April 17, 2024: Science's most formidable power, fish as loud as fireworks, and why some people always seem to get lost. —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor | | | What drives scientific discovery? In our new podcast series, science writer Christie Aschwanden explores the uncertainty at the heart of all curiosity and scientific breakthrough. Aschwanden talks to poets, scientists and philosophers about the way uncertainty can disrupt our sense of reality (remember that gold/blue dress debate?), the intellectual humility movement (getting comfortable with what you don't know), which I've written about a couple times in this newsletter, and how we can have confidence in science if there's always underlying uncertainty. Catch up with episodes one, two and three, and tune in on Wednesdays for new installments.
Why this matters: Science has a complex relationship with uncertainty. On the one hand, all of science is fueled by uncertainty and the pursuit of knowledge where none or very little exists. By embracing uncertainty, scientists can achieve a more nuanced and accurate understanding of the world. But on the other hand, people associate science with hard facts and answers. To be sure, centuries of science have led us to certainties about our world and enabled us to devise life-saving medicines and spacecraft that leave our solar system. But given that science deals daily in the uncertain (and indeed thrives on it), how can people have confidence in scientific findings?
What the experts say: Science is a way of thinking and the ultimate way to learn something new. It is "a kind of codified, cultural, collective form of learning through instruments and through mathematics and through literature and language, and so on," says David Krakauer, a complexity scientist at the Santa Fe Institute. "It's invented artifacts and processes to amplify the learning process so that we enjoy uncertainty even more." | | | Anaissa Ruiz-Tejada/Scientific American | | | The transparent fish Danionella cerebrum is smaller than a dime and among the tiniest vertebrates alive. It may also be the world's loudest animal by weight. Measured underwater and at close range, a male D. cerebrum's calls can reach an ear-cracking 140 decibels–as loud as a firework! To above-water humans, this screech sounds like a whiny buzz, and can last up to a minute.
Why they do this: Big surprise, the fish are likely screaming to attract mates. The ability to belt at the top of their gills for a minute straight may be impressive to D. cerebrums females. Studies have found that a higher number of male vocalizations leads to quicker egg maturation in females, and a greater number of eggs laid.
What the experts say: For researchers, D. cerebrum could reveal the neural pathways involved in vertebrates' production and processing of sound, says Verity Cook, a researcher at Charité–Berlin University of Medicine. The fish remain transparent their entire lives, and the top of their skull never closes, so with the use of bioluminescent proteins, neuroscientists could watch neurons light up in real time. | | | • Researchers have created bioengineered immune cells that act like stem cells and may be able to treat and eliminate cancer. | 4 min read | | | • The atmosphere of exoplanet WASP-76b may rain iron and form a strange, rainbow-like phenomenon called a "glory" never yet seen outside the solar system. | 5 min read | | | • Why do some people always get lost? | 9 min read | | | • We now have vaccines for three respiratory diseases for which older people are particularly vulnerable--COVID, RSV and the flu. And yet, while flu vaccination rates are relatively high for seniors, uptake on the COVID and RSV vaccines is underwhelming (as of March, only 10 percent of those 60 and older had received an RSV vaccine). The CDC is working to strengthen confidence in and demand for vaccines, write Sarah Meyer and Georgina Peacock, chief medical officer and director, respectively, of the Immunization Services Division at the CDC. "Given how easily these diseases are spread, and the possibility of severe disease with long and complex hospitalizations, we must do more to help inoculate [older people]," they say. | 6 min read | | | • People are getting cancer at younger ages. Why? | Vox | • New frescoes have been uncovered at a new excavation site at Pompeii. | BBC | • Consumer Reports found heavy metals and phthalates in Lunchables. Now they're urging the USDA to get the kits out of national school lunch programs. | Consumer Reports | | | A graduate school adviser of mine used to say that what we humans Know (capital K) is minuscule compared with all that is knowable in the universe. Rather than look on our ignorance as a weakness, we can harness it to fuel inquiry and curiosity in our careers (and personal lives). Indeed, many revolutionary scientific discoveries have come about that way. | Something I Know: I'm always delighted and surprised by the feedback I get from the readers of Today in Science. Keep it coming by messaging me at newsletters@sciam.com. And enjoy the cool photo below of the April 8th eclipse filtered through the trees onto the driveway of Joan Hoffman, in Dexter, Mich. | —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor | | Subscribe to this and all of our newsletters . | | | | Scientific American
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