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Botos use clicks and whistles to communicate with each other and to find prey.Credit: Sylvain Cordier/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
AI eavesdrops on pink river dolphins
Artificial intelligence (AI) is helping researchers to map the movements of endangered river dolphins. A neural network was trained to recognize the clicks and whistles of the boto (Inia geoffrensis), or pink river dolphin, and tucuxi (Sotalia fluviatilis) in the noisy soundscape of the Amazon River. The AI can distinguish between the two species and other common sounds such as those produced by rainfall and boat engines. Using sound is much less invasive than is tracking the animals with GPS tags, boats or aerial drones.
Reference: Scientific Reports paper
Dengue surges in the Americas
More than 3 million cases of the mosquito-borne viral disease, dengue, have been reported in the Americas so far this year, with over 1,300 deaths. That’s the second-highest number of cases since records began in 1980. There are four virus serotypes, which makes pinpointing the exact cause of the surge challenging. Changing weather patterns have played a part, bringing higher temperatures and more rain over longer periods, helping dengue-carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitoes to survive in places that were previously too cold.
Social media echo chamber can’t be silenced
Changing how people see news and other content on social-media platforms — to reduce the ‘echo-chamber’ effect — doesn’t change their political opinions to any measurable degree. Researchers tweaked the news-feed algorithms and sharing functions of tens of thousands of Facebook and Instagram users in the lead up to the 2020 US election. No matter how the information was presented, it “did not sway political attitudes”, says media researcher and lead investigator Talia Stroud.
Get an expert analysis from social scientist David Garcia in the Nature News & Views article (7 min read, Nature paywall)
References: Nature paper & Science paper 1, paper 2 & paper 3
Reader poll
Commercial deep-sea mining could soon get the green light. It has the potential to access minerals that are key to the green-energy transition. However, emerging data suggest that mining activities would do long-term damage to delicate sea-floor ecosystems.
When we asked readers for their opinion, the overwhelming majority thought that the potential risks of deep-sea mining outweigh its benefits.
Many people suggested more effort should be focused on recycling valuable minerals rather than mining them. “I also think that the minerals industry is spinning this to imply that, by going to the sea bed for minerals, we’d reduce the damaging effects and practices on land,” says geoscientist David Wilkins. “I feel that the truth is our current practices would continue and even expand.”
Many readers pointed out that we simply don’t have enough information to make an informed decision. “To make the assumption that we understand enough about the potential impacts as to properly evaluate the risks of mining activity is a demonstration of flawed confidence in humanity’s understanding of Earth’s remote ecosystems,” says marine ecologist Whitney Goodell.
Features & opinion
Meet the scientists planning for disaster
“Things can fall apart easily if there is no coordination between the teams, government and disaster organizations,” says Erouscilla Joseph, who navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns to monitor the eruption of the La Soufrière volcano on Saint Vincent. The number of deaths from earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires and droughts has declined drastically since the early twentieth century. But with climate change, many natural-hazard events are becoming more common, and scientists across disciplines are working together to reduce the risks. “Disasters are often seen as ‘natural’ in some way, but they occur because of vulnerabilities in society,” says global-health researcher Emmanuel Raju.
This article is part of Nature Spotlight: Disaster preparedness, an editorially independent supplement.
Futures: Eight laws I broke
A time traveller learns how one small mistake can lead to many more in the latest short story for Nature’s Futures series.
Podcast: How to see in total darkness
A camera that combines heat-detection sensors with machine-learning algorithms lets users see in total darkness. Inspired by the night vision of the aliens in the Predator films, engineer Zubin Jacob tackled the problem of ‘ghosting’ in thermal imaging. The way heat bounces off objects reduces the texture, contrast and information content that thermal cameras capture. Algorithms that have been trained on thermal physics can create images that are much more like daytime vision. Jacob hopes that this technology will one day help drivers to avoid accidents at night.
Nature Podcast | 21 min listen
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