AI models often keep cheating even when it is obvious they are in an alignment test
ClaimThe cheating rate of models stays essentially unchanged when the environment contains obvious signs that they are in an alignment test.
Achiral polymer becomes optically active through helical stacking of layers
ClaimThe circular dichroism signal of the film increases when transparent spacer layers are added between the polymer layers.
How a shared belief about people becomes a self-sustaining collective myth even after reality changes
ClaimCollective beliefs about a person measurably persist after the reality around that person has changed.
A hybrid nanomaterial that switches off signals between tumor cells and their surroundings, tested in ovarian cancer
ClaimThe hybrid nanomaterial reduces blood vessel formation in ovarian cancer tumors in preclinical models.
Traceless editing of the peptide backbone: cysteine converted into thiazole
ClaimThe method converts cysteine into thiazole in synthetic and natural peptides without leaving chemical traces of the labeling reaction.
Sequential nanomaterials against bloodstream infections, targeting each stage of the disease
ClaimNanomaterial treatments tailored to each stage of bloodstream infection reduce long-term mortality among survivors.
Electrochemical skeletal editing: inserting, expanding and contracting molecular rings with electrons and protons
ClaimElectrochemical remodeling of molecular skeletons can avoid lengthy multistep syntheses and generates less chemical waste.
Radiotherapy-released vesicles engineered into personalized cancer vaccine carriers
ClaimIron hydroxide-coated vesicles activate antitumor T cells more strongly than uncoated vesicles in laboratory models.
How bacteria in a wastewater bioreactor cooperate under fluctuating oxygen
ClaimComammox Nitrospira express their terminal oxidase genes 2–3 orders of magnitude lower than amo and nirK.
How the molecular size of organic matter in water governs the photochemistry of black phosphorus
ClaimHigh-molecular-weight fulvic acid above 100 kDa retains condensed aromatic fragments on the black phosphorus nanosheet surface.
Spot a baby bird on the ground? Don't be tempted to bird‑nap it
Spot a baby bird on the ground? Don't be tempted to bird‑nap it Gaby Clark Scientific Editor Andrew Zinin Chief Editor Spring is the season of blooming flowers and buzzing bees. It's also the time of year when birds are breeding and raising fluffy little chicks. Between September and November, these baby birds, also k…
Darwin wasps show evolution often moves in one direction only
ClaimDarwin wasp lineages that switched to living developing hosts almost never revert to the ancestral paralysing strategy.
Stable luminescent radicals based on phosphorus in an organic material
ClaimThe phosphorus-based radicals in this work emit light at room temperature from two distinct doublet states.
Chemistry in the pores of crystalline materials, without tethering molecules to a support
ClaimOrganic molecules physically immobilized in metal-organic framework cavities support multistep reactions with high yield and minimal leaching.
Air holes in silicon turn wafers into flat ultraviolet focusing mirrors
ClaimThe flat silicon mirrors focus 325 nm ultraviolet light into spots about 1 micrometer across.
How a metabolite protects the enzyme that consumes it
ClaimTryptophan binding to a secondary site on the TDO2 enzyme protects the enzyme from degradation.
New method measures airborne microplastics using a drone
ClaimMicroplastics are present in the air at 100 meters height above areas of intense human activity.
Judging AI safety by the speed of risk management, not by p(doom)
ClaimFrontier AI companies do not live up to the safety standards they publish.
Previously unrecognized aromatic compounds with high cancer risk found in coal power plant fly ash
ClaimEmerging aromatic compounds contribute 60% of the incremental cancer risk in coal power plant fly ash.
Future heat waves will far outdo the extreme heat waves of the recent past
ClaimBy the end of the 21st century, a substantial share of future heat waves will exceed the 2010-2023 exceptional events in duration, spatial extent and severity.