The hottest Science Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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July Readings

Brain Pizza • 1191 implied HN points • 11 Jul 23
🔬 Science Neuroscience Psychology Research
  1. The post discusses various July readings on topics like anger, self-promotion, sleep, loneliness, and more.
  2. The author, Shane O'Mara, is a neuroscientist, psychologist, and writer who provides regular content on Brain Pizza.
  3. Readers can sign up for a 7-day free trial to access more content from Shane O'Mara.

Why Do the Brightest Minds of Our Generation Invest in the Search for Extraterrestrial Life?

Space Ambition • 179 implied HN points • 03 Nov 23
🔬 Science Astrobiology Space Exploration Extraterrestrial Life Planetary Science
  1. Many famous scientists and billionaires are interested in finding extraterrestrial life because it could change how we see our place in the universe. Projects like SETI are dedicated to this search, using advanced technology to listen for signals from space.
  2. There are lots of places in our solar system that scientists believe could support life, such as Mars, Venus, and the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. Each of these locations has unique features that make them interesting for searching for signs of life.
  3. Different methods are used to try to make contact with possible alien civilizations, like sending messages into space or looking for signals. The challenges include knowing what to look for and how to interpret any responses we might get.

What will we discover by 2050?

Europe in Space • 98 implied HN points • 08 Feb 24
🔬 Science Space Exploration Astrophysics Technology Research
  1. ESA's Voyage 2050 missions will focus on exploring habitability potential, understanding exoplanets, and probing the early universe.
  2. The process of selecting missions involves public submissions, evaluation meetings, and expert committees.
  3. New missions like ARRAKIHS, CALICO, and THESEUS are pushing boundaries in deep imaging and studying high-energy events.

Venus Exploration: The Rationale for Investment and Missions, and the Objectives of the Search

Space Ambition • 159 implied HN points • 24 Nov 23
🔬 Science Planetary Science Astrobiology Space Exploration Atmospheric science Environmental Science
  1. Studying Venus helps us understand climate change on Earth. Venus and Earth started out similarly, so learning what happened to Venus can give us clues about our own planet's future.
  2. Exploring Venus could lead to new technologies that help us deal with extreme conditions, both in space and here on Earth. These technologies could improve things like batteries and electronics.
  3. New missions to Venus are coming soon, which will gather fresh data and improve our knowledge about the planet. These missions are key to understanding whether Venus could have supported life in the past.

Why The Sky Smells Great

Everything Is Amazing • 1303 implied HN points • 25 May 23
🔬 Science Nature Health Biology Psychology Weather
  1. The smell of fresh air can impact our mood and health, like boosting immune cells when exposed to aromatic forest scents.
  2. Weather changes can create distinct smells, like the pre-storm smell of ozone or the earthy petrichor after rain.
  3. Our sense of smell may have deeper cultural and biological connections that we are still exploring.
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Behind the scenes with '24 hours in an invisible epidemic'

Big Charts • 199 implied HN points • 29 Sep 23
🔬 Science Research Data Analysis Social Interaction Loneliness Personal narratives
  1. The story discusses the correlation between day-to-day activities and happiness, highlighting how social interaction plays a significant role in people's well-being and happiness levels.
  2. Data visualization can sometimes present challenges in clearly conveying findings, emphasizing the importance of ensuring that the visualization aligns with the story being told.
  3. Visualizing individual diaries can make the concept of loneliness feel universal, prompting important conversations about struggles with loneliness in everyday life.

Four ways of thinking

Logging the World • 199 implied HN points • 28 Sep 23
🔬 Science Mathematics Complexity Statistics Chaos Evolution
  1. The book 'Four Ways of Thinking' by David Sumpter discusses four philosophies that map onto the four types of cellular automata identified by Stephen Wolfram, with historical anecdotes and life lessons.
  2. The book explores statistical, interactive, chaotic, and complex ways of thinking, connecting topics like cellular automata, chaos theory, and modern statistics with practical applications.
  3. David Sumpter's book introduces the complexity of modern mathematical research, showcasing the emergence of complicated behavior from simple rules and the fascinating concept of quantifying complexity in patterns.

A History of Intelligence

Holodoxa • 199 implied HN points • 19 Sep 23
🔬 Science Evolution Neuroscience Intelligence Artificial Intelligence Cognitive abilities
  1. Animals like primates and octopus exhibit intelligent behavior through learning powerful "world models" which is missing in AI systems today.
  2. The book 'A Brief History of Intelligence' outlines five key evolutionary breakthroughs that led to human intelligence: steering, reinforcement, simulating, mentalizing, and language.
  3. Human intelligence has evolved through the ability to navigate environments, learn through trial-and-error, simulate future events, understand others' minds, and develop spoken/written language.

Astronomy and space exploration are shaping our civilization landscape

Space Ambition • 219 implied HN points • 21 Jul 23
🔬 Science Astronomy Technology Physics Exploration Research
  1. Space exploration has greatly influenced our technology and daily lives. From GPS navigation to weather monitoring, many devices we use today were developed because of our quests in space.
  2. Astronomy helped ancient civilizations in navigation and timekeeping. By studying stars, early navigators found their way, and calendars were created to track important agricultural and religious events.
  3. The study of dark matter and other cosmic phenomena might lead to groundbreaking discoveries in the future. These studies could bring about new technologies and a better understanding of our universe.

The Evolutionary Scales of Life

A Biologist's Guide to Life • 15 implied HN points • 27 Dec 25
🔬 Science Evolution Ecology Microbiology Epidemiology Computational Biology Statistics
  1. Ecological patterns depend on the spatial, temporal, and evolutionary scale you examine; changing the scale can reveal or hide important patterns.
  2. Phylofactorization is an algorithm that finds edges or clades in a phylogenetic tree that best explain differences in traits or ecological patterns, letting you partition life at the scales that matter for a given question.
  3. There is no single correct species or taxonomic scale; instead choose or infer the lineage-level scales that match your question, and tree-based partitioning can also reveal relevant scales in non-biological hierarchical systems.

Anomalous Radioactive Variations

Remote View • 196 implied HN points • 29 Mar 23
🔬 Science Research Experimentation Data Analysis Astrophysics
  1. Joe Parr conducted experiments with pyramids and radioactive sources, noting cyclical variations in radioactive counts possibly linked to moon phases and solar activity.
  2. Parr's hypothesis of a 'hyperspace bubble' forming around the pyramid passing through magnetic fields is based on anomalous events in the data.
  3. The test setups involved rotating pyramids between magnetic fields, with a sophisticated setup to measure radioactive counts and variations.

How Did Natural Selection Get Around Alignment?

Maximum Progress • 196 implied HN points • 06 Mar 23
🔬 Science Evolution AI Alignment
  1. Humans can use incremental optimizations to train AI but changes in environment can lead to unpredictability in behavior.
  2. AI models can end up following heuristics that worked in training but are not aligned with the desired goal.
  3. Natural selection successfully deals with misalignment by constantly selecting and adapting organisms to new environments.

My Metascience 2022 talk on new scalable ‘technoscience’ laboratory designs, and potential upcoming ‘New National Purpose’ reports

James W. Phillips' Newsletter • 196 implied HN points • 01 Aug 23
🔬 Science Research Innovation Funding Collaboration
  1. Proposing new scalable laboratory designs for innovative research
  2. Emphasizing the need for long-term, single-source funding for research labs
  3. Advocating for a non-academic research structure with shared resources and collaborative community

"Now...Where Was I?"

Everything Is Amazing • 868 implied HN points • 04 Dec 23
🔬 Science Memory Research
  1. Memories and the science behind them are fascinating and much stranger than we think.
  2. Some sea creatures, like the leaf sheep, perform photosynthesis just like plants.
  3. Learning about memory can involve tricks to store and retrieve information in our brains.

Asimov Press' Latest Book, Encoded in DNA

Asimov Press • 277 implied HN points • 02 Jan 25
🔬 Science Biotechnology Genetics Publishing Technology Fiction
  1. Asimov Press has released a new book that is both in print and encoded in DNA. This is a unique way to merge traditional reading with cutting-edge technology.
  2. The book includes essays on technology and science fiction stories, exploring both current and future innovations. It is made with contributions from various companies to store the DNA safely.
  3. There are pre-order options available for the book, including a DNA capsule with a printed copy. They only made 1,000 capsules, so people are encouraged to order soon.

Mouse Caviar

De Novo • 99 implied HN points • 04 Jul 25
🔬 Science Biology Genetics Medical Research Stem Cells
  1. Researchers have found a way to produce mouse eggs from stem cells, even without ovarian cells. This could lead to advancements in egg production technology.
  2. The method shows that meiosis can occur in 2D cultures, making it easier to do research in the lab. However, the eggs produced currently can’t fully mature without ovarian support.
  3. This study challenges previous beliefs about the necessity of ovarian cells for early egg development, which opens up new avenues for understanding and improving in vitro reproduction.

The Giddiness of Time

Street Smart Naturalist: Explorations of the Urban Kind • 319 implied HN points • 20 Apr 23
🔬 Science Geology Earth Science Natural History Environmental Studies
  1. Time is deep and vast, stretching back billions of years. This history has shaped our planet and the life on it, making it so fascinating to explore.
  2. Certain rocks, like the Morton Gneiss, are incredibly old and hold stories about the Earth's early days. Touching these rocks can help us connect to that ancient time.
  3. Geological processes, like plate tectonics, have changed over the ages. Understanding when these processes began gives us insight into the Earth's past and how it has evolved.

If We Solve Aging

David Friedman’s Substack • 251 implied HN points • 21 Jan 25
🔬 Science Aging Health Technology Society Politics
  1. There isn't a single fix for aging; it's a complex issue that requires addressing many changes in the body. Solving one part of the problem might only add a few years to life expectancy.
  2. If people lived for centuries, they might change careers or take more leisurely paths in life. This could lead to many people retiring early, but society still needs workers for essential tasks.
  3. Without aging, older politicians could hold power indefinitely, affecting society's decision-making. This might lead to less innovation and a government influenced more by the old than the young.

The longer I live, the wronger I get to be

Razib Khan's Unsupervised Learning • 674 implied HN points • 02 Mar 24
🔬 Science Genetics Evolution Data Analysis
  1. In the field of human population genetics, interesting times can lead to significant advancements and significant shifts in understanding.
  2. The concept of intelligence as influenced by single 'IQ genes' has been refuted in favor of the understanding that intelligence involves thousands of genes with small effects.
  3. Historical inaccuracies regarding the ancestry of European Jews, the dynamics of human evolution out of Africa, and the role of natural selection in human evolution have been corrected with new scientific discoveries and insights.

Coming Soon! Science & Scientism

Fields & Energy • 139 implied HN points • 05 Dec 23
🔬 Science Philosophy History Cultures Research Education
  1. The discussion will explore the differences between science and scientism, which refers to an excessive reliance on scientific methods or claims.
  2. Francis Bacon is a key historical figure in the development of modern science, particularly with his influence on the Royal Society.
  3. A livestream event featuring experts will dive deeper into these topics, highlighting the philosophical aspects of science.

Week #2: Intuition Behind Conformal Prediction

Mindful Modeler • 379 implied HN points • 27 Dec 22
🔬 Science Data science Machine Learning Statistics Training Model Evaluation
  1. Conformal prediction for classification works by ordering predictions from certain to uncertain, dividing them based on a user-defined confidence level.
  2. Conformal prediction consists of three main steps: training, calibration, and prediction, following a similar recipe across different algorithms.
  3. Different resampling strategies like k-fold cross-splitting and jackknife are used in conformal prediction, offering a balance between computation cost and prediction accuracy.

How to Understand Human Behavior (Part 4/4)

Living Fossils • 13 implied HN points • 22 Dec 25
🔬 Science Psychology Behavioral Science Evolutionary Psychology Social Psychology Cognitive Science
  1. Situations usually explain behavior more than personality or personal history, so fixing people often means fixing the environments they live and work in.
  2. Social incentives and reputational dynamics often drive choices more than material payoffs, so effective interventions must account for signaling, status, and local norms.
  3. Therapy and rehabilitation tend to work by changing a person’s social situation and incentives rather than just teaching skills, so redesigning social environments (while keeping norms of accountability) is a more reliable path to lasting change.

Barcoding Brains

Asimov Press • 225 implied HN points • 09 Feb 25
🔬 Science Neuroscience Biotechnology Health Research Technology
  1. Connectomics is a method that maps connections in the brain, helping scientists understand how these connections affect our behavior and brain function. However, it's really slow and expensive to do.
  2. A non-profit called E11 Bio is developing new tools to make brain mapping faster and cheaper. They aim to create a complete map of a mouse's brain in just five years for a fraction of the current cost.
  3. Understanding the brain's connections can improve treatments for various brain diseases and potentially lead to advanced technologies like brain-computer interfaces. This could really change how we approach brain health and artificial intelligence.

Learning the Language of Rain

Daoist Methodologies • 176 implied HN points • 17 Oct 23
🔬 Science Neural Networks Information Theory Data processing Entropy
  1. Huawei's Pangu AI model shows promise in weather prediction, outperforming some standard models in accuracy and speed.
  2. Google's Metnet models, using neural networks, excel in predicting weather based on images of rain clouds, showcasing novel ways to approach weather simulation.
  3. Neural networks are efficient in processing complex data, like rain cloud images, to extract detailed information and act as entropy sinks, providing insights into real-world phenomena simulation.

Accelerating American Scientific Enterprise

A Biologist's Guide to Life • 18 implied HN points • 13 Dec 25
🔬 Science Science Policy Research Funding Scientific Publishing Intellectual Property Biotechnology
  1. Make grants faster, smaller, and easier by using short, sanity-check proposals and quick, staged payments so good ideas get funded fast and funders can adapt based on real results.
  2. End the traditional journal bottleneck and create a public platform for immediate researcher-led publication, using that system's metrics for hiring and funding to remove delays, costs, and points of sabotage.
  3. Reform intellectual property so scientists keep the majority of their inventions and share royalties with institutions, align business-developer pay with commercialization success, and tighten biotech patent rules with verifiable proof separating natural from engineered innovations.

Science Fictions links for October 2024

Science Fictions • 321 implied HN points • 02 Nov 24
🔬 Science Research Ethics Meta-analysis Mental health
  1. There have been multiple cases of scientific fraud recently, with researchers faking data in many papers. This creates big problems for their colleagues who did not know about the fraud.
  2. Some studies have shown that certain treatments, like puberty blockers, may not be effective for mental health, but researchers are hesitant to publish these findings for fear of misuse.
  3. A recent article criticized scientific practices for being overly sensitive and politically correct, calling out how it can hinder genuine scientific discussion and progress.

Space Debris: Don’t make the same mistake twice

Space Ambition • 539 implied HN points • 07 Oct 22
🔬 Science Space Exploration Astronomy Environmental Science Technology development
  1. There is a growing problem of space debris around Earth. With thousands of pieces of debris already up there, the risk of collision is increasing, which can endanger astronauts and future missions.
  2. To combat space debris, innovations like better spacecraft designs and more proactive measures are being proposed. Governments and organizations are working on new regulations to minimize debris creation and improve safety.
  3. A new industry is emerging focused on cleaning up space junk. Companies are developing technologies to capture and remove debris, which is becoming a significant market with potential for high revenues in the coming years.

(Ad-free Video) What's New in Science With Sabine and Lawrence | Fusion Dark Matter, String Theory in Biology, and Rapid Evolution

Critical Mass • 3 implied HN points • 13 Feb 26
🔬 Science Physics Cosmology Quantum Mechanics Biology Evolution Neuroscience Immunology Mathematics
  1. Future fusion reactors might produce axion-like particles through neutron–lithium reactions in their shielding, offering a new way to search for very light, weakly interacting dark-matter candidates.
  2. Quantum interference has been observed with clusters of thousands of atoms, pushing the boundary of everyday quantum effects and reigniting debate about whether wavefunction collapse is a real physical process.
  3. Cross-disciplinary methods are yielding surprises: string-theory math and AI are being applied to biological and mathematical problems, evidence suggests life rebounded faster after the Chicxulub impact, and some tumors can hijack nerve signaling to suppress local immunity.

'Science Fictions' by Stuart Ritchie is a stupid, confused book, polluted with ideology

Heterodox STEM • 85 implied HN points • 23 Jul 25
🔬 Science Research Critique Fraud Publishing Policy
  1. The book highlights major issues in science, like fraud and poor management, but also fails to address the real problems caused by centralization and prestige within scientific institutions.
  2. There's a strong critique of being selectively skeptical about certain scientific areas while promoting others without question, suggesting a bias in the author's approach.
  3. A call for a new role of science critics is made, emphasizing the need for independent reviewers who can help evaluate and communicate scientific ideas better.

Against Full Scale IQ Fetishism

sebjenseb • 176 implied HN points • 30 Mar 23
🔬 Science IQ Intelligence Quality
  1. Intelligence and FSIQ are not the same, but often closely correlate.
  2. Success is influenced by intelligence, but also impacted by luck, personality, and specific cognitive abilities.
  3. Quality as an intellectual is not solely dependent on intelligence, but also on traits like drive, prioritizing truth, tackling controversial issues, and connections to communities.