Protesters rally at SXSW to warn about dangers of Artificial Intelligence

Anti-robot protestors marched in the streets of Austin, home to the South by Southwest (SXSW) culture and tech festival citing concerns about the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

Over two dozen people from nearby University of Texas held signs that read 'Stop the Robots' 'Humans are the future'. The protest group is a collective of 15 to 20 undergraduates at the University of Texas at Austin who have concerns about the future of technology and AI.

The group is dedicated to use technology for good and understanding the true risks that artificial intelligence poses to humanity.

The protest was led by 23-year-old computer engineer Adam Mason who has cautioned against unrestrained reliance on technology and claims that AI might outrun human control.

Projects for restoration of Everglades far behind their target

Several years ago, it was announced by Florida and Washington officials that there will be a partnership to re-establish the Everglades by 2030. The Everglades is a World Heritage site and is also the largest subtropical wetland ecosystem in the world. The announcement was made 15 years ago.

But it seems that sufficient efforts are not being made to achieve that target. And more time will be required to do it. There were 68 projects, which were included in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, and not even a single plan has been yet completed and just 13 plans have been approved.

Novel Study Challenges Assumption that Evolution solely relies on Genes Passed down

A novel study published in the journal Genome Biology has questioned the long-held belief that evolution is completely dependent on genes passed down. The researchers have challenged the assumption as humans contain alien genes that have not been passed from our ancestors.

The research has focused on the use of horizontal gene transfer, which means the transfer of genes between organisms living in the same environment. Study's lead researcher Alastair Crisp from the University of Cambridge shared that we have acquired important 'foreign' genes from the micro-organisms that co-habited in their environment in ancient times.

Milky Way’s size could be 50% Bigger than Previously Believed

Published in The Astrophysical Journal, a new research has revealed that our galaxy the Milky Way could be 50% bigger than what researchers have so far thought. Going by the claims of the research, the galaxy stretches to 150,000 light-years, not 100,000 light-years.

The study results were derived after using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The research also showed that it was previously wrongly believed that the Milky Way's concentric ring of stars around the center of the galaxy was a ring. The study helped the researchers figure out that it was actually a ripple, and thus proved that the galaxy expands much further. The researchers explained that the Monoceros Ring may actually be part of it.

Advertising Increases the Urge to Smoke Traditional Cigarette: Study

Researchers from the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania said that advertisements can have huge impact on the lives of people. Ads can increase the urge to engage in smoking.

The researchers affirmed that after seeing vaping ads, former smokers felt an increased desire to smoke after seeing the ad for the same. In the study, the researchers evaluated the urge to smoke of 301 daily smokers, 272 intermittent smokers and 311 former smokers.

The smokers were asked to watch electronic cigarette commercials that showed someone vaping and some do not. After seeing the ads, the participants were evaluated once again for the urge of smoking. The researchers found that after seeing the vaping ads, daily smokers had a greater urge to smoke a normal cigarette.

Screening could cut more than 20,000 Annual Deaths from Colon Cancer

A new study on colon cancer suggested that screening could help in saving thousands of lives every year. According to the study, increasing colorectal cancer (CRC) screening rates to about 80% in next three years could prevent more than 20,000 deaths every year by 2030.

As per the reports, the study is the first to calculate the health benefits of increasing screening rates. The study has been conducted by Ahmedin Jemal, epidemiologist at American Cancer Society, and published in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

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