Two astronomy teams using the James Webb Space Telescope reported in spring 2025 that they observed a pair of 'little red dots' unlike any previously seen objects, including other little red dots found since 2023. Researchers led by Anna de Graaff at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy propose these are a new kind of object: a vast, puffed-up cloud of hydrogen gas that shines as brightly as billions of suns while concealing a supermassive black hole at its center, which they call a 'black hole star.'
wired.com
· 2026-10-24
A Quanta Magazine report reviews decades of genome research since the 1950s discovery of DNA's structure, noting that the Human Genome Project found only about 2% of human DNA encodes genes. The bulk of the mystery now lies in gene regulation—how genes are switched on and off—and researchers are turning to AI 'foundation models' such as Evo 2, Genos and Google DeepMind's AlphaGenome to help predict how DNA sequence changes affect biology.
wired.com
· 2026-10-17
Researchers publishing in Science found that corals rely on microscopic hairlike cilia to stir water and pull in oxygen when their photosynthetic algae go dormant at night. As ocean water warms, it holds less oxygen, forcing cilia to beat faster to compensate, but past a critical temperature this frantic motion consumes more oxygen than it delivers, effectively suffocating the coral polyps.
wired.com
· 2026-09-20
The article revisits the 1991 Pinatubo eruption, when scientists deployed instruments that detected volcanic unrest and issued an evacuation order shortly before a massive explosion killed over 800 people, saving hundreds of thousands more. It notes that despite this success, the forecast was largely an educated guess rather than a precise prediction, and that volcanology has since improved through better instrumentation and machine learning.
wired.com
· 2026-09-13
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