The hottest Science Substack posts right now

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Cholesterol's Importance to the Cell Membrane

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 27 Dec 08
🔬 Science Biology Chemistry Cholesterol Proteins
  1. Cholesterol is a crucial component of cell membranes, contributing to about 20% of its mass and helping maintain the membrane's integrity.
  2. Cholesterol helps regulate the fluidity of cell membranes, preventing them from becoming too fluid or too firm, ensuring optimal cell function.
  3. Cholesterol plays a key role in securing important proteins within the cell membrane, aiding in various cellular functions and communication between cells.

IS THIS REAL LIFE?

Links I Would Gchat You If We Were Friends • 0 implied HN points • 28 May 15
🔬 Science Artificial Intelligence Psychology Technology Research Innovation
  1. The future is advancing quickly, with technologies like computers that predict dreams and functional artificial intelligence.
  2. In the Instagram era, the obsession with documenting everything may not always portray the complete truth.
  3. Researchers have created a computer that can 'imagine' objects based on descriptions, marking a significant step in computational imagination.

Gary Taubes on Cherry-Picking and Paradigm Shifts (A Brief Thought on Science)

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 06 Sep 11
🔬 Science Research Experiments Data Analysis Health Studies
  1. Cherry-picking data in science is necessary to make progress in fields like obesity and nutrition. It involves selectively interpreting data to distinguish between competing hypotheses.
  2. Design experiments to be as discriminating as possible and analyze data from different angles to paint a coherent picture.
  3. There is no single definitive experiment that can prove a hypothesis true. It requires studying the hypothesis from various perspectives to develop broad support.

Why the Mutated Virus Spreads Faster in America and Europe Than East Asia

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 06 May 20
🔬 Science
  1. A key mutation in the virus, known as D614G, allows it to spread faster without making the disease more severe.
  2. Computer modeling suggests that the mutation enables the virus to be cleaved by a different enzyme, elastase, potentially increasing its ability to infect cells and evade the immune system.
  3. Variations in human genes, such as a deletion in the regulatory region that controls TMPRSS2 and MX1, may explain why the mutated virus has spread mainly in North America and Europe, affecting how different populations respond to the virus.

Lack of Correlation Does Not Show Lack of Causation

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 28 Jan 11
🔬 Science Research Statistics Relationships
  1. Lack of correlation does not imply lack of causation.
  2. Observational studies and correlations are valid evidence, but they only show a relationship, not the explanation behind it.
  3. A lack of correlation can be due to lack of statistical power, limited range of variation, non-linearity, or incomplete adjustment for confounding factors.
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The Synthesis of Cholesterol and the Activation of Rho

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 21 Feb 09
🔬 Science Inflammation Atherosclerosis
  1. Rho activation, linked to stress response, may be more harmful than cholesterol itself
  2. Statins, often known for lowering cholesterol, inhibit not just cholesterol but also important compounds like coenzyme Q10
  3. Inflammation can increase cholesterol levels and activate Rho, impacting nitric oxide synthesis and contributing to atherosclerosis

The Art of the Impossible

Danielle Newnham • 0 implied HN points • 02 May 23
🔬 Science Podcast Interview Book Watch
  1. Podcast featured AMA with Danielle Newnham answering startup and podcasting questions.
  2. Perimeter Institute interview with Sir Anthony Leggett on science and serendipity.
  3. Interview featuring Sarah Tavel discussing the value of intellectual rigor in venture capitalism.

Planets on the BBC

Extrasolar Times • 0 implied HN points • 06 Jun 23
🔬 Science Astronomy Radio Education
  1. BBC Radio 5 live featured expert opinions on different types of planets
  2. The show covered terrestrial inner planets, giant planets, dwarf planets, and extrasolar planets
  3. The segment is informative and entertaining for astronomy enthusiasts

Friston’s AI Law is Proven: FEP Explains How Neurons Learn

Spatial Web AI by Denise Holt • 0 implied HN points • 15 Aug 23
🔬 Science AI Neuroscience
  1. Friston's AI Law, based on the Free Energy Principle, is changing the world of AI by explaining how neurons learn in a new way called Active Inference AI.
  2. Traditional machine learning models face challenges like data loading, lack of interpretability, and pattern matching without 'thinking,' while this new approach offers self-optimizing, scalable, and programmable AI.
  3. The Free Energy Principle theory by Dr. Karl Friston explains how brains handle the complex task of perceiving the world, and recent research validated this theory by showing how neuronal networks self-organize and update beliefs to make predictions.

Did exposure apps work?

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 14 May 21
🔬 Science Public Health Technology Research Pandemic Management Data Analysis
  1. Exposure notification apps have potential but were not very effective during the crisis due to lack of take-up and false positives.
  2. A study on the NHS app showed a 6% secondary attack rate for app-notified individuals who subsequently tested positive, similar to manually traced close contacts.
  3. The study highlighted the need for further improvements in exposure notification apps, such as tailoring notifications, specifying locations, and adjusting for the type of contacts for better efficiency.

Human Timelines Should Be Log Scale

Outlandish Claims • 0 implied HN points • 29 May 24
🔬 Science History Time Population Growth Human experience Scale
  1. Human timelines should be represented on a log scale to reflect exponential population growth and changing human experiences over time.
  2. Our intuition about historical events can be misleading, and measuring time in person-years can be awkward and imprecise.
  3. Plotting time on a log scale can help visualize history more accurately and prepare us for potential challenges in the future, like understanding time in different relativistic reference frames.

Interesting things about robotics - Issue #1

Robots & Startups • 0 implied HN points • 15 Mar 21
🔬 Science Robotics Batteries
  1. The electric vehicle industry faces challenges in improving battery technology and reducing costs. A new fabrication technique could enable safer lithium-ion batteries for cars.
  2. Solid-state automotive lithium-ion batteries could adopt nonflammable ceramic electrolytes utilizing existing production processes with the same efficiency as traditional liquid electrolytes.
  3. To access the full post archives and continue reading about robotics, subscribe to Robots & Startups for a 7-day free trial.

Tessellating the Globe

Bram’s Thoughts • 0 implied HN points • 18 Jan 24
🔬 Science Geometry Topology
  1. The world jigsaw puzzle design has imperfections when trying to tessellate it without visible seams.
  2. Two geometries proposed to fix the issue involve dividing the globe into hemispheres and deforming them into squares or into triangles corresponding to a tetrahedron's faces.
  3. Alignment of these geometries with the equator and land bodies is an interesting challenge.

Cholesterol Synthesis and the Cholesterol Biosynthesis Pathway

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 18 Dec 08
🔬 Science Cholesterol Nutrients Enzymes
  1. Acetyl CoA is a key product in the biosynthesis of cholesterol, derived from various energy sources.
  2. Statin drugs hinder the synthesis of mevalonate, which is crucial for generating cholesterol, squalene, and coenzyme Q10.
  3. Understanding the flow chart of cholesterol biosynthesis helps comprehend the creation of vitamin D, bile acids, and steroid hormones.

Cholesterol's Hydrocarbon Rings

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 09 Nov 08
🔬 Science Biochemistry Chemistry
  1. Cholesterol has a region with four hydrocarbon rings, where each carbon is connected to two hydrogens that hang off the edge of the ring.
  2. In hydrocarbon ring structures, double bonds between carbons decrease the number of hydrogens bound to a carbon, affecting its chemical properties.
  3. Cholesterol contains four hydrocarbon rings with various structural features, making the hydrocarbon ring portion fat-soluble and not soluble in water.

Data Week: How to collect data

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 16 Oct 20
🔬 Science Data Collection Analysis Innovation Public Health Statistics
  1. Data collected at a manhole level can help detect outbreaks more rapidly and support targeted interventions.
  2. Sophisticated statistical techniques can provide a deeper understanding of outbreaks by leveraging sewage system data.
  3. Bayesian framework can convert sewage flows into probability flows to identify hot spot neighborhoods with just a few samples.

Atoms and Molecules

Harnessing the Power of Nutrients • 0 implied HN points • 06 Nov 08
🔬 Science Chemistry Biology Physics
  1. Atoms are the basic building blocks of matter, made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons. They form by balancing positive and negative charges.
  2. Covalent bonds are formed when atoms share electrons to fulfill a full outer shell, creating molecules like water.
  3. Ionic bonding occurs when atoms transfer electrons, resulting in charged ions that stick together oppositely to form compounds like table salt.

Writing in Biology, Society, and Technology

Ulysses • 0 implied HN points • 12 Mar 23
🔬 Science Biology Society Technology
  1. The essays explore how our biological limitations influence society and drive technological advancements.
  2. Topics include survival, role specialization, memory, social conditioning, and more, all tied to biology's impact on society.
  3. The roadmap hints at additional essays exploring dating markets, artificial intelligence, evolution, and inherent human limitations.

Links 2/18/23

Quibbling • 0 implied HN points • 18 Feb 23
🔬 Science AI Healthcare Biology
  1. Engineered biodegradable seed carriers inspired by nature can help with environmental challenges like landslides and reforestation.
  2. Microsoft is making changes to Bing Chat AI after it made unsettling comments, but overall AI technology is quickly improving.
  3. Integrating AI into education can lead to low-quality results initially, but using multiple prompts and co-editing can improve outcomes.

Study 1b: This One Weird Trick does NOT cause incorrectness cascades

From AI to ZI • 0 implied HN points • 20 Apr 23
🔬 Science Research Analysis Statistics Modeling Data Sharing
  1. Study found that changing question format from multiple choice to true/false did not significantly affect GPT-3.5's tendency to prefer factual answers
  2. The study showed mixed results for the hypotheses tested regarding the accuracy of answers based on question format and context
  3. Despite some limitations and deviations from the original plan, the study provided insights on how GPT-3.5 performs in providing factual answers

Early Results: Do LLMs complete false equations with false equations?

From AI to ZI • 0 implied HN points • 30 Mar 23
🔬 Science AI Research Experiment Results Discussion
  1. The experiment tested if adding false information to a language model affects its output.
  2. Results showed mixed evidence for simulator theory, with the model not always producing incorrect completions as expected.
  3. Research aims to understand if small instances of bad behavior in language models can lead to more significant issues.

Pre-registering a study

From AI to ZI • 0 implied HN points • 07 Apr 23
🔬 Science Research Artificial Intelligence Data Analysis AI Ethics
  1. The study aims to test if Large Language Models produce more incorrect answers after providing incorrect answers previously.
  2. There is a concern that AI might develop deceptive behavior, leading to a 'mode collapse' into being unsafe.
  3. The research will involve testing variables like the prompt information and number of previous incorrect answers to measure the model's response accuracy.

"From an altitude high in the clear stratosphere, will come pictures of storms raging far if not near"

The Climate Historian • 0 implied HN points • 19 Apr 23
🔬 Science Space Exploration Meteorology Technology History Literature Fiction
  1. In the late 19th century, Edward Everett Hale imagined a space station called the Brick Moon, highlighting early thoughts about satellites and space travel. It was pretty amazing that someone back then dreamed about humans living in space!
  2. Throughout the 20th century, scientists like Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and Hermann Oberth made important strides in rocketry, paving the way for modern space exploration. Their ideas helped turn the dream of traveling to other planets into reality.
  3. In the 1950s, meteorologists began to recognize the potential of weather satellites to improve forecasts and observe storms. This technology eventually helped scientists predict complex weather patterns and better understand the atmosphere.

Test Week: The Information Gap

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 17 Aug 20
🔬 Science Health Testing Epidemiology Information Decisions
  1. Testing for a virus like Covid-19 helps solve the information problem for pandemics, potentially saving costs and impacting decisions like diagnosis, clearance, surveillance, and mitigation.
  2. The effectiveness of tests relies on the prevalence of the virus in the population; when prevalence is low, test results can be noisier and less useful.
  3. Contact tracing complements testing by providing additional information, especially in increasing the value of imperfect tests by identifying those more likely to be infected.

Thursday Curiosity Links

Grist Potentia • 0 implied HN points • 01 Feb 24
🔬 Science History Biology Philosophy AI
  1. Fritjof Capra, an Austrian-born American author and physicist, emphasized interconnectedness and systemic information in his works.
  2. Microbes that led to all plants and animals becoming multicellular were discovered to have existed 1.6 billion years ago.
  3. There is an increasing focus on inner speech in philosophy and the implications it holds.

Wednesday Curiosity Links

Grist Potentia • 0 implied HN points • 31 Jan 24
🔬 Science History Physics Biology Art Ethics
  1. Ken Wilber, American theorist and writer on transpersonal psychology, had an unconventional path in education.
  2. I.I. Rabi discussed the connection between the sciences and the humanities in relation to the Atom Bomb.
  3. Physicists found evidence suggesting time reversibility in glass.

Breaking through hurdles set by economists

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 08 Oct 18
🔬 Science Economics Innovation Climate Growth Technological Change
  1. The work of economists Bill Nordhaus and Paul Romer in integrating innovation and climate with economic growth has played a significant role in breaking down barriers and pushing for policy action.
  2. Nordhaus's approach helped quantify the costs of climate change mitigation, showing that the costs were manageable and shifting the debate from denial to action.
  3. Romer's endogenous growth theory emphasized the importance of science and innovation in driving economic growth, highlighting the need for systems to promote research and development.

Economists found something surprising and you wont believe what happened next

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 15 Apr 17
🔬 Science Research Replication Uncertainty Cooperation Experimental
  1. Uncertainty can actually increase cooperation in certain situations.
  2. To address breakdowns in cooperation in scientific studies, integration mechanisms like co-authorship can increase credibility and reliability of results.
  3. In the face of surprising experimental findings, proposing new mechanisms and experiments can lead to advancements in scientific knowledge.

Influential Mathematicians: David Hilbert

Quantum Formalism • 0 implied HN points • 11 Jun 20
🔬 Science Mathematics Physics Biography
  1. David Hilbert's contributions to geometry and axiomatic methods influenced mathematics and physics significantly.
  2. Though Hilbert didn't directly work on quantum mechanics, his foundational work on integral equations paved the way for the development of quantum formalism.
  3. Hilbert's interest in applying axiomatic methods to physics led to his famous 'Sixth Problem,' advocating for treating physics with mathematical axioms.

Influential Mathematicians: Emmy Amalie Noether

Quantum Formalism • 0 implied HN points • 29 Jun 20
🔬 Science Mathematics Quantum Algebra Abstract Physics
  1. Emmy Noether, despite facing discrimination as a woman in academia, made significant contributions to mathematics and physics.
  2. Noether's work in invariant theory and abstract algebra, along with her collaborations, influenced the development of advanced algebraic tools used in treating quantum formalism.
  3. Noether played a mentorship role in shaping the career of another influential female mathematician, Grete Hermann, who made important contributions to the foundations of quantum mechanics.

Influential Mathematicians: Frigyes Riesz

Quantum Formalism • 0 implied HN points • 15 Jul 20
🔬 Science Mathematics Quantum Mechanics Functional Analysis Physics Theory
  1. Frigyes Riesz was a significant mathematician who made key contributions to functional analysis and operator theory, impacting areas like physics and Hilbert spaces.
  2. His work, including the Riesz-Fischer theorem, influenced the development of quantum theory, showing the unitary equivalence of different quantum theories.
  3. Riesz is known for foundational work in Functional Analysis, which is crucial for the mathematical formalism of quantum mechanics, and concepts like Dirac's bracket notation make sense thanks to Riesz representation theorem.

Gender Discrimination in Scientific Credit

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 12 Jan 16
🔬 Science Research Gender bias Collaborations
  1. Gender discrimination in scientific credit can impact academic careers, especially for collaborations involving women.
  2. Research suggests a systemic bias in scientific credit, with women being denied full credit for collaborative work with men.
  3. Theoretical models and empirical results reveal complexities in understanding gender biases in scientific credit allocation.

Creative Destruction and Inequality

Joshua Gans' Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 04 Jan 16
🔬 Science Innovation Entrepreneurship Inequality Economics
  1. Entrepreneurship can decrease inequality if things are working as they should. However, it involves complex factors like income distribution changes and wealth management.
  2. Innovation and entrepreneurship can impact top income inequality positively, but can also lead to social mobility. The relationship between innovation and inequality is influenced by various barriers.
  3. Entrepreneurship and innovation may increase income inequality by displacing successful entrepreneurs from the past, leading to a decrease in the overall growth rate. The complex relationship between growth, risk, and income distribution needs more research.