the fishing town of Grindavik and closed the nearby Blue Lagoon geothermal spa.

“Warning: Eruption has started north of Grindavik by Hagafell,” the Met Office said on its website, noting that the eruption began only a few kilometres from the town and cracks in the ground stretched toward the village located about 40 km (25 miles) south-west of Iceland’s capital city Reykjavik.

Juan Bernabé-Moreno is IBM’s director of research for Ireland and the United Kingdom. The Spanish computer scientist is also responsible for IBM’s climate and sustainability strategy, which is being developed by seven global laboratories using artificial intelligence (AI) and quantum computing. He believes quantum computing is better suited to understanding nature and matter than classical or traditional computers.

Question. Is artificial intelligence a threat to humanity?

Answer. Artificial intelligence can be used to cause harm, but it’s crucial to distinguish between intentional and malicious use of AI, and unintended behavior due to lack of data control or governance rigor.

The teacher shortage crisis is a major concern, casting a shadow on educational quality across the globe. In this academic climate, the rise of AI in the classroom sparks both hope and skepticism. Alpha school is leading the way, devoid of traditional teachers and reliant on its AI-powered curriculum and “guide” system. This innovative approach offers a glimpse of a promising future where technology and human ingenuity merge to redefine education.

AI has become a game-changer in education by customizing learning experiences according to students’ individual learning styles and paces. Alpha’s app-based tutoring system is a prime example of this. It is personalized for each student’s strengths and weaknesses, a significant departure from the traditional “one-size-fits-all” classroom approach. For instance, consider a child who struggles with math concepts. AI can modify the exercises and explanations to suit their learning style, enabling them to understand the material better.

Moreover, this AI-driven education system offers instant and detailed feedback, which may be lacking in some schools. Such immediate response fosters a deeper understanding and encourages a more engaged learning process. This level of individualized attention is a powerful tool for enhancing knowledge and engagement.

Twenty-four years ago, Ray Kurzweil predicted computers would reach human-level intelligence by 2029. This was met with great concern and criticism. In the past six months technology experts have come around to agree with him. According to Kurzweil, over the next two decades, AI is going to change what it means to be human. We are going to invent new means of expression that will soar past human language, art, and science of today. All of the concepts that we rely on to give meaning to our lives, including death itself, will be transformed.\
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Speakers:\
Ray Kurzweil\
Inventor, Futurist \& Best-selling author of ‘The Singularity is Near’\
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Reinhard Scholl\
Deputy Director, Telecommunication Standardization Bureau\
International Telecommunication Union (ITU)\
Co-founder and Managing Director, AI for Good\
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The AI for Good Global Summit is the leading action-oriented United Nations platform promoting AI to advance health, climate, gender, inclusive prosperity, sustainable infrastructure, and other global development priorities. AI for Good is organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) – the UN specialized agency for information and communication technology – in partnership with 40 UN sister agencies and co-convened with the government of Switzerland.\
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More than a Summit, more than a movement, AI for Good is presented as a year round digital platform where AI innovators and problem owners learn, build and connect to help identify practical AI solutions to advance the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.\
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Supercomputer simulations of the weather on a hot Jupiter reveal a previously unseen storm pattern in which cyclones are repeatedly generated and destroyed.

Diverse and full of sea life, the Earth’s Devonian era—taking place more than 370 million years ago—saw the emergence of the first seed-bearing plants, which spread as large forests across the continents of Gondwana and Laurussia.

However, a mass extinction event near the end of this era has long been the subject of debate. Some scientists argue the Late Devonian mass extinction was caused by large-scale volcanic eruptions, causing global cooling. Others argue a mass deoxygenation event caused by the expansion of land plants was to blame.

A recently published study in the journal Communications Earth & Environment led by researchers at IUPUI now posits that both factors played a role—and draws attention to the environmental tipping points the planet faces today.

Recently, economists and behavioral scientists have studied the pattern of human well-being over the lifespan. In dozens of countries, and for a large range of well-being measures, including happiness and mental health, well-being is high in youth, falls to a nadir in midlife, and rises again in old age. The reasons for this U-shape are still unclear. Present theories emphasize sociological and economic forces. In this study we show that a similar U-shape exists in 508 great apes (two samples of chimpanzees and one sample of orangutans) whose well-being was assessed by raters familiar with the individual apes. This U-shaped pattern or “midlife crisis” emerges with or without use of parametric methods. Our results imply that human well-being’s curved shape is not uniquely human and that, although it may be partly explained by aspects of human life and society, its origins may lie partly in the biology we share with great apes. These findings have implications across scientific and social-scientific disciplines, and may help to identify ways of enhancing human and ape well-being.

The Royal New Zealand Navy is currently awaiting the arrival of its latest Uncrewed Surface Vessel, the wind-powered “Bluebottle,” ahead of a 7-month sea trial.

The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) will soon receive its first 22.3-foot (6.8-meter) long renewable-powered Uncrewed Surface Vessel (USV) to trial on a short-term lease, the New Zealand Defense Force has announced. Called “Bluebottle,” the USV will provide persistent surveillance around the waters of New Zealand for fishery protection, border protection, or meteorological data.

Continue reading “Kiwi Navy will test new AI, solar-powered robot boat for endless recon” »