Week in Science: The Arctic is downright balmy

Plus, OpenAI's math solutions spark backlash                    

View in web browser

August 7—An area in the Arctic was over 90 degrees Fahrenheit this week, which is on par with temperatures in Orlando, Florida. Plus, the latest in confusing protein news—new research shows eating less of it may actually make you live longer. Lastly, OpenAI has announced 10 new solutions to unsolved math problems but experts say that those solutions involved research misconduct. After reading this newsletter, take our Friday quiz to test your knowledge of this week's science news. —Emma Gometz, Newsletter Editor How are you liking this newsletter? Email newsletters@sciam.com anytime.

Top Stories

It’s 90 degrees in the Arctic right now The Arctic is heating faster than the rest of the planet. New data illustrate how dire that is Jackie Flynn Mogensen

Eating less protein could help you live longer While “protein maxxing” is all the rage, reducing your protein intake could add years to your life Adam Kovac

Support science journalism you can trust with a subscription to Scientific American: Get 90 days of digital access for just $1!

Mathematicians make a breakthrough on Gauss’s riddle, unsolved for 200 years A solution to part of the Cohen-Lenstra conjecture helps resolve a long-standing mystery about quadratic forms Lyndie Chiou

OpenAI’s latest math breakthroughs commit research misconduct, experts say OpenAI released 10 AI-generated results over the weekend. Some mathematicians are unhappy with their approach Joseph Howlett

An Ichthyosaur’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day 160 million years ago A rare fossil find shows a tooth embedded an ichthyosaur’s vertebra, where it was likely left when a giant pliosaurid chomped down on this dolphin-resembling reptile Sara Novak

Scientists discover a ‘skinny gene’ mutation that acts like Ozempic One in 7,000 people carry this gene mutation Jacek Krywko

Newly discovered carnivorous plant is as deceptive as it is deadly Charles Darwin predicted in 1875 that some members of the Saxifraga genus could be carnivorous—now scientists have finally proven him right Mary Randolph

In a first, U.S. approves powerful new mRNA vaccine for flu This flu shot, mFlusiva, was shown in a clinical trial to be up to 27 percent more effective than a standard flu jab Claire Cameron

Daddy long leg sex is weirder than you might imagine Some female daddy longlegs will perform fellatio, perhaps to avoid potential violence from males, while males of another species entice females with a secretion on their penises Christa Lesté-Lasserre

Two research efforts gave AI the same open problem. Their papers were submitted three hours apart An M.I.T. Ph.D. student and two University of California system cryptographers used GPT-5.6 Sol Ultra in different ways, raising new questions about independent discovery and scientific credit Peter Hall

Washington’s wildfires are a warning for the entire U.S. Dry conditions and climate change are putting forests across the country at risk for disaster Mary Randolph

A SpaceX rocket is about to hit the moon—these videos show what could happen Astronomers’ simulations predict what this lunar impact—and its aftermath—will look like Claire Cameron

Subscribe to this and all of our newsletters here. Scientific American 1000 N West Street, Suite 1200 Wilmington, Delaware 19801 Support our mission, subscribe to Scientific American here Unsubscribe  |  Preferences Privacy Policy  |  Contact Us