All posts tagged: reveal

U.S. satellites reveal China’s solar dominance

U.S. satellites reveal China’s solar dominance

Published by skeptic

The sun’s energy is plentiful. And China is capitalizing. Images captured by two Earth-observing satellites, operated by the U.S. Geological Survey, revealed a rapid expansion of solar farms in a remote northern Chinese region, the Kubuqi Desert. “The construction is part of China’s multiyear plan to build a ‘solar great wall’ designed to generate enough energy to power Beijing,” writes NASA’s Earth Observatory. (For reference, although all this energy won’t directly power the Chinese capital, around 22 million people live in Beijing; that’s over two and a half times the population of New York City.) SEE ALSO: The Carbon Footprint Sham The two Landsat satellite images below show a section of the major solar expansion between 2017 and 2024. Use the slider tool to reveal the changes. (For a size and scale reference, the images below are about 10 kilometers, or 6.2 miles, across.) Mashable Light Speed Left: December 20, 2017 Credit: USGS / NASA Right: December 8, 2024 Credit: USGS / NASA And the solar complex is still growing. It will be 250 miles …

Women’s implicit preferences reveal surprisingly high levels of gynephilia

Women’s implicit preferences reveal surprisingly high levels of gynephilia

Published by José

A new study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine provides new insights into female sexual attraction, revealing a striking discrepancy between implicit and explicit measures of gynephilia—the sexual preference for women. Scientists discovered that while only a small percentage of participants explicitly identified as non-heterosexual, implicit measures found that a majority of women exhibited gynephilic attraction. These findings suggest that many women experience attraction to other women without necessarily engaging in or desiring sexual encounters. “I have been deeply interested in the Darwinian paradox of homosexuality for over 25 years,” said study author Andrea S. Camperio Ciani, a full professor of evolutionary psychology, behavioral genetics and neuroscience at the University of Padova. The Darwinian paradox of homosexuality stems from a central question in evolutionary biology: if reproductive success drives natural selection, how can traits that seemingly reduce reproductive output—such as exclusive same-sex attraction—persist across generations? Individuals who do not engage in heterosexual relationships, or have fewer offspring due to their orientation, would theoretically pass on fewer genes, leading to the eventual decline of such …

People Reveal What They Bought Themselves As Adults That They Were Denied As Kids

People Reveal What They Bought Themselves As Adults That They Were Denied As Kids

Published by skeptic

When we consider the struggles of childhood we usually think of big, difficult traumas, but it’s often the little things that we remember most.  On Reddit, people got into quite a conversation about this stuff, with users sharing how they’ve been able to make it up to their kid-selves as adults. 12 nostalgic people shared the things they’ve bought for themselves as adults that they were denied as kids: If you’re like a lot of people, you can still hear your mom saying, “No, we have ____ at home” or “Don’t ask me for anything!” every time you went into a store and just had to have that new toy or piece of candy. Every kid needs to be taught these lessons — and we’ve all witnessed what kids who’ve never been told “no” are like. But when that “no” also comes from a place of financial struggle, it can have a lasting impact. Studies have shown pretty conclusively that financial trauma is very real, and our childhood financial experiences shape us as adults. There …

Newborn brains reveal innate ability to process complex sound patterns

Newborn brains reveal innate ability to process complex sound patterns

Published by José

A new study published in PLOS Biology provides evidence that newborns possess the ability to learn and process sound patterns that follow complex, language-like rules. Researchers found that even in their first days of life, infants can identify relationships between non-adjacent sounds—a crucial building block for language acquisition. This innate capacity, previously observed only in older infants and non-human primates, highlights the remarkable auditory and cognitive capabilities present from birth. Human language is intricately structured, with dependencies between words or sounds that often span non-adjacent elements. For instance, in the sentence “The boy who is running wins the race,” the subject “boy” connects to the verb “wins” despite intervening words. This ability to understand such connections is critical for mastering language. While prior studies demonstrated that infants as young as five months can detect these non-adjacent dependencies, it was unclear whether this skill is present at birth or develops later. The researchers aimed to address two key questions: Are humans born with the ability to detect these complex patterns? And which brain regions support this …

This Austrian Museum Won’t Reveal Which Artist Did Its Fall 2025 Show

This Austrian Museum Won’t Reveal Which Artist Did Its Fall 2025 Show

Published by skeptic

The Kunsthaus Bregenz, a beloved contemporary art museum in Austria, has announced what might already count as the most mysterious show of 2025: an exhibition by an artist whose identity may never be known to the press and the general public. That makes the show an unusual one for this institution, whose programming regularly includes grandly scaled exhibitions by well-known names. Its programming for next year features shows by Precious Okoyomon and Małgorzata Mirga-Tas, artists who appeared in the main exhibition and the Polish Pavilion of the 2022 Venice Biennale, respectively. Related Articles The museum’s release for its 2025 programming included images and extensive information about Okoyomon and Mirga-Tas’s shows. But the exhibition opening in October 10, by an artist referred to in the release only as ███████, came with no description. Its sole image was a confidentiality agreement between the unidentified artist and museum management. During the course of the exhibition, that agreement reads, “the artist was promised that, as part of the exhibition concept, his or her identity would be kept secret, as …

Incel forums reveal persistent, widespread misogyny regardless of user engagement

Incel forums reveal persistent, widespread misogyny regardless of user engagement

Published by José

According to a study published in New Media & Society, misogynistic language is pervasive within online communities of involuntarily celibate men (incels), with more than 80% of threads containing misogynistic terms. Michael Halpin and colleagues examined how members of the online incel community express misogyny. This community, composed mostly of men who identify as unable to find romantic partners, shares a belief that their romantic rejection stems from systemic discrimination based on physical appearance, or “lookism.” This perspective has fueled discourse that promotes hostility toward women and dismisses gender equality, often through “black pill” ideology, which argues that incels are condemned to remain alone due to their physical traits. This research builds on previous findings that incels participate in a hybrid form of masculinity by embracing both hegemonic and subordinate traits. Rather than simply adopting a victim identity, incels tend to position themselves as “failed men” who weaponize their perceived rejection to justify hostility against women. The researchers collected and analyzed data from one of the largest incel discussion boards, incels.is, covering posts between November …

Fitness apps can reveal your location – updated laws would help plug this hole in our personal security

Fitness apps can reveal your location – updated laws would help plug this hole in our personal security

Published by skeptic

Fitness apps have revolutionised the way we approach health and exercise. They provide users with the ability to track their workouts, monitor their progress towards fitness goals and share achievements with a like-minded community. However, these benefits come with significant privacy and security risks, particularly regarding the disclosure of users’ locations. Recent articles in the Guardian and French newspaper Le Monde, reported that fitness apps, such as Strava, had revealed the locations of some world leaders, posing a potential security risk. This situation spotlights the gaps in legislative measures that fail to evolve at pace with technological advancements. But it also underscores a critical need for users themselves to adopt a more vigilant approach when engaging with such platforms. While legal frameworks lay the foundation for protecting user privacy, they are not foolproof against breaches. This necessitates a dual responsibility. Both regulatory bodies and users must collaborate to ensure robust data security. Fitness apps often require access to location data to provide accurate tracking of activities like running, cycling and walking. While this functionality is …

New Pompeii Excavations Reveal Decorated “Tiny House”

New Pompeii Excavations Reveal Decorated “Tiny House”

Published by skeptic

Murals in the House of Phaedra (2024) in Pompeii. Source: Archaeological Park of Pompeii.   Archaeologists at Pompeii recently unearthed an atypical ancient Roman dwelling. Deemed the House of Phaedra for the contents of its murals, it makes up for its small size with its sumptuous interior decorating, shedding new light on how Pompeiians showed off their wealth and style.   Murals at the House of Phaedra Mural detail (2024). Source: Archaeological Park of Pompeii.   The unusually small residential unit was found during ongoing excavations at Pompeii‘s Amanti Island insula. Despite its diminutive size, the Pompeiian “tiny house” was decorated with well-preserved fresco paintings that are just as extravagant and detailed as those in wealthier villas nearby. It has been provisionally named the House of Phaedra, as one of the frescoes depicts a scene from the ancient myth of Hippolytus and Phaedra.   Many of the murals feature erotic scenes, including an embrace between a nymph and a satyr and a couple believed to be Adonis and Venus. Another more damaged mural depicts the …

Government reports reveal homophobia in faith schools

Government reports reveal homophobia in faith schools

Published by skeptic

Some faith schools refuse to teach about same-sex marriage and pupils have concerns about ‘homophobic’ external speakers, recent reports published by the Department for Education (DfE) have revealed. Humanists UK, which campaigns for evidence-led, age-appropriate relationships and sex education (RSE) and personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), has said the reports provide compelling evidence for the need for the subject to be taught objectively and be free from religious influence.  One report, the findings of survey work of pupils, teachers, school leaders, and RSE coordinators into the implementation of statutory guidance on RSE, found that some Catholic schools ‘would not teach explicitly about same sex marriage’. A second report, an evaluation of the previous government’s anti-homophobic, biphobic, and transphobic bullying programme in schools, heard how some pupils welcomed external speakers but found some of the content being delivered uncomfortable and inappropriate. One pupil quoted in the report said it was: ‘good for people to understand that there are different views, but bringing in someone who is just going to say, “oh you’re going to …

Scientists reveal strong connection between zinc levels and Type 2 Diabetes

Scientists reveal strong connection between zinc levels and Type 2 Diabetes

Published by skeptic

In an important new study, scientists have found a strong connection between zinc levels in the human body and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This research, published in the journal eLife, has greatly improved our understanding of how crucial zinc is for our body’s metabolic functions. Deep Dive into the Study Academics and experts have lauded this investigation as pivotal to our grasp over zinc’s involvement in metabolic processes. The research team has employed cutting-edge genetic analysis techniques on a large cohort of human participants. Loss of the Zinc transporter SLC39A5 protects from obesity-driven hyperglycemia and liver pathology. (CREDIT: eLife) The outcome? A potential therapeutic target for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes. Such a revelation holds interest for those engrossed in both metabolism research and trace element biology. Zinc’s significance in the world of insulin production and glucose metabolism isn’t a new revelation. Shek Man Chim, the lead author and Principal Scientist at Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., New York, US, shed light on this, stating, “We …