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Is soy a key driver of deforestation?
The world loses 5 million hectares of forest each year. What activities are driving this?
Topics /
Science & Space
The most popular blog posts about science & space on Hacker News. 240 posts.
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Previous Covid-19 may cut risk of reinfection 84%
People who had COVID-19 had an 84% lower risk of becoming reinfected and a 93% lower risk of symptomatic infection during 7 months of follow-up, according to findings from a large, multicenter study published late last week in The Lancet .
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Mild Covid-19 induces lasting antibody protection
People who have had mild illness develop antibody-producing cells that can last lifetime
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The Breeder's Equation
R is the response to selection, S is the selection differential, and h 2 is the narrow-sense heritability. This is the workhorse equation for quantitative genetics. The selective differential S, is the difference between the population average and the average of the parental population (some subset of the total…
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The Tarnished Moon
Remote sensing observations reveal the presence of ferric iron in the form of the mineral hematite at high latitudes on the Moon, possibly the product of reaction of ferrous iron on the Moon with oxygen from the Earth�s upper atmosphere.
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Synthetic Cartilage (2020)
The thin, slippery layer of cartilage between the bones in the knee is magical stuff: strong enough to withstand a person’s weight, but soft and supple enough to cushion the joint against impact, over decades of repeat use. That combination of soft-yet-strong has been hard to reproduce in the lab. But now, Duke…
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IceCube detection of a high-energy particle proves 60-year-old theory
On December 8, 2016,* a high-energy particle called an electron antineutrino hurtled to Earth from outer space at close to the speed of light carrying 6.3 petaelectronvolts (PeV) of energy. Deep inside the ice sheet at the South Pole, it smashed into an electron and produced a particle that quickly decayed into a…
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Research team demonstrates world’s fastest optical neuromorphic processor
An international team of researchers has demonstrated the world’s fastest and most powerful optical neuromorphic processor for artificial intelligence, which is capable of processing ultra-large scale data.
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Neuroscientists roll out first comprehensive atlas of brain cells
Researchers funded by the federal BRAIN Initiative have mapped all the cell types — more than a hundred — in the motor cortex of the brain
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Neurons might contain something within them
Neurons might contain something incredible within them.
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How the brain navigates cities
An MIT study suggests our brains are not optimized to calculate the shortest possible route when navigating on foot. Instead, pedestrians use vector-based navigation, choosing “pointiest” paths that point most directly toward their destination, even if the routes are longer.
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Scientists build new atlas of ocean’s oxygen-starved waters
MIT scientists built a 3D atlas of the ocean’s oxygen-starved waters that could help predict oceanic response to climate change.
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Safety of Nuclear Energy
Explore global data on nuclear energy production and the safety of nuclear technologies.
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Wrong Again: 50 Years of Failed Eco-pocalyptic Predictions
Modern doomsayers have been predicting climate and environmental disaster since the 1960s. They continue to do so today. None of the apocalyptic predictions with due dates as of today have come true. What follows is a collection of notably wild predictions from notable people in government and science.
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Deforestation and Forest Loss
Explore long-term changes in deforestation and deforestation rates across the world today.
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United States - CO₂ and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Country Profile
Data on the United States’ greenhouse gas emissions
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Energy Mix
Explore global data on where our energy comes from, and how this is changing.
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Merck Statement on Ivermectin use During the COVID-19 Pandemic
KENILWORTH, N.J., Feb. 4, 2021 – Merck (NYSE: MRK), known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today affirmed its position regarding use of ivermectin during the COVID-19 pandemic. Company scientists continue to carefully examine the findings of all available and emerging studies of ivermectin for the…
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If the world adopted a plant-based diet, we would reduce global agricultural land use from 4 to 1 billion hectares
We could reduce the amount of land used for grazing and croplands used to grow animal feed.
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Sector by sector: where do global greenhouse gas emissions come from?
Globally, we emit around 50 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases yearly. Where do these emissions come from? We take a look, sector-by-sector.
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Which form of transport has the smallest carbon footprint?
How can individuals reduce their emissions from transport?
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Viral Loads Similar Between Vaccinated and Unvaccinated People
A new study from the University of California, Davis, Genome Center, UC San Francisco and the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub shows no significant difference in viral load between vaccinated and unvaccinated people who tested positive for the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2. It also found no significant difference between infected…
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Cars, planes, trains: where do CO₂ emissions from transport come from?
Transport accounts for around one-fifth of global CO₂ emissions. Three-quarters of this is from road transport.
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Electricity Mix
Explore data on where our electricity comes from and how this is changing.
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U.S. Adults' Estimates of COVID-19 Hospitalization Risk
Americans' estimates of both the risk of hospitalization due to COVID-19 and the efficacy of the vaccine for the disease vary widely by their political affiliation and vaccination status.
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Energy Production and Consumption
Explore data on how energy production and use varies across the world.