The hottest Science Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Science Topics

(Temple Prokarya) 1. A brief manifesto: I think this is important

Microanimism • 19 implied HN points • 31 May 24
🔬 Science Microbiology Ethics Virology Epidemiology
  1. Pathogens like bacteria and viruses do not have a desire to make us sick, they simply exist and propagate efficiently.
  2. Exploring the morality of survival in the face of life-threatening diseases can lead to deeper philosophical discussions about microbial behavior.
  3. Human activities like deforestation and increased contact with wild animals are linked to the emergence of new infectious diseases, highlighting the impact of our actions on public health.

Links for 2023-02-15

Axis of Ordinary • 117 implied HN points • 15 Feb 23
🔬 Science AI Psychology Research
  1. Google released MetNet-2, a deep learning model that predicts rain better than current weather models.
  2. There is a need for drugs that strengthen identity rather than dissolve it like psychedelics.
  3. Automatic differentiation in MIT's ADEV brings AI benefits to a broader class of problems.
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Scientific Honesty

The Heart Attack Diet • 79 implied HN points • 21 Dec 23
🔬 Science Research Integrity Replication Crisis Honesty
  1. Scientific honesty requires complete transparency and openness in reporting findings, including potential flaws and conflicting data.
  2. Soft sciences are facing a replication crisis, prompting a reevaluation of their methods and credibility.
  3. Striving for scientific integrity involves challenging one's own beliefs and being open to critique and correction.

Overcoming Population Arguments to Living Longer

Extropic Thoughts • 117 implied HN points • 02 Jun 23
🔬 Science Population Growth Life Extension Fertility Global trends Economic Impact
  1. Having more people is not inherently bad; each new person brings potential for creativity and productivity.
  2. Limiting lifespan extension to control population growth is ethically irresponsible and ineffective; focusing on reducing birth rates is a better approach.
  3. Global population growth is projected to slow and eventually decline due to various factors, including declining fertility rates and aging populations.

So long Aeolus, and thanks for all the wind data

Europe in Space • 117 implied HN points • 02 May 23
🔬 Science Space Technology Data Environment Satellites
  1. Aeolus satellite mission ended and made significant contributions to improving weather forecasting with its pioneering technology
  2. Aeolus had a unique instrument to collect global wind data and its impact goes beyond just weather forecasts
  3. The mission had a lasting impact and economic benefits, leading to approval for a second Aeolus mission

Action Potentials for June

Neurobiology Notes • 117 implied HN points • 27 Jun 23
🔬 Science Neurobiology Psychology AI
  1. A new strategy using SUM-PAINT for protein labeling shows promise in profiling multiple proteins at high resolution.
  2. Microscopy images alone can predict neural responses to visual stimuli in Drosophila optic pathways.
  3. Combining EM and fluorescence microscopy allows for cost-effective connectomics studies in the mouse cerebellum.

Possible states the earth can evolve to

Climate Water Project • 117 implied HN points • 27 Apr 23
🔬 Science Climate Ecosystems Physics
  1. There are different stable states that the ecosystem+hydrological system can evolve to, given large enough perturbations.
  2. Vegetation affects the climate and vice versa, leading to different stable states like forests or grasslands.
  3. The earth can have metastable states with ice or more vegetation, flipping between them due to factors like sunlight and noise in the climate system.

WELCOME!

Silicon Reckoner • 117 implied HN points • 03 Jul 23
🔬 Science Mathematics AI Technology Research Ideology
  1. There has been a surge in newsletter subscriptions after being mentioned in a New York Times article.
  2. There are concerns about the relationship between AI, mathematics, and industries like tech and defense.
  3. Articles in the newsletter cover topics such as the conflict between mathematics and computing, the goals of mathematics, and AI's impact on mathematical reasoning.

Is Network Reliability a Public Good?

Knowledge Problem • 117 implied HN points • 30 Mar 23
🔬 Science Public Goods Networks Economics Policy Reliability
  1. Club goods are goods that can be consumed non-rivalrously but can exclude non-payers.
  2. Network reliability is not necessarily a public good; not everything valuable to the public is a public good.
  3. Investments in reliability may benefit others but can still be individually worthwhile, leading to efficient outcomes without the need for heavy central coordination.

Women in Space: #EmbraceEquity

Space Ambition • 219 implied HN points • 10 Mar 23
🔬 Science Space Women Technology Education STEM
  1. Women make up only about 20-22% of the space industry workforce, and only 12% of all astronauts have been women. We need to work together to change this.
  2. Successful women in space and tech inspire others to join the field. Recognizing their achievements can encourage girls to explore careers in these areas.
  3. Organizations are helping to support women in space careers, showing that having more diverse voices leads to better innovation and exploration in the industry.

An Enigmatic Beast

Street Smart Naturalist: Explorations of the Urban Kind • 219 implied HN points • 16 Mar 23
🔬 Science Biology Ecology Conservation Etymology Evolution
  1. Mountain goats have an interesting history of naming, starting from their scientific name, Oreamnos americanus, which links them to mountains and lambs.
  2. Despite extensive research, scientists still struggle to figure out mountain goats' closest relatives, making them a bit of a mystery in the animal kingdom.
  3. There's a growing recognition of the value of traditional ecological knowledge, especially from Indigenous peoples, which can greatly enhance our understanding of animals like mountain goats.

When Technology Goes Bad

New Things Under the Sun • 320 implied HN points • 16 May 23
🔬 Science Technology Economic Growth Climate change Renewable Energy
  1. Historically, technology has skewed towards 'good' due to various reasons like benefitting from invention, collaborative research, and technological capabilities for safety.
  2. Economic growth models explore the trade-off between innovation and safety, showing that as humans get richer, they may prioritize safety over growth.
  3. Investing in safety technologies alongside economic growth can mitigate risks posed by dangerous technology like fossil fuels, pointing towards a more sustainable future.

Race, Gender and IQ

David Friedman’s Substack • 323 implied HN points • 25 May 23
🔬 Science Race IQ Gender Environment Genetics
  1. Publicly discussing racial and gender differences in IQ can lead to accusations of prejudice, as seen in the cases of James Watson and Lawrence Summers.
  2. Evidence suggests that the genetic IQ of Africans is comparable to that of whites, challenging previous assumptions of lower intelligence.
  3. Nurture may play a smaller role than nature in influencing outcomes, as seen in a study of Korean-American children placed for adoption.

Novaxia vs Bigpharmia

Logging the World • 199 implied HN points • 04 Nov 22
🔬 Science Health Graphs Vaccines Modeling Data Analysis
  1. Understand the impact of vaccines on disease spread: Novaxia and Bigpharmia are examples of two scenarios showing how vaccines can affect the spread of a disease differently.
  2. Graphs help visualize data trends: Using different types of graphs can show how disease spread changes over time and the effectiveness of interventions like vaccines.
  3. Consider the importance of logarithmic scales: Logarithmic scales can provide a different perspective on data trends, allowing for better understanding of the impact of interventions like vaccines.

Tuesday Links

Niko McCarty • 19 implied HN points • 28 May 24
🔬 Science Biology Medicine Technology Chemistry Research
  1. New AI models are being developed to design DNA sequences and create new antibodies. These advancements could help in understanding genetic activities better.
  2. Researchers have found a clever way to help microbes absorb molecules that usually cannot enter cells by attaching them to compounds that can. This could lead to new methods in biotechnology.
  3. Joining cancer trials might not help patients live longer, according to a study. It's important for patients to consider this when thinking about trial participation.

A flicker in the dark

Cosmographia • 139 implied HN points • 03 Mar 23
🔬 Science History Astronomy Cosmology
  1. Time may seem vast when looking back, but in the grand scheme of things, it's just a fleeting moment.
  2. The universe started 13.8 billion years ago as a condensed point of infinite density.
  3. The post is only available for paid subscribers, offering exclusive content.

Disruptive science has declined (might have bigger implications for social sciences)

An Africanist Perspective • 138 implied HN points • 11 Jan 23
🔬 Science Research Papers Social Sciences
  1. Science is publishing more, but the disruptive nature of research papers has decreased, focusing more on incremental progress.
  2. The decline in disruptive science may have significant implications for social sciences, affecting the breadth and depth of new discoveries.
  3. To optimize 'real' discoveries in Africanist social sciences, researchers should embrace diverse research approaches, read and cite more African-based research, write more comprehensive books, and maintain long-term study in specific regions.

Some results on income distributions and total utility

Splitting Infinity • 59 implied HN points • 28 Jan 24
🔬 Science Mathematics Statistics Economics
  1. The type of income distribution models used like Pareto or lognormal can impact total utility calculations in economics
  2. There is an interesting relationship observed where the degree of inequality doesn't directly correlate with total utility in certain scenarios
  3. Introducing more risk-averse utility functions can bring the focus back on the importance of inequality in calculations

Mental health in space: don’t get too crazy about space

Space Ambition • 299 implied HN points • 18 Nov 22
🔬 Science Space Psychology Medicine Technology Health
  1. Space travel is really tough on astronauts' mental health. They deal with social and sensory deprivation, plus the stress of strict schedules and technical tasks, which can lead to serious issues if not managed well.
  2. Preventing mental health problems in space is key. Space agencies carefully select astronauts based on their personalities and provide support like remote check-ins and family care packages to keep morale high.
  3. As space missions get longer and more complex, the need for dedicated mental health support will grow. Future solutions might include AI tools and better station designs to help astronauts cope with mental challenges during missions.

Last word on LNT

Gordian Knot News • 139 implied HN points • 14 Jan 24
🔬 Science Research Data Analysis
  1. Linear No-Threshold (LNT) model in radiation exposure prediction is criticized for being inaccurate.
  2. Comparing different dose rate profiles with the same total dose is crucial to understanding radiation harm models.
  3. Dose rate is a critical factor in DNA damage repair, impacting cancer incidence predictions in radiation exposure.

Western Civilization And Genomics

ASeq Newsletter • 14 implied HN points • 06 Nov 24
🔬 Science Genomics History Biology Humanity Philosophy
  1. Western civilization has thrived for about 2500 years, with many achievements in science and knowledge. This long history has shaped our understanding of complex topics like genomics.
  2. Key figures like Isaac Newton helped establish scientific methods, moving society away from superstition to rational thinking. This paved the way for discoveries in inheritance and DNA.
  3. Today, we can sequence human genomes more easily than ever before. This ability can change how we understand our biology and ourselves in profound ways.

C57BL/6 (Beta)

Niko McCarty • 19 implied HN points • 25 May 24
🔬 Science Biotechnology Research Ethics Pharmaceuticals Computing
  1. In 2032, scientists created computer emulations of mice, including their entire anatomy and brain. This was only possible for a few organizations with strong computing power.
  2. The military used these emulators to test how drugs could enhance mouse performance, but some results were secretly tested on prisoners, raising ethical concerns.
  3. The NIH gave access to emulators mainly to select academic institutions, leading to a flood of biomedical papers. This made their findings influential in clinical trials, affecting millions of people.

How to Improve Both Scientific Innovation and Reproducibility at Once

The Good Science Project • 14 implied HN points • 04 Nov 24
🔬 Science Scientific Method Innovation Research Funding Data Integrity
  1. Science struggles with two main issues: not being able to reproduce results and not being as innovative as before. Many studies can't be repeated successfully, which raises concerns about their reliability.
  2. To boost both reproducibility and innovation, it's important to encourage sharing of failed experiments and null results. This would help scientists take risks and avoid only publishing positive outcomes.
  3. Creating 'Red Teams' in science can challenge current beliefs and assumptions. These groups would actively work to test and potentially disprove existing theories, fostering better scientific inquiry.