Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • How waste from the mining industry has perpetuated apartheid-like policies in South Africa

    How waste from the mining industry has perpetuated apartheid-like policies in South Africa

    Credit: Duke University Press While apartheid—South Africa’s brutal racial segregation laws of the 20th century—officially came to an end in the early 1990s, its harmful effects persist today, says Stanford historian Gabrielle Hecht in her new book, “Residual Governance: How South Africa Foretells Planetary Futures.” “You can see apartheid from space,” Hecht bluntly states in…

  • How a Beneficial Genetic Mutation Can Offset Alzheimer’s Predisposition

    How a Beneficial Genetic Mutation Can Offset Alzheimer’s Predisposition

    Genetic mutations that happen in a gene called apolipoprotein E (APOE) have long been known to have a significant impact on the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Variants of the gene are have different effects; a variant known as E2 carries a low risk of Alzheimer’s disease, E3 an intermediate risk, and E4 is high risk.…

  • Book examines hackers in Mexico, whose work leads them to reflect on the roles they play in society

    Book examines hackers in Mexico, whose work leads them to reflect on the roles they play in society

    Héctor Beltrán is the author of the new book, “Code Work: Hacking Across the U.S./México Techno-Borderlands,” published by Princeton University Press. Credit: Allegra Boverman Several years ago, MIT anthropologist Héctor Beltrán ’07 attended an event in Mexico billed as the first all-women’s hackathon in Latin America. But the programmers were not the only women there.…

  • Q&A: When does shaming work?

    Q&A: When does shaming work?

    Credit: Princeton University Press Shame can be a powerful motivator—particularly on the world stage. Calling out human rights abuses can isolate a government; it can cause a public outcry and embarrass leaders into compliance. For many international relations scholars, shaming remains one of the best tools to combat human rights violations. However, Rochelle Layla Terman,…

  • Fundamental research could make growing better crops like clockwork

    Fundamental research could make growing better crops like clockwork

    Researchers at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory investigated proteins involved in photosynthetic processes using Arabidopsis thaliana plants. Credit: Kara Headley/MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory Have you ever taken something apart, like a watch, to see how it works by looking at the parts inside individually? That’s not altogether different from a common strategy used by scientists…

  • Mysterious ‘lunar swirls’ that perplexed scientists for decades may be close to an explanation

    Mysterious ‘lunar swirls’ that perplexed scientists for decades may be close to an explanation

    New topographic maps of the moon may help to explain the mysterious bright “swirls” decorating the lunar surface, which have perplexed scientists for decades. Lunar swirls are areas of contrasting light and dark streaks spread across the moon’s surface, and they occur on all types of terrain, from visibly dark patches known as mare to…

  • First U.S. Commercial Small Nuclear Reactor Axed

    First U.S. Commercial Small Nuclear Reactor Axed

    Advanced nuclear developer NuScale and a Utah state government agency have terminated what would have been the first small modular reactor to enter commercial service in the United States. The Carbon Free Power Project (CFPP) was scheduled to begin generating electricity in 2029. NuScale had begun preparing the site and crafting the reactors. But its…

  • Phallus wind chime found at Roman Viminacium | HeritageDaily

    Phallus wind chime found at Roman Viminacium | HeritageDaily

    Archaeologists excavating at Viminacium have uncovered a Roman phallus wind chime known as a tintinnabulum. Viminacium was the provincial capital of the Roman province of Moesia Superio, located in the Kostolac region in Eastern Serbia. The city was first occupied during the 1st century AD, serving as a major communications and commercial hub, while also…

  • What is the difference between AI ethics, responsible AI, and trustworthy AI?

    What is the difference between AI ethics, responsible AI, and trustworthy AI?

    Credit: CC0 Public Domain AI is everywhere—driving cars, diagnosing illnesses, making credit decisions, ranking job candidates, identifying faces, assessing parolees. These headlines alone should be enough to convince you that AI is far from ethical. Nonetheless, terms like “ethical AI” prevail alongside equally problematic terms like “trustworthy AI.” Why are… Continue Reading News Source: techxplore.com

  • Exploring design rules for using supramolecular hydrogels to mimic the extracellular matrix

    Exploring design rules for using supramolecular hydrogels to mimic the extracellular matrix

    Laura Rijns in Cellab. Credit: Bart van Overbeeke In human tissue, the cells are embedded in the extracellular matrix. This matrix is made up of fiber-like structures that provide firmness to the tissue, but also influence cell behavior and facilitate cell growth. Ph.D. candidate Laura Rijns researched how you can mimic the matrix using supramolecular…

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