Science news this week: Solar revelations as irradiated Comet 3I/ATLAS rapidly brightens, a tiny tyrannosaur prompts T. rex rethink, and the unexpected perks of cussing out your chatbot
The hottest science news of the week revolved around the Sun, with the arrival of dazzling new studies concerning our star and the fascinating interstellar comet currently passing near it.
For starters, scientists have discovered a clue as to why the sun is so much hotter on its outer surface than inside its core. A new study revealed that magnetic waves – theorized since the 1940s but only now detected – carry energy from the sun’s inner furnace to its outer corona.
Nanotyrannus was real and not just a teenage T. rex
Remarkable fossil discovery has plunged a dino-mite into controversy over whether a mini-tyrannosaur was a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex or its own unique species. The debate has lasted for nearly four decades, but a fossil known as the “dueling dinosaurs” may have finally provided a conclusive answer. Unearthed in 2006, the fossils show a Triceratops who appears to be engaged in battle with a ferocious Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Following this discovery, paleontologists now widely accept that Nanotyrannus is its own species. But to make things even more confusing, a separate team also named a new, different species in the genus: Nanotyrannus lethaeus. Does this mean the dust has finally settled? Or do paleontologists have a new bone to defend?
Discover more animal news
—An ancient ‘frosted’ rhino from the Canadian High Arctic rewrites what scientists thought they knew about the North Atlantic land bridge
—Free-ranging laboratory monkeys in Mississippi do not have herpes, according to the university. But are they dangerous?
—First-ever “mummified” ungulate dinosaur discovered in Wyoming badlands
The little mysteries of life
Picture a Neanderthal at dinner and your mind will likely conjure up an image of a man gnawing on a massive prehistoric drumstick. But are our missing cousins I really only eat meat? Or did they eat their greens too?
—If you liked this, sign up for our newsletter Life’s Little Mysteries
Cursing your chatbot makes it more accurate
Do you hate AI? You might be the best at making it work for you, according to a new study that found that chatbots give more specific answers when you are mean to them. The difference in accuracy is quite small, however, with a 4% improvement between prompts classified as very polite and those that are very rude.
However, researchers warn against this approach, because it is possible that being truculent and ill-mannered towards robots could have an impact on your behavior with your peers. If that’s not a compelling enough reason on its own, consider the (almost impossibly small) chance that robots could gain sentience – can you be sure they will have forgotten what you said?
Discover more technology news
—Humanoid robots could lift 4,000 times their own weight thanks to revolutionary “artificial muscle”
—China solves ‘century-old problem’ with new analog chip 1,000 times faster than high-end Nvidia GPUs
—AI models refuse to stop when prompted: they could develop a new ‘survival drive’, study finds
Also in science news this week
—Physicists detect rare “second generation” black holes that still prove Einstein right
—900 years ago, Native Americans dragged, transported or floated a 5-ton tree more than 100 miles to North America’s largest city in northern Mexico.
—‘Puzzling’ object discovered by James Webb telescope could be oldest known galaxy in universe
Spotlight on science
The introduction of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 was a key achievement of the previous Trump administration, rapidly reducing the pandemic in the few months it took vaccines to move from conceptualization to mass production.
Yet the second Trump administration now appears determined to undo its previous work by freezing funding, mass layoffs, and abandoning mRNA research projects.
As the U.S. government continues to divest from this technology, scientists fear that its revolutionary treatments for cancer, immune deficiencies and genetic disorders will be left behind. Live Science reported on the uncertain future of mRNA research in the United States in this fascinating Spotlight on Science.
Something for the weekend
If you’re looking for something a little longer to read over the weekend, here are some of the best polls, interviews and opinion pieces published this week.
Would you like to remove daylight saving time? [Poll]
“This is a completely different level of anti-vaccine engagement than we’ve ever seen before,” says epidemiologist Dr. Seth Berkley. [Interview]
There is “settled science”: anyone who says otherwise is trying to manipulate you. [Opinion]
Science in pictures
The James Webb Space Telescope served us a spooky Halloween treat this week, capturing never-before-seen details of the Red Spider Nebula, its filaments twisting and stretching like the limbs of a gigantic arachnid.
Planetary nebulae like this form when stars like our Sun reach the end of their lives, transforming into red giants and shedding their outer layers to form envelopes of superheated dust. The cosmic spider’s legs shimmer with molecular hydrogen, and the fragmented gases escaping from the dying star give the cosmic limbs a distinctly hairy appearance.
Want more science news? Follow our Live Science WhatsApp Channel for the latest discoveries as they happen. It’s the best way to get our expert reports on the go, but if you don’t use WhatsApp, we’re here too Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Flipchart, Instagram, TikTok, Blue sky And LinkedIn.
