Faster, Meaner, Deadlier: The Evolution of BattleBots
Earlier this year, friend-of-IEEE-Spectrum and fashiontech designer Anouk Wipprecht gave a peek of what it's like to be a competitor on Battlebots, the 22-year-old robot combat competition, from the preparation "pit" to the arena. Her team, Ghostrap.....»»
Insects Played Pivotal Roles in the Evolution of Human Culture
Violins, the ink on the Declaration of Independence and other ways that insects shaped human history.....»»
Q&A: Holobiont biology, a new concept for exploring how microbiome shapes evolution of visible life
Microorganisms—bacteria, viruses and other tiny life forms—may drive biological variation in visible life as much, if not more, than genetic mutations, creating new lineages and even new species of animals and plants, according to Seth Bordenstei.....»»
AMD Ryzen AI claimed to offer ‘up to 75% faster gaming’ than Intel
AMD just released some benchmarks that compare its Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor to Intel's Lunar Lake. In some games, the CPU offers up to twice the frame rates......»»
The M4 Max somehow holds its own against the RTX 4080 Super
People all over are pushing the limits of the new M4 chip, and now a YouTuber has found that it can render projects in Blender faster than an RTX 3080 GPU......»»
Fossil teeth suggest a long childhood is the prelude to the evolution of a large brain
Compared to the great apes, humans have an exceptionally long childhood, during which parents, grandparents and other adults contribute to their physical and cognitive development. This is a key developmental period for acquiring all the cognitive sk.....»»
Faster flowing glaciers could help predict nearby volcanic activity
Glaciers that are within three miles of a volcano move nearly 50% quicker than average, a new study has found, which could help create early warning of future eruptions......»»
Archaeologists find ancient cheese makers used tree leaves to boost milk production
A study published in Nature Ecology and Evolution sheds light on the innovative practices of Central Europe's early cheese makers......»»
OWC announces its first Thunderbolt 5 dock, compatible with latest M4 Macs
The new and new M4 Pro and M4 Max MacBook Pro feature Thunderbolt 5 ports for the first time. Thunderbolt 5 offers bi-directional transfer speeds up to 80Gb/s, or 2x faster than Thunderbolt 4. It can also drive high-resolution displays using a 120Gb.....»»
Swirling polar vortices likely exist on the sun, new research finds
Like the Earth, the sun likely has swirling polar vortices, according to new research led by the U.S. National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR). But unlike on Earth, the formation and evolution of these vortices.....»»
Find My"s Share Item Location will help airlines find your luggage
Apple's update for Find My in iOS 18.2 will let users share the location of AirTags with other people, which could help airlines track down your lost luggage faster.Find My Share Item Location - Image credit: AppleAirTags have been extremely useful f.....»»
Quasi-periodic eruptions from eRO-QPE2 are remarkably stable, study finds
An international team of astronomers has inspected long-term evolution of quasi-periodic eruptions (QPEs) from a QPE source designated eRO-QPE2. The study found that QPEs from this source are remarkably stable over the investigated period of over thr.....»»
M4 Mac mini offers modular SSD storage, faster base model speeds
Along with the dramatic external design, the new M4 Mac mini also features multiple internal changes. According to early teardowns and user reports, the new Mac mini features a removable SSD. This doesn’t mean, however, that you can buy a new Mac m.....»»
How do brains coordinate activity? From fruit flies to monkeys, scientists discover a universal principle
The brain is a marvel of efficiency, honed by thousands of years of evolution so it can adapt and thrive in a rapidly changing world. Yet, despite decades of research, the mystery of how the brain achieves this has remained elusive......»»
Bluetti AC500 & B300S review: upgraded portable power station to get you through disasters
The Bluetti AC500 and B300S are an evolution of its powerhouse portable power station with a 5,000W inverter and 3,072Wh battery, ready to keep your lights on when the grid can't.Bluetti AC500 & B300S portable power stationIf you've been paying close.....»»
Ancient unicellular organism indicates embryonic development might have existed prior to animals" evolution
Chromosphaera perkinsii is a single-celled species discovered in 2017 in marine sediments around Hawaii. The first signs of its presence on Earth have been dated at over a billion years, well before the appearance of the first animals......»»
Generation gaps: How much faster Apple Silicon gets with each release
Apple Silicon speed has steadily improved since the debut in 2020. Here's how much faster Apple has made its chips in just four years.M4 is Apple's latest chips - Image credit: AppleChip generations tend to improve with age. As designs get better and.....»»
New PFAS testing method could make water testing more affordable, portable and accessible
University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers have discovered a new way to detect per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in water. This marks an important step forward in creating testing devices that are simpler, more cost-effective, faster an.....»»
Food security in Africa: Managing water will be vital in a rapidly growing region
Sub-Saharan Africa's population is growing at 2.7% per year and is expected to reach two billion by the year 2050. The region's urban population is growing even faster: it was at 533 million in 2023, a 3.85% increase from 2022......»»
The frozen carbon of the northern permafrost is on the move—we estimated by how much
Among the most rapidly changing parts of our planet are the coldest landscapes near the top of the globe, just south of the Arctic. This region is warming two to four times faster than the global average......»»
The first 3D view of the formation and evolution of globular clusters
A study published in Astronomy & Astrophysics marks a significant milestone in our understanding of the formation and dynamical evolution of multiple stellar populations in globular clusters (spherical and very compact stellar agglomerates typically.....»»