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For this week's reading, we have a selection of three interesting articles for you to read!
Losing your sight can be a devastating prospect, and vision loss and blindness due to issues with the cornea are a big problem for many people. Until recently, the only solution for degenerative corneal diseases was donor corneas, which have a very small two-week window of stability and can only be placed through a difficult, highly specialized surgical procedure. Many people who suffer from issues with their corneas simply cannot access and afford such a procedure, leaving them doomed to lose their sight or continue muddling through life with highly impaired vision. New breakthroughs regarding artificial corneas, however, have breathed new hope into the world of corneal afflictions. Using a piece of bioengineered pig skin, researchers have been able to produce a cornea transplant that has just recently been proven effective in human clinical trials. These faux corneas are comparatively cheap to produce and maintain, can be inserted through a minimally invasive surgical procedure that can be carried out by a broader spectrum of doctors, and can last for up to two years. It is likely that this technology will become publicly available in just a few years, and further research is underway to see what other ocular issues can be remedied with similar implants and technology. Check out the article above to learn more!
Following an extensive research study, scientists have declared the dugong extinct in the waters of China. Dugong are enigmatic marine mammals that eat exclusively vegetation; their relaxed nature and distinct body shape are thought by some to have inspired ancient stories about mermaids. News of their extinction in China doesn't come strictly as a surprise to many zoologists who have kept tabs on the species throughout the years, but this new declaration does call to light the vulnerable status of dugong throughout the rest of their limited habitat. The seagrass grazing grounds of dugong and other marine life are disappearing at rates as high as 7% a year, and the species' rough survival straits stand as an example of what is happening t many of the other creatures in our oceans. Staying aware of issues like these is important for those passionate about science--check out the article above to learn more!
Neural networks are one of the most promising pieces of technology to emerge with the development of artificial intelligence. By training AI to pick out patterns and analyze certain data, we can project everything from protein structures to weather patterns--often far more precisely and efficiently than we could through human efforts alone. Neural network technology is constantly advancing, and new iterations are being developed and used in a variety of different STEM fields. One particularly interesting point of research is using neural networks to transcribe natural patterns into mathematic equations like Green's functions. The natural world operates using mathematical patterns, and trained machines may be able to pick up on those patterns and "process" them down into equations we humans can understand and use to project things like climate trends. Research into this application of neural networks is still in its beginning stages, but there is a lot of intrigue surrounding this up-and-coming concept. Check out the article above to learn more about the nature and applications of this new neural network technology!
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