The hottest Research Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Health Politics Topics

Science is launching a daily newsletter

Science Forever • 238 implied HN points • 13 Jun 23
🔬 Science Research
  1. Science is launching a daily newsletter called Science_Adviser.
  2. The newsletter will cover papers from Science journals, commentaries, highlights from the internet, and original pieces about new research and scientific life.
  3. Christie Wilcox will be writing and running the newsletter.

The UX Recruitment Struggle Is Real: How to Find Participants

UX Psychology • 238 implied HN points • 21 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Finding the right participants for UX research can be a major challenge, hindering the effectiveness of your study.
  2. Being resourceful in recruiting participants is key - leverage niche communities, engage with customer-facing teams, and consider using professional panels.
  3. When facing internal roadblocks, start small to showcase the value of UX research, analyze indirect user touchpoints, and conduct desk research or UX audits as alternative solutions.

Wednesday Links

Niko McCarty • 39 implied HN points • 29 May 24
🔬 Science Research
  1. Joseph Lister invented the first micropipette in the 1850s, but it wasn't popular like Heinrich Schnitger's design in 1957. It's interesting how some inventions don’t get the recognition they deserve until later.
  2. A new vaccine strategy uses tiny particles to target specific cells with mRNA vaccines. This could make immunizations more effective and targeted.
  3. The FDA sometimes takes too long to approve products like sunscreens, which can affect public health. It's a reminder that safety can sometimes slow down progress.

May 2025 Updates

New Things Under the Sun • 160 implied HN points • 27 May 25
🔬 Science Research
  1. Recent studies show that government funding for research and development (R&D) yields high returns. Estimates suggest that every dollar spent on non-defense government R&D could generate benefits worth up to 210%.
  2. The composition of R&D funding has changed over the years. While support for applied research has dropped, funding for basic research has remained stable as a fraction of GDP.
  3. A significant research paper claiming that AI boosts innovation was retracted due to issues with the data and its credibility. This highlights the need for careful evaluation of research, especially when it could have major implications.

Best of ChinaTalk 2024

ChinaTalk • 281 implied HN points • 07 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Research
  1. China is focusing on developing its AI and technology sectors, addressing the balance between innovation and security.
  2. The chip industry in Taiwan is evolving, with a strong emphasis on local strategies to maintain competitiveness.
  3. ChinaTalk has produced a variety of engaging content, covering topics like politics, technology, and culture, while also expanding its reach through podcasts and YouTube.
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ChinAI #253: Tencent Research Institute releases Large Model Security & Ethics Report

ChinAI Newsletter • 117 implied HN points • 05 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Research
  1. The report highlights security assessments for LLMs, such as prompt injection attacks and adversarial examples.
  2. Tencent developed a platform to evaluate large model security, focusing on automated attack sample generation and risk analysis.
  3. The concept of 'Blue Army' drills is discussed as a method to test the effectiveness of large models like Hunyuan.

The Sequence Engineering #671: How Anthropic Built a Research Agent?

TheSequence • 140 implied HN points • 25 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Research
  1. The Research feature in Claude allows AI to handle complex research tasks better by using a multi-agent system. This means that different AI agents can work on separate parts of a question at the same time.
  2. A LeadResearcher controls the process by breaking down a user's question into a plan and assigning tasks to specialized Subagents. This helps the system gather more information efficiently.
  3. Each Subagent does its job—like searching online or analyzing data—and sends back its results to the LeadResearcher, who then puts everything together into one clear report.

Did OpenAI Just Solve Abstract Reasoning?

AI: A Guide for Thinking Humans • 344 implied HN points • 23 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Research
  1. OpenAI's new model, o3, showed impressive results on tough reasoning tasks, achieving accuracy levels that could compete with human performance. This signals significant advancements in AI's ability to reason and adapt.
  2. The ARC benchmark tests how well machines can recognize and apply abstract rules, but recent results suggest some solutions may rely more on extensive compute than true understanding. This raises questions about whether AI is genuinely learning abstract reasoning.
  3. As AI continues to improve, the ARC benchmark may need updates to push its limits further. New features could include more complex tasks and better ways to measure how well AI can generalize its learning to new situations.

Covidgate

The Honest Broker Newsletter • 1383 implied HN points • 02 Jul 23
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Research
  1. A small group of scientists and government officials tricked the public by promoting misinformation about the origins of Covid-19.
  2. The cover-up, known as Covidgate, aimed to shut down discussion of a possible lab leak as the cause of the pandemic.
  3. The Proximal Origins paper dismissed the possibility of a research-related origin of Covid-19, despite some of the authors initially believing in that hypothesis.

Is GPT-4 getting worse over time?

AI Snake Oil • 1342 implied HN points • 19 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Chatbots have capabilities and behaviors that can change over time.
  2. There is no evidence of GPT-4's capabilities degrading, just changes in behavior.
  3. Behavior changes in language models like GPT-4 can impact the reliability of products built on top of them.

Can we make mosquitoes resist malaria?

De Novo • 99 implied HN points • 28 Jul 25
🔬 Science Research
  1. Researchers are working on a new gene drive to help mosquitoes resist malaria. This approach could be a new way to fight the disease without reducing mosquito populations.
  2. The gene drive targets a specific gene in mosquitoes to prevent malaria parasites from spreading. This means fewer mosquitoes would carry the malaria parasite after feeding on infected blood.
  3. There are still questions to answer about this approach, like how effective it would be in different mosquito species and whether it could lead to new issues with mosquito populations.

🧪⚛🧬 Broken promises: CHIPS Act funding for science research falls short

Faster, Please! • 822 implied HN points • 13 Mar 24
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Despite promises made in the CHIPS and Science Act, Congress significantly underfunded key agencies and programs for scientific research, hindering progress in fields like artificial intelligence.
  2. Investment in basic scientific research, often a public good with long-term benefits beyond immediate financial gains, is essential for innovation and societal advancement.
  3. Government-funded R&D has historically played a crucial role in business sector productivity growth, supporting the argument for increased federal spending on research and development.

New Study: Higher-than-Expected Fetal Losses after mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination in Early Pregnancy

jackanapes • 139 implied HN points • 21 Jun 25
🏥 Health Politics Research
  1. Women vaccinated with mRNA COVID-19 vaccines in early pregnancy experienced more fetal losses than expected. This means that for every 100 women vaccinated, there were more losses than what was normally seen.
  2. Most of these losses happened later in pregnancy, especially after week 24. This suggests that there are possible biological reasons behind the increase in losses, not just behavioral factors.
  3. In contrast, women who got the flu vaccine during the same early pregnancy window actually had fewer losses than expected. This comparison helps show that the risks associated with the COVID-19 vaccine might be different.

Machine learning eats up science

Mindful Modeler • 219 implied HN points • 18 Oct 23
🔬 Science Research
  1. Research papers increasingly focus on AI and ML, indicating a growing trend in the scientific community.
  2. AI and ML offer significant benefits in terms of saving time, automating tasks, and enabling research.
  3. Challenges like bias, fraud, and lack of reproducibility persist, with a major concern being the reliance on pattern recognition over understanding in ML and AI.

Who Says Dieting Fails Most Of The Time?

Weight and Healthcare • 1198 implied HN points • 06 Nov 21
🏥 Health & Wellness Research
  1. Various studies from different time periods show that intentional weight loss through dieting has a high failure rate, with most individuals regaining lost weight within a few years.
  2. Even when weight loss is achieved, it may not necessarily lead to improved health outcomes or reduced mortality risks, compared to focusing on behaviors like exercise and healthy eating.
  3. The research emphasizes the importance of moving away from the traditional focus on body size manipulation to a more evidence-based approach that supports people's health through behavior changes and access to resources.

TheSequence Radar #674: Transformers in the Genome: How AlphaGenome Reimagines AI-Driven Genomics

TheSequence • 133 implied HN points • 29 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Research
  1. AlphaGenome is a new AI model that helps understand the genome better. It predicts various functions in DNA, enabling quick analysis of genetic variants.
  2. This model combines different types of data into one system, making it easier and faster to see how genetic changes might affect health.
  3. DeepMind is offering early access to AlphaGenome for researchers, encouraging collaboration between academia and industry to unlock more discoveries in genetics.

E-Mail Course On Conformal Prediction

Mindful Modeler • 479 implied HN points • 13 Dec 22
🚌 Education Research
  1. Conformal prediction turns point predictions into prediction sets with a probability guarantee of covering the true outcome, working for any model without requiring a distribution assumption.
  2. The 5-week email course on conformal prediction offers a free, convenient way to learn about this uncertainty quantification method.
  3. Resources like Valeriy's list on conformal prediction and an academic introduction paper can be helpful for diving into and understanding conformal prediction.

Beyond Functionality: Measuring the Social Dimension of User Experience

UX Psychology • 218 implied HN points • 13 Oct 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Measurements of user experience are expanding beyond just functionality and usability to include social dimensions, reflecting the importance of catering to users' social needs and interactions in digital products.
  2. Key social factors like self-expression, social learning, relatedness, communication, and social approval significantly impact user engagement, highlighting the need to address these aspects in UX design.
  3. Newly developed Social UX Scales, such as Identification, Social Interaction, Social Stimulation, and Social Acceptance, offer tools to effectively measure and improve social aspects of modern technology experiences.

The Sequence Research #683: Orchestrating Intelligence: Sakana AI’s Multi-Model Tree Search Architecture

TheSequence • 119 implied HN points • 11 Jul 25
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Training large AI models can lead to diminishing returns, meaning bigger models don't always perform much better than smaller ones. It's becoming clear that just making models larger isn't the only solution.
  2. Sakana AI suggests that instead of one giant model, we could use several smaller models working together. This collaboration might lead to better problem-solving, similar to how humans think and deliberate.
  3. Their approach is called Adaptive Branching Monte Carlo Tree Search, which allows multiple models to reason together and improve over time. This could change how we think about building AI systems.

Weekly Top Picks #96

The Algorithmic Bridge • 276 implied HN points • 03 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Research
  1. OpenAI has launched two new AI agents, Operator and Deep Research, which focus on web tasks and detailed reports. Deep Research is particularly useful right now.
  2. OpenAI's o3-mini model is now free and demonstrates strong reasoning capabilities. This shows that powerful AI tools can be accessible to everyone.
  3. AI technology is evolving rapidly, and companies can benefit collectively from its advancements. Telling an AI to think longer can actually improve its performance.

The Challenge to Human Creativity: Can AI Surpass Humans in Divergent Thinking?

UX Psychology • 218 implied HN points • 28 Sep 23
🔬 Science Research
  1. Artificial intelligence (AI) is challenging the notion that creativity is solely a human trait, with recent AI systems showcasing high-quality artistic and literary works.
  2. Comparisons between human and AI creativity, particularly in divergent thinking, demonstrate that while AI excels in some aspects, highly creative humans can still make surprising connections between concepts.
  3. Creative professionals like designers, artists, and writers may find that while AI can outperform average human creative thinking, uniquely human qualities such as intuition, emotional expressiveness, and cultural embeddedness continue to set humans apart in pushing creative boundaries.

Age of Invention: Cort Case

Age of Invention, by Anton Howes • 1297 implied HN points • 07 Jul 23
💾 History Research
  1. Henry Cort, a key figure in the British Industrial Revolution, may have stolen iron-making improvements from enslaved Jamaican metallurgists.
  2. The origin of Cort's inventions is still debated, with limited evidence to prove the claims made by Jenny Bulstrode in an academic paper.
  3. The narrative presented by Bulstrode requires multiple unproven assumptions and lacks concrete evidence.

The Use of Scarcity Cues in E-Commerce: Impact on User Experience and Trust

UX Psychology • 218 implied HN points • 05 Oct 23
💼 Business Research
  1. Online retailers often use scarcity cues like countdown timers and limited quantity messages to create urgency, but research suggests they can harm user experience and trust.
  2. Psychological theories show that scarcity can make products seem more valuable, yet artificial scarcity cues in marketing can annoy users and erode trust.
  3. Recent research found that scarcity cues, especially time-based ones, can lead to negative emotions, frustration, and reduced user trust, highlighting the need for transparent and verifiable messaging in e-commerce.

Prompting is Managing

Breaking Smart • 125 implied HN points • 19 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Using AI tools like chatbots is similar to managing interns. It's not about doing the work yourself but overseeing the process.
  2. Focusing on sameness in writing can help maintain quality, but it may also limit creativity. Good management knows when to stick to the rules and when to encourage originality.
  3. We need to change how we teach writing and management skills for the AI era. It’s important to build skills for overseeing new technologies rather than just avoiding them.

Why Was This Groundbreaking Study on DEI Silenced?

Unsafe Science • 348 implied HN points • 27 Nov 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Research
  1. A recent study showed that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs might increase hostility and promote extreme views instead of helping people be more understanding. This is concerning because these programs are widely used in schools and workplaces.
  2. Major media outlets like The New York Times and Bloomberg chose not to report on this study, which raises questions about their independence and if they are protecting certain narratives instead of sharing important information.
  3. The findings of the study suggest that DEI trainings can lead to misunderstandings and foster negative attitudes towards others, rather than solving issues of bias and inequality.

Congratulations* to American College of Gastroenterology for publishing "Cases of Autoimmune Hepatitis After Vaccination Against COVID-19" [PDF provided]

DrV’s Newsletter, Notes, Essays, Articles, Videos, and Book Chapters • 216 implied HN points • 20 Mar 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Research
  1. The study discusses cases of autoimmune hepatitis after COVID-19 vaccination.
  2. Medical professionals need to pay attention to these cases because they are not as rare as previously thought.
  3. There is a call for a better surveillance system to monitor these types of adverse events.

Dashing Data Viz - Issue 227

Dashing Data Viz • 216 implied HN points • 01 Mar 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Dashing Data Viz provides curated news, articles, and jobs related to Data Visualization.
  2. The newsletter features a variety of data visualization articles, courses, and tools for professionals and enthusiasts.
  3. Readers can engage with the content, share their thoughts, and learn about the latest trends in data visualization.

AI is Eating the (Research) World

Bojan’s Newsletter • 216 implied HN points • 03 Oct 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. AI is revolutionizing research fields like computer science, starting in 2013.
  2. AI is a versatile tech applicable in diverse fields yet still underutilized in non-CS disciplines.
  3. Scarcity of good datasets limits AI's wider adoption in research, but foundational models could change that.

What are embeddings?

Normcore Tech • 1353 implied HN points • 07 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. The author delved deep into the concept of embeddings in deep learning.
  2. The author's journey in understanding embeddings involved a significant amount of research and work.
  3. The author hopes that others can benefit from their learning about embeddings as well.

Weight Loss Research Should Be Five Years Long - At Least

Weight and Healthcare • 479 implied HN points • 22 Oct 22
🏥 Health & Wellness Research
  1. Weight loss research should be at least five years long to capture long-term outcomes accurately.
  2. The weight loss industry often conducts short-term studies that may overlook weight regain and potential harms of interventions.
  3. There is a need for systemic change in how weight loss interventions are researched and marketed to protect patients from ineffective and potentially harmful treatments.

State of AI: February 2026 newsletter

Guide to AI • 4 implied HN points • 09 Feb 26
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Agentic AI is triggering a massive market repricing as autonomous agents and rapidly advancing frontier models threaten the long-term recurring revenue that justified high SaaS valuations, wiping hundreds of billions from software stocks. Investors are racing to re-evaluate how to underwrite tech companies in a world where core workflows can be rebuilt AI-first.
  2. Geopolitics and infrastructure constraints are reshaping the AI landscape: governments are clashing with labs over military use and export controls, states are limiting data center builds, and China is aggressively scaling talent and commercial AI, all of which will affect where training clusters and supply chains can be built. These policy and resource shifts will influence competition, investment, and national strategy in AI.
  3. Rapid agent proliferation has produced both theatrical emergent behavior and serious security problems: viral agent networks blurred the line between human and AI activity, while open-source agents exposed widespread vulnerabilities, leaked credentials, and growing shadow-IT risks for enterprises. The combination of autonomy, data access, and external actions makes agent security a top priority.

Automating creativity

One Useful Thing • 1174 implied HN points • 13 Aug 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. AI can generate creative ideas in real-life scenarios and can help people come up with better ideas.
  2. Highly creative individuals can still outperform AI in idea generation.
  3. AI excels at combining existing concepts to create new and innovative ideas, making it a valuable tool for generating creativity.

Work in progress on natural selection in the US

Wyclif's Dust • 1073 implied HN points • 17 Sep 23
🔬 Science Research
  1. Polygenic scores predicting education levels also predict fertility in opposite directions.
  2. Economic theory explains the relationship between income, education, and number of children.
  3. US data on natural selection shows differences compared to the UK, possibly influenced by factors like welfare support and class distinctions.

Designing Usable Toggle Switches: Applying UX Research Insights

UX Psychology • 198 implied HN points • 20 Oct 23
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Toggle switches in user interfaces should provide immediate visual feedback when clicked to show the state change.
  2. Clear and familiar labels like 'On/Off' are crucial for toggle switches to avoid confusion. Avoid using unfamiliar terms or questions as labels.
  3. Use color effectively with 'On' typically in green or blue and position it on the right side. Negative or ambiguous toggle text should be avoided.

Results from poll #3 (and updates)

The Counterfactual • 59 implied HN points • 11 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Research
  1. Tokenization won the recent poll, so there will be an in-depth explainer about it soon. This will help people understand how tokenization works in large language models.
  2. The visual reasoning task was a close second, so it might come up in the next poll for more ideas. This shows there is interest in how models think visually.
  3. There are updates about recent publications and discussions on related topics in AI and psychology. These will be shared in upcoming posts, expanding on interesting research topics.