Life
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Behavioural ecologists attempt to explain purpose of personality

Scientists have observed repetitive behaviours in Daphnia, a freshwater arthropod, that, in the language of behavioural ecologists, can be called 'personality'. Scientists wonder what its purpose is and what role it has played throughout evolution.

  • Source: Facebook/ Lublin Provincial Conservator of Monuments

    Copper axe ‘oldest ever found’ in Poland, says expert

    An axe from the 4th-3rd millennium BCE, discovered in the Hrubieszów district and associated with the Trypillia culture, is most likely the oldest copper product discovered in Poland, the Lublin Provincial Conservator of Monuments reports.

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    Health

    Autism spectrum analysed by AI to better understand neurodiversity

    A Polish research team from IDEAS NCBR is using artificial intelligence algorithms to analyse the statements of people on the autism spectrum. Scientists hope that this will help them develop tools to improve the quality of life of neurodivergent people and make their social integration more effective.

  • Credit: Adobe Stock
    Human

    AI is unfair and reproduces inequalities just like we do, says expert

    We often hear that artificial intelligence is objective and fair. But because the algorithms are fed with data distorted by non-objective reality, AI, too, will repeat these biases. As long as society is unjust, non-inclusive and riddled with stereotypes, AI, which is supposed to reflect reality, will reinforce inequalities, says Dr. Anna Górska, a researcher from the Kozminski University.

  • Credit: Radosław Kowalski
    Life

    Scientific strategies to protect and restore coral reefs

    Cross-breeding, cryopreservation (freezing) of semen and creating a bank of reproductive cells and coral larvae are the examples of scientific strategies to enhance the resilience of coral reefs and protect these priceless ecosystems from the negative effects of climate change.

  • The market for collectible digital assets is beginning to show increasing similarities to established financial markets, such as those associated with the trading of works of art. Credit: IFJ PAN

    What does a physicist see when looking at the NFT market?

    The market for collectible digital assets, or non-fungible tokens, is an interesting example of a physical system with a large scale of complexity, non-trivial dynamics and an original logic of financial transactions. At the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN) in Cracow, its global statistical features have been analysed more extensively.

  • Credit: Szymon Kozłowski
    Space

    Hunting for meteorites - oldest pieces of matter on Earth

    Meteorites are the oldest pieces of matter that we can find on Earth. Scientists precisely calculate their age at 4.567 billion years. How to find your own meteorite? How to recognize it? Where in Poland can you still find most of them? Professor Szymon Kozłowski, an astronomer and meteorite expert, talks about it in an interview.

  • PAP/Tomasz Waszczuk
    Life

    Female birds are more likely to cheat on their partners in uncertain times

    Female blue tits were more likely to have offspring with a partner other than her social mate when they experienced large fluctuations in air temperature, research by Polish scientists shows.

  • Credit: Adobe Stock
    Human

    Smart cities are concrete actions, not just seductive narrative, says expert

    'Smart' solutions may not be just a seductive narrative that sounds nice in election ads. They should, above all, be activities that actually improve the standard of living of residents, says Professor Dorota Dobija from the Koźmiński University.

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    Technology

    Contamination remover: activated carbon from disposable protective masks

    Can used disposable protective masks be recycled in a sensible way? Researchers from the West Pomeranian University of Technology have patented a way to convert them into activated carbon, used, for example, in purification filters.

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Boulder TM 1219 in a wider landscape perspective. Credit: A. Rozwadowski, source: Cambridge Archaeological Journal.

Polish scientists reinterpret petroglyphs of Toro Muerto

The geometric patterns, lines and zigzags that accompany the images of dancers (danzantes) carved in the rocks of the Peruvian Toro Muerto are not snakes or lightning bolts, but a record of songs - suggest Polish scientists who analyse rock art from 2,000 years ago.