Week in Science: Why lawyers are citing AI hallucinations

The biggest science stories this week                    

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May 29—Researchers say humans can defer to AI when it provides feedback on decisions, in a behavior called "cognitive surrender." It's appearing in many industries, and even among legal professionals. Also, the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies might collide someday, and how mathematicians use the video game Minecraft to calculate pi. —Emma Gometz, Newsletter Editor Have thoughts? Email newsletters@sciam.com anytime.

Top Stories

AI keeps inventing fake cases. Lawyers keep citing them The trend of attorneys getting caught citing AI-hallucinated cases points to a broader problem: instead of checking AI’s work, people keep trusting it Steven Melendez

What happens when galaxies collide? Our galaxy and its nearest large companion, Andromeda, may be headed for a collision on a cosmic scale. What happens then? Phil Plait

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How mathematicians use Minecraft to calculate pi A battle between “slimes” and “zoglins” could be the best way to calculate pi—at least for fans of this megahit game Manon Bischoff

Drivers can fill their tanks with a higher-ethanol fuel this summer. Here’s what that means In an effort to reduce prices at the pump, an EPA wavier allows the sale of fuel with 15 percent ethanol content Stephanie Pappas

Earth’s molten outer core is behaving in chaotic, unexpected ways Scientists are working to solve a mystery of Earth’s molten outer core, which lies more than 2,000 kilometers beneath our feet Claire Cameron

Why some mathematical theorems will always be unprovable A statement can be true or false. But as Kurt Gödel demonstrated, there will always be mathematical assumptions that can neither be proven nor disproven Manon Bischoff

Tiny alienlike blue octopus discovered lurking off the Galápagos Islands This teensy creature was discovered along a deep-sea mountain Jeanna Bryner

Are the roots of consciousness hidden in the ancient deep brain? Some neuroscientists argue that the roots of experience lie deep inside the brain. If they’re right, the consciousness club will get a lot bigger Cody Cottier

SpaceX launches Starship V3—the world’s most powerful and tallest rocket ever Friday’s test flight marks a major milestone for SpaceX as the company gears up to go public and to participate in NASA’s Artemis III mission in 2027 Claire Cameron

Gigantic, ancient black hole threatens to upend cosmic history Debate still swirls around the nature of “little red dots,” black holes glimpsed in the early universe by the James Webb Space Telescope. A controversial new weigh-in may settle the matter Joseph Howlett

The universe could have 18 possible shapes Our universe appears flat—but this observation still leaves plenty of options for its true shape. In fact, our cosmos could resemble a donut Manon Bischoff

Stunning Artemis II photos reveal the moon’s hidden colors An astrophotographer teamed up with Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman to create these stunning new images of the lunar surface Andrea Gawrylewski

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