This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that supplies a each day dose of what’s going on in the planet of technologies.
Bacteria can be engineered to fight cancer in mice. Human trials are coming.
The news: There are trillions of microbes living in and on our bodies—and we could possibly be in a position to modify them to enable us treat ailments. Scientists have altered the genomes of some of these bacteria, basically engineering microbes that can protect against or treat cancer.
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How they did it: The group chose a microbe that is usually located on human skin and modified it by inserting a new gene that codes for a protein that sits on the surface of some cancer cells. They applied it to heads of mice injected with skin cancer cells, and observed how the progression of the cancer was drastically slowed in mice that had been offered the engineered microbe, compared to these who received a normal microbe.
What’s subsequent: Even though the group have to uncover a great candidate microbe they’re confident could trigger the very same immune response in folks, human trials are on the cards inside the subsequent couple of years. Study the complete story.
—Jessica Hamzelou
Banning ChatGPT will do extra harm than great
—Rohan Mehta is a higher college senior at Moravian Academy in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
The release of ChatGPT has sent shock waves by means of the halls of education. Even though universities have rushed to release recommendations on how it can be utilized, the notion of a measured response to the emergence of this highly effective chatbot appears to have barely penetrated K–12 classrooms. Consequently, higher schoolers across the nation have been confronted with a silent coup of blocked AI web-sites.
That is a shame. If educators actively engage with students about the technology’s capabilities and limitations—and function with them to define new academic standards—generative AI could each democratize and revitalize K–12 education on an unprecedented scale. Study the complete story.
A test told me my brain and liver are older than they really should be. Should really I be worried?
Final year, our senior biotech writer Jessica Hamzelou took a test to uncover out her biological age. These tests, which involve assessing chemical markers on your DNA, aim to estimate how a lot put on and tear you have seasoned so far—and, basically, how several years of life are left in you.
Jessica’s final results recommended that her biological age was 35, the very same age she was when she took the test, indicating that she’s aging at a regular price. But the corporation has considering that reanalyzed the final results to give her an person biological age for each and every of nine systems, such as her brain, liver, heart, and blood.
Jessica was disappointed with their findings. But how a lot really should we genuinely study into final results like this? Study the complete story.
—Jessica Hamzelou
Jessica’s story is from The Checkup, her weekly newsletter providing you the inside track on all points biotech. Sign up to obtain it in your inbox each and every Thursday.
The will have to-reads
I’ve combed the net to uncover you today’s most entertaining/significant/scary/fascinating stories about technologies.
1 Amazon is jumping on the generative AI hype train
It is hoping to money in from its corporate net solutions buyers. (WSJ $)
+ It’ll sell the tools enterprises will need to generate their ChatGPT equivalent. (Wired $)
+ Generative AI is altering anything. But what’s left when the hype is gone? (MIT Technologies Assessment)
two The Discord channel leaker has been identified
The FBI arrested a 21-year old man in Massachusetts. (NYT $)
+ That does not necessarily imply an finish to the leaking, although. (Economist $)
+ Members of the Discord group have explained how the documents leaked. (WP $)
three Intel desires to rise to the US’ chipmaking challenge
Now it is up to the Biden administration to make a decision how a lot dollars to give it. (FT $)
+ The US is throwing money at Taiwan chipmaking machines also. (Bloomberg $)
+ Chinese chips will hold powering your daily life. (MIT Technologies Assessment)
four Young children are vulnerable to abuse in the metaverse
Security specialists are urging Meta to pause plans to permit adolescents into virtual worlds. (Bloomberg $)
+ The metaverse has a groping trouble currently. (MIT Technologies Assessment)
five France is cracking down on shady influencers
A new law hopes to cull the scams plaguing social media platforms.(Motherboard)
six Why ChatGPT is not as sensible as it seems
Answering concerns is not a correct measure of intelligence, for one particular.(New Yorker $)
+ The model is an irresistible hacking target. (Wired $)
+ Cloning a group chat applying AI is surprisingly straightforward. (The Verge)
+ The inside story of how ChatGPT was constructed from the folks who produced it. (MIT Technologies Assessment)
7 Swatting solutions are offered to employ on Telegram
They make bomb and shooting threats to the police applying synthetic voices. (Motherboard)
+ AI voice cloning software program is scarily convincing. (Slate $)
eight Latin America is reliant on WhatsApp to attain medical doctors
It suggests it is not generally clear what’s billable and what’s not. (Rest of Planet)
9 The increasing value of childhood nostalgia
VHS tapes and pop culture memorabilia command major value tags on line. (NYT $)
ten These public telephone charging points are not a safety danger right after all
‘Juice jacking’ is not the threat the FBI led us to think. (Slate $)
Quote of the day
“They’ve fired everyone I know a couple of instances. I operate as if I’ve currently been fired.”
—Daniel Olayiwola, a gig worker for Amazon, explains what it is like to function in an atmosphere with exceedingly strict functionality metrics to the New York Instances.
The major story
Psychedelics are getting a moment and girls could be the ones to advantage
August 2022
Psychedelics are getting a moment. Just after decades of prohibition and vilification, they are increasingly getting employed as therapeutics. Drugs like ketamine, MDMA, and psilocybin mushrooms are getting studied in clinical trials to treat depression, substance abuse, and a variety of other maladies.
And as these lengthy-taboo drugs stage a comeback in the scientific neighborhood, it is attainable they could be specifically promising for girls.
Is this the starting of a brighter future for women’s wellness? Whilst psychiatrists are optimistic, they are rightly concerned about the prospective for abuse. Study the complete story.
—Taylor Majewski
We can nonetheless have good points
A location for comfort, entertaining and distraction in these weird instances. (Got any concepts? Drop me a line or tweet ’em at me.)
+ The Super Mario Bros theme tune has turn into the initial bit of video game music to be integrated in the US Library of Congress.
+ If you are a Picard fan, see what you believe of this ranking of each and every starship Enterprise.
+ This Twitter account documenting the origins of iconic pictures is endlessly entertaining—and informative.
+ There’s a lot going on on Floor796 (thanks Stefan!)
+ Let’s go hunting for some genuine maple syrup.