Dr Karl
@DoctorKarl
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Dr Karl Kruszelnicki ~ an answer looking for a question. I do not endorse any commercial products.
Australia
Joined February 2009
"Wikipedia: which truth emerges through transparent debate, rather than algorithmic opacity or corporate interests. Every edit is logged, every discussion archived -despite AI hallucinations, black-box algorithms and widespread disinformation, " https://t.co/0ZQWnqZgPL
nature.com
Nature - Artificial-intelligence systems are feeding on Wikipedia without giving back, and academic indifference is threatening the survival of what is arguably the most widely used reference work...
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" smart windows, most depend on external power, sensors, or control systems, adding cost & complexity. This operates as a passive system, adjusting visible light transmission based on temperature without requiring electricity or electronic components" https://t.co/gWVz1TXJW1
interestingengineering.com
Researchers develop transparent wood windows that regulate light, block UV rays, and cut energy use without electricity.
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" insecure/uncomfortable when they don’t know all the answers/don’t grasp that some situations are complex, multidimensional, & puzzling even to experts→ more likely to sign on to conspiracy theory → an easy answer, even if wrong/oversimplification." https://t.co/rTtjRWBABn
futurism.com
A group of researchers studied the personality traits most common in conspiracy-brained people, discovering insecurity might be to blame.
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"Ancient scientists understood the importance of deferring to specialists and listening to expert advice. However, they were also keen for their readers to understand where scientists acquire knowledge and how scientific facts can be verified." https://t.co/oqyJw1miyj
theconversation.com
Ancient thinkers struggled to tell facts from falsehoods just like we do – and their strategies are still relevant today.
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" rest of world is still deciding how far and how fast to push. Automakers are lining up fresh metal for 2026, from mass-market crossovers to high-end flagships - a lot of what’s coming looks directly aimed at buyers in cold, EV-dense markets like Norway." https://t.co/zEBcekFDqq
autoblog.com
Norway closed 2025 with 96% of new cars fully electric, a record that gave Tesla its best year yet there and turned combustion models into statistical outliers.
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"The most eye-opening discovery: They noticed “robust expression” of genes linked to DNA repair in the retina, “which may help support long-term maintenance of retinal integrity over the Greenland shark’s extreme lifespan.”" https://t.co/mahFUDonPJ
nautil.us
How These Long-Living Sharks Keep Sharp Vision for Centuries: Understanding their tricks could eventually help preserve people’s eyesight.
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"this new chemical process operates at ambient temperature and pressure. It chemically dissolves the glue holding the blade together. The high-value carbon fiber can be recovered, cleaned, and reused in everything from new turbines to car parts." https://t.co/kNDaMzNCez
interestingengineering.com
Chinese energy giant Ming Yang Smart Energy has developed the “world’s first fully recyclable carbon fiber wind turbine blade.”
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"some dogs have a skill that puts them functionally on par with 18-month-old children:They can learn the names of new toys not only through direct instruction but also by eavesdropping on the conversations of their owners." https://t.co/GL9fEr2aoO
nytimes.com
Eavesdropping on their owners seems to help some toy-crazy and talented pups learn more words.
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"Researchers weren’t able to make much of this steady drip of hominin fossils until they figured out how old they were. The key to pinning that down was a method called magnetostratigraphy" https://t.co/cQQwqUEgnJ
scientificamerican.com
Fossils of a human ancestor from 773,000 years ago may be near the base of the Homo sapiens lineage, representing a common ancestor of modern humans, Neandertals and Denisovans
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"evidence for hundreds of these quakes in Antarctica between 2010 and 2023, mostly at the ocean end of the Thwaites Glacier – the so-called Doomsday Glacier that could send sea levels rising rapidly if it were to collapse." https://t.co/hI4SytxkIv
scientificamerican.com
Capsizing icebergs are violently clashing with the crumbling end of the Doomsday Glacier
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"This year, renewables surpassed coal as a source of electricity worldwide, and solar and wind energy grew fast enough to cover the entire increase in global electricity use from January to June" https://t.co/85oFV4cKEr
science.org
Clean energy infrastructure is being deployed with unmatched scale and speed—and China is leading the way
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"First, how many microbes does a single fly typically carry? And second, how many microbes does it take to get people sick?" https://t.co/Wij0d5QTT9
the-scientist.com
Flies carrying disease-causing microbes will likely contaminate the food they touch, but different factors determine whether the person who eats it will get sick.
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Almost Dangerous "Commercial aircraft — 40,000 feet (12 kilometers) — radiation briefly rose. Such radiation levels for more than 12 hours→pregnant women exceed officially considered as safe for fetus. In this case, the worst was over in about 2 hours" https://t.co/THSXq7sdX5
space.com
Radiation levels at airline flight altitudes briefly reached levels that could be potentially harmful to pregnant women.
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"Google once the primary source of informal medical advice, people now turn to social networks (29%) & artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots (40%). Social media posts are often subjective, anecdotal, and in some cases tied to commercial interests." https://t.co/mxyOz1ReOu
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"peanut butter to its most basic components, this creamy treat packs peanuts rich in protein and fat as well as, in many varieties, added sugar. These three macronutrients each contribute to possible biological drivers for dogs’ peanut butter preferences." https://t.co/Auyq4WJFX7
the-scientist.com
The reason dogs beg, sit, stay, and shake for peanut butter could be both evolutionarily wired and learned behavior.
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"in mice → pigment in tattoos accumulates in the lymph nodes & might affect immune responses. Ink remained in the lymph nodes for months &varying effects: it weakened animals’ response to a COVID vaccine but increased reaction to an influenza vaccine." https://t.co/wU4oHgR39Z
pnas.org
Despite safety concerns regarding the toxicity of tattoo ink, no studies have reported the consequences of tattooing on the immune response. In thi...
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"The Black Death (most deadly documented pandemic in human history) in 1347 C.E., eliminated more than half Europe’s population. Researcher→cool weather spurred by previously unidentified volcanic eruptions set into motion a deadly chain of events." https://t.co/d5c6GA0GZ7
science.org
Crop failures caused by eruptions possibly forced grain imports from plague-ridden regions
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"An mRNA based flu vaccine is 34.5% more effective against influenza-like illness compared to current flu vaccines. The study included over 18,000 people, half of whom were given the mRNA vaccine and half of whom were given a conventional flu vaccine." https://t.co/EfMQDZWZ9p
scimex.org
EXPERT REACTION: mRNA flu vaccine is up to 34.5% more effective than current flu vaccines An mRNA based flu vaccine, which has been developed by Pfizer, is 34.5% more effective against inf
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"Centrifugal motion. Perpetual bliss. The thrill of the moment. Unstoppable. In technical terms, it is “non-agonistic interaction involving directed, intraspecific, oral-oral contact with some movement of the lips/mouthparts and no food transfer.”" https://t.co/iQJoC1VOTk
nytimes.com
And humans are far from the only species locking lips.
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"“This object is a comet. It looks and behaves like a comet.” NASA officials presented a series of images taken by the fleet of spacecraft, including the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, the Lucy mission, and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory." https://t.co/kzMck86HuX
nytimes.com
With the government reopened, the space agency at last released pictures captured by a fleet of government spacecraft of an object that came from beyond our solar system.
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