Page 3 - The Conversation

'Fat but fit': New study finds being underweight deadlier than overweight

Those at the lower end of the "healthy" range also faced higher risks, with BMIs between 18.5 and 19.9 doubling the likelihood of death

Medicinal cannabis sparks concern in Australia over psychosis, poisonings

More than 1,000 unapproved medicinal cannabis products are available in Australia. People often take these for conditions where we have no strong evidence they work

Nutrition myths on social media drive emotional ties to certain foods

In today's social media world, endless online wellness hacks, fad diets and nutrition misinformation are spreading faster than ever

What actually happens inside your brain when you change your mind?

Research on changes of mind uses the concept of "metacognition" to explain when and how mind changes occur

How 'brain cleaning' while we sleep may lower our risk of dementia

Disrupted sleep may slow the brain's waste-clearing glymphatic system, raising dementia risks. Researchers say good sleep could aid toxin clearance, though its role in humans is still debated

Social media is teaching children how to use AI: How can teachers keep up?

These networks spread knowledge quickly but unevenly, and they rarely encourage reflection on deeper issues such as bias, surveillance or equity

Why preserved vegetables can sometimes turn deadly and how to stay safe

Canning removes air and seals food, creating an oxygen-free environment that preserves it but also provides ideal conditions for bacteria C. botulinum to grow

Data centres guzzle massive electricity. Can we make them more efficient?

Some predictions estimate 8-10 per cent of the planet's electricity production will be needed to sustain the relentless growth in data centres

Scrolling on toilet increases your risk of haemorrhoids, new study shows

Prolonged sitting on a toilet seat is believed to increase pressure inside the pelvic floor and lead to blood pooling in the vascular cushions of the anus, making haemorrhoids more likely to develop

YouTube AI experiment shows how reality can be manipulated without consent

Research has found disclosing AI use consistently reduces trust in the relevant person or organisation, although not as much as if they are discovered to have used AI without disclosure.

How Sweden's 'secondhand only' shopping mall is changing retail trends

ReTuna was established in 2015 as part of Eskilstuna's climate and waste reduction strategy

Donald Trump's war on numbers: Can US economic data still be trusted?

The US jobs report, a key index of economic health, came in weak this month. Hours later, President Trump dismissed the figures as "phony" and fired agency head Erika McEntarfer

Extreme heat has cut tropical bird populations by 38% in 70 years: Study

Birds in tropical regions are now experiencing dangerously hot days about ten times more often than they did in the past

Ozempic, other weight-loss drugs tied to rare, serious eye issue: Study

Non-arteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy, or NAION, is a rare but devastating eye condition that occurs when blood flow to the optic nerve is suddenly reduced or blocked

Netanyahu's Gaza takeover push fuels crisis for Israel's global image

Notwithstanding US support, the Jewish state faces a crisis of international credibility, from which it may not be able to recover for a long time

The contagion scale: From measles to TB which disease spread fastest?

The R0 measure indicates how an infection will spread in a population. If it's greater than one (as seen above), the outcome is disease spread

AI agents are here: What they are capable of and where things can go wrong

ChatGPT launched the chatbot era in November 2022, but despite its huge popularity the conversational interface limited what could be done with the technology

Long-Covid, viruses: New research looks for links to chronic fatigue

Medically the symptoms are known as myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The World Health Organization classifies this as a post viral fatigue syndrome

Is ChatGPT making us less critical, more dependent on AI, and less skilled?

Generative AI goes beyond retrieving data-it creates, analyses, and summarises, marking a major shift as it may be the first tech capable of replacing human thought and creativity

World has only 3 years left to avert worst impact of climate change: Study

As more countries develop their climate plans, it's time for leaders across the globe to face the hard truths of climate science