Mark Cantrell's Blog, page 13

Space: Game Theory might help us discover intelligent alien life

We might stand a better chance of finding intelligent alien life if we start to treat our search more like a game.

Books: Scraps of the past win author major literary prize for women’s scholarship

Scraps of old paper helped York academic Professor Gillian Russell win a major prize for women’s literary scholarship.

Society: British workers need stronger legal protections against “inhuman” AI managers

AI isn’t simply about bosses replacing wage-hungry human workers; it’s about controlling those who still hang on to a job.

Science: Scientists have got the bug for seaweed’s cleanly properties

There’s something about seaweed that’s helping scientists to really clean up.

Nature: Global heating threatens to kill off tropical trees

Rising temperatures pose a critical threat to the survival of the world’s tropical forests, scientists warn.

Society: Covid-19 isn’t yet done widening the wealth inequality gap

The worst-off parts of Britain are set to experience harsher levels of deprivation, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Environment: Art meets science in Emma Blake Morsi’s climate crisis campaign

Emma Blake Morsi hopes art will focus minds on possible solutions to climate change ahead of this year’s COP26 summit.

Environment: Research team aims to make plastic waste a valued resource

A Manchester University-led research team aims to drastically improve the way we recycle plastics.

Health: Red Cross warns, don’t be so ‘mad dog’ keen about English summer heatwaves

People in the UK are far too relaxed about the dangers of summer heatwaves, the British Red Cross has warned.

History: Lawyers once relied on sheep to secure legal documents

For centuries lawyers relied on the properties of sheepskin to help tackle fraud.