ScienceDaily: Society - April 30, 2024
Top society research news
Intervention based on science of reading, math boosts comprehension, word problem-solving skills
Researchers tested a research-based intervention with English learners with math difficulty. The intervention proved to boost comprehension and help students synthesize and visualize information, which improved the students' math world problem-solving skills.
Energy trades could help resolve Nile conflict
Scientists have shed light on a new, transformative approach that could help resolve a dispute over the Nile river's water resources.
Image: Nile river, Lizavetta/Shutterstock.com
How geography acts as a structural determinant of health
In unincorporated communities in the United States-Mexico borderlands, historically and socially marginalized populations become invisible to the healthcare system, showing that geography acts as a structural determinant of health for low-income populations.
Component of keto diet plus immunotherapy may reduce prostate cancer
Adding a pre-ketone supplement -- a component of a high-fat, low-carb ketogenic diet -- to a type of cancer therapy in a laboratory setting was highly effective for treating prostate cancer, researchers found.
Climate change could become the main driver of biodiversity decline by mid-century
Global biodiversity has declined between 2% and 11% during the 20th century due to land-use change alone, according to a large multi-model study. Projections show climate change could become the main driver of biodiversity decline by the mid-21st century.
Voluntary corporate emissions targets not enough to create real climate action
Companies' emissions reduction targets should not be the sole measure of corporate climate ambition, according to a new perspective paper.
Positive perceptions of solar projects
A new survey has found that for residents living within three miles of a large-scale solar development, positive attitudes outnumbered negative attitudes by almost a 3-to-1 margin. Researchers surveyed almost 1,000 residents living near solar projects.
New study reveals how AI can enhance flexibility, efficiency for customer service centers
AI is a valuable asset, so long as it's used properly, though customer service organizations shouldn't rely on it exclusively to guide their strategies, according to new research.
Laser technology offers breakthrough in detecting illegal ivory
A new way of quickly distinguishing between illegal elephant ivory and legal mammoth tusk ivory could prove critical to fighting the illegal ivory trade. A laser-based approach could be used by customs worldwide to aid in the enforcement of illegal ivory from being traded under the guise of legal ivory.
A university lecture, with a dash of jumping jacks
A university professor has found a way to help students -- and himself -- power through long lecture classes: exercise breaks. A new study showed that five-minute exercise sessions during lectures were feasible and that students reported positive impacts on their attention and motivation, engagement with their peers and course enjoyment.
Survey finds loneliness epidemic runs deep among parents
A new national survey finds a broad majority of parents experience isolation, loneliness and burnout from the demands of parenthood, with many feeling a lack of support in fulfilling that role.
Advancing the safety of AI-driven machinery requires closer collaboration with humans
An ongoing research aims to create adaptable safety systems for highly automated off-road mobile machinery to meet industry needs. Research has revealed critical gaps in compliance with legislation related to public safety when using mobile working machines controlled by artificial intelligence.
Countries with limited potential for renewables could save up to 20 percent of costs for green steel and up to 40 percent for green chemicals from green hydrogen if they relocated their energy-intensive production and would import from countries where renewable energy is cheaper.
Computer game in school made students better at detecting fake news
A computer game helped upper secondary school students become better at distinguishing between reliable and misleading news.
Shoreline model predicts long-term future of storm protection and sea-level rise
Researchers have created a coastal evolution model to analyze how coastal management activities on barrier islands, meant to adapt to sea-level rise, can disrupt natural processes that are keeping the barrier islands above water. Replenishing beaches and clearing over-washed roads may not be the best long term strategy.
A multidisciplinary research team has combined ancient DNA data with a clear archaeological, anthropological and historical context to reconstruct the social dynamics of Avar-period steppe descent populations that settled in Europe's Carpathian Basin in the 6th century.
Child pedestrians, self-driving vehicles: What's the safest scenario for crossing the road?
Crossing roads for children can be a risky calculation, especially when the vehicles are self-driven. In a new study, researchers determined pre-teenage children are safest when self-driving vehicles signaled their intent to yield with a green light when they arrived at the intersection, then stopped.
Patients have lower rates of mortality and hospital readmissions when treated by female physicians, with female patients benefitting more than their male counterparts, new research suggests.
Infected: Understanding the spread of behavior
A team of researchers found that long-tie connections accelerate the speed of social contagion.
Marginalized communities developed 'disaster subculture' when living through extreme climate events
An assistant professor conducted a study in which he lived among one of the poorest, most marginalized communities in Seoul, South Korea. In the ethnographic study, he asked residents how they dealt with extreme heat. He found they tended to accept the conditions, stating there was not much that could be done. That shows people accepted extreme climate events, despite evidence showing this should not be normal, which bodes the argument social work as a field has much to do to help address climate emergencies.
A new study highlights the lasting financial impact of a cancer diagnosis for many working-age adults and their families in the United States. It shows a cancer diagnosis and the time required for its treatment can result in employment disruptions, loss of household income and loss of employment-based health insurance coverage, leading to financial hardship.
'Sunny day flooding' increases fecal contamination of coastal waters
A new study finds that 'sunny day flooding,' which occurs during high tides, increases the levels of fecal bacteria in coastal waters. While the elevated bacteria levels in the coastal waters tend to dissipate quickly, the findings suggest policymakers and public health officials should be aware of potential risks associated with tidal flooding.
Social media affects people's views on mental illness
Even subtle differences in the wording of social media messages may be enough to sway young people's beliefs about depression and anxiety and their treatment.
Major milestone reached for key weapons component
Scientists have completed a crucial weapons component development milestone, prior to full rate production.
Hey Dave, I've got an idea for you: What's the potential of AI-led workshopping?
Sure, ChatGPT can write a poem about your pet in the style of T.S Eliot, but generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots have a potentially more useful role to play in idea generation according to a new study.