“AI outperforms doctors at Harvard trial of emergency triage diagnoses.”
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Accessed on 01 May 2026, 0301 UTC.
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Russ Roberts (https://hawaiisciencejournal.com).
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Today
Researchers say results mark a ‘profound change in technology that will reshape medicine’ From George Clooney in ER to Noah Wyle in The Pitt, emergency department doctors have long been popular heroes. But will it soon be time to hang up the scrubs? A groundbreaking Harvard study has found that AI systems outperformed human doctors in high-pressure emergency medicine triage, diagnosing more accur
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By attacking the basic settlement between scientists and the state, the US president has proved that experts can’t avoid these fights Donald Trump’s war on science has been vicious and hugely damaging, but it is worth noting that he has lost some of its biggest battles. Last year, Mr Trump demanded that US federal scientific and medical research funding be cut by about half. But the budget Congre
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Hope that sessions of MDMA-assisted therapy could help soldiers fight longer by helping them process trauma A new doctrine could soon take hold in part of the US war on drugs: psychedelic drugs for active-duty soldiers suffering from PTSD. In two studies funded by the Department of Defense (DoD), 186 service personnel with PTSD will likely next year undergo multiple sessions of MDMA-assisted ther
Yesterday
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Data tool could help NHS prioritise who gets access to limited weight-loss medication, say scientists A new tool that can shed light on who is most at risk of obesity-related diseases could help identify people who would benefit most from weight-loss medications, researchers have said. Recent data suggests about two-thirds of adults in England are overweight or obese – a situation that has caused
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From world record breakers to the most iconic image of all time, these are Guardian Australia’s top three photos for April. Photographer and picture editor, Carly Earl, hand-picks three photographs as her favourites every month and explains the craft and composition that makes them special. April’s edition includes a quiet, intimate moment of record-breaking athlete, Gout Gout, a picture perfect
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Madeleine Finlay sits down with co-host and Guardian science editor Ian Sample to talk through three eye-catching stories from the week, including the news that the number of years people in the UK are spending in good health has declined compared with a decade ago. Also on the agenda is the science, tech and nutrition behind two runners at this weekend’s London marathon breaking the two-hour thr
The astronauts joined president in Oval Office for a press conference, and it wasn’t long before he praised himself Donald Trump hosted the crew of the historic Artemis II lunar flyby mission at the White House on Wednesday. The four astronauts – commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen – joined the president in the Oval Office for a cel
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People with meniscus tears who underwent surgery had poorer knee function and worse osteoarthritis after 10 years than those who did not A common knee surgery for cartilage damage does not benefit patients and may lead to worse outcomes, a 10-year trial suggests. The study tracked outcomes for patients treated for a meniscus tear, who were given a partial meniscectomy, one of the most common orth
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Gillian Morriss-Kay explains why she was also a formidable advocate for women Your obituary of the astrophysicist Carole Jordan ( 31 March ) describes a life dedicated to making important discoveries about the complex nature of the universe. These inspiring discoveries could not have been made by sending rockets to the moon, but perhaps the excitement generated by the latter will encourage more y
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Chatbots programmed to respond warmly even cast doubts on Apollo moon landings and fate of Hitler, researchers say The rush to make AI chatbots more friendly has a troubling downside, researchers say. The warm personas make them prone to mistakes and sympathetic to crackpot beliefs. Chatbots trained to respond more warmly gave poorer answers, worse health advice and even supported conspiracy theo
Authorities are yet to decide how they will move the body of the massive creature, which is attracting humans, eagles – and plenty of sharks Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Thin strips of flesh hang down like rotten tinsel, swaying in the wind. Glistening fluid trickles on to the stone where insects buzz. On the w
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The ZSL has given us the word ‘zoo’, inspired artists and birthed a quarter of all Sumatran tigers. It has fascinated me since childhood – and the world since 1826 In the spring of 1826, two extraordinary things occurred in central London. The first was the death of Chunee the elephant. On 1 March at Cross’s Menagerie, upstairs in the Exeter ’Change on the Strand, Chunee was killed by a firing sq
Drugmaker had stalled large-scale projects in England but has now pledged investment at two sites, announced by Keir Starmer Britain’s biggest drugmaker AstraZeneca has said it will invest £300m in the UK in a surprise U-turn after pausing large-scale projects last year. The drugmaker had pulled back investments in Britain after becoming disillusioned with the business environment, including the
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Social media is awash with content about food intolerances and the symptoms to look out for. But figuring out whether you actually have one, and what’s triggering it, is surprisingly difficult. One avenue people are gravitating towards is at-home testing. Madeleine Finlay sits down with health and lifestyle journalist Rebecca Seal to unpick the science behind these tests. Rebecca explains how the
Apr 28, 2026
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The bizarre vertical flight pattern has long puzzled experts but new research reveals why it may play a crucial role in the insect’s survival On a spring evening along the banks of the River Thames, thousands of mayflies can be seen engaging in what may be one of the world’s oldest dances. In the fading light, the males make a steep vertical climb, flip over and float back to Earth – wings and ta
Jurassic Park actor is advocating for CAR T-cell therapy, which he underwent as part of a clinical trial, to be rolled out for blood cancer patients across Australia Sam Neill has announced he is now cancer-free after undergoing a new treatment when chemotherapy stopped working on his stage-three blood cancer. The Jurassic Park actor made the announcement on Australian broadcaster 7News while adv
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Research offers insights into domestication of dogs but it remains unclear why they ended up with smaller brains than wolves It has long been known that dogs have less between their ears than wolves, but now research has suggested their brains started to get smaller at least 5,000 years ago. Experts say the results offer fresh insights into the domestication of our canine companions. However, the
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The solution to today’s puzzle Earlier today I asked you this slippery question. Here it is again with the solution. Snakes in a cage Continue reading…
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Readers respond to an article by Daniel Lavelle about his alien chasing expedition in the US Daniel Lavelle went “alien-chasing” in the US and wrote a book about it. The late Nick Pope called it a “hugely entertaining, gonzo-style examination of UFOs, ufology and ufologists”. In his Guardian article ( The Pentagon released its UFO videos – so I went to the US to chase aliens. This is what I found
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Hallucinogens have come a long way from the 60s counterculture to Trump’s White House – propelled by veterans’ lobbying and Silicon Valley capital Kojo Koram’s new book, The Next Fix: Winners and Losers in the Future of Drugs, is out on 4 June On 13 May 1966, a US Senate subcommittee questioned a former Harvard clinical psychologist, considered by many to be “ the most dangerous man in America ”,
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All of us can choose to consider facts, not vibes, in our next decision. One simple hack is go and look up some easily accessible peer-reviewed studies Helen Pearson is an editor for Nature and author of Beyond Belief: How Evidence Shows What Really Works In 1992, a group of rebel doctors published a radical idea in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association. They argued that the
Apr 27, 2026
Positions ‘terminated, effective immediately’, says email to scientists sent on president’s behalf, in move labelled ‘dangerous attack’ on US innovation The Trump administration has fired members of an independent board that oversees the National Science Foundation (NSF). Members of the National Science Board received an email on Friday sent from the Presidential Personnel Office “on behalf of Pr
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Experts say counterfeits lack UV filters, increasing the risk of eye damage, and urge shoppers to check for safety marks While many will be enjoying the spring sunshine, experts have cautioned against wearing fake designer sunglasses, warning they could do more harm than good. As the College of Optometrists notes , sunglasses not only protect the eyes against glare on sunny days, but can also shi
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The horror of sports lessons put three in 10 of British 50 to 65-year-olds off exercise for life. I wish I’d known sooner that movement can feel so good Surprising news: three in 10 50- to 65-year-olds in a recent Age UK survey said school sports memories had put them off exercise “for life”. Only three in 10? When it comes to exercise, there are surely two kinds of people – the handful who enjoy
Apr 26, 2026
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This puzzle has bite UPDATE: S-s-solution up here Did you hear about the snake that liked maths? I’m sure you did – it’s one of the oldest jokes in the book.* Continue reading…
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Inaudible infrasound from old pipes and ventilation systems may affect how people feel, research indicates For believers in the paranormal , unsettling sensations brought on by old buildings can be a sinister hint of loitering spirits. But new research points to a more mundane explanation: inaudible sounds from aged pipes and boilers. Scientists investigated the impact of infrasound on a group of
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Study finds monitoring and adjustment of medication where needed can help protect mothers’ heart health New mothers who had hypertension in pregnancy could reduce their risk of heart attack, stroke and potentially early death through daily blood pressure checks at home, research suggests. Women who regularly monitored their blood pressure in the weeks after giving birth, and had doctors tailor th
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Recognised since antiquity, the constellation has a rich mythological tradition The northern hemisphere’s spring evenings are dominated by the unmistakable outline of Leo, one of the few constellations that resembles the creature it represents, the lion. Leo is most easily identified by its distinctive “backwards” question mark, referred to by astronomers as the “sickle” asterism and representing
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Researchers find ‘alarming’ effect on fertility across global species from simultaneous exposures Simultaneous exposure to toxic chemicals and climate change’s impacts likely generates an additive or synergistic effect that increases reproductive harm, and may contribute to the broad global drop in fertility, new peer-reviewed research finds . The review of scientific literature considers how end
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Prendwick, Northumberland: On a crisp, cold walk, I’m reminded that winter still clings on, and that familiar constellations are far from alone The red sun rising over the radar station on Alnwick Moor picks out the tall shape of a hare at our end of the meadow. It lopes forward a little way – forever appearing, as hares always do, to be on the brink of a forward roll – and then pauses, sits up a
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Clients no longer just describe their symptoms, they arrive with screenshots of dense articles, AI chatbot information and the phrase ‘I’ve done my research’ The modern mind is a column where experts discuss mental health issues they are seeing in their work Ben* sat across from me, explaining how his low motivation, lethargy and trouble sleeping seemed like depression from content he had seen on
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Understanding truffles is a ‘tricky proposition’ because most of the magic occurs underground Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Black truffles aren’t native to Australia
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