By looking for bull kelp populations with genetic signatures that don’t match their neighbors’, scientists can identify places where kelp was killed and replaced. Tracking such changes offers a new way to understand the southern hemisphere’s turbulent tectonic past.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/31/bull-kelp-destruction/

Astrophysicist David Spergel recently led a NASA-appointed team of independent experts that created a “roadmap” for collecting data on UAPs — unidentified anomalous phenomena — and to reduce the stigma among the public and pilots of reporting mysterious sightings that may in fact have natural explanations.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/30/interview-nasa-unexplained-objects/

The products have largely escaped regulatory scrutiny, despite doubts about their health benefits and potential risks. The commercial push has also created tension between academic researchers who toil to uncover new genetic associations, and the entrepreneurs who repurpose the results for profit.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/27/consumer-genetic-testing-science/

Government agencies have been pouring resources into combatting the spread of online misinformation. But the concept is ill-defined, and there hasn’t been much evidence that exposure to falsehoods and inaccuracies has much effect on people’s behavior. Is misinformation as bad of a problem as people think?

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/26/opinion-misinformation-moral-panic/

Subdivided apartments have sprung up across the city in response to a widespread housing shortage. But these informal dwellings tend to be poorly ventilated and lacking basic facilities, affecting residents’ health. A community health care model might be able to help.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/25/hong-kong-community-care/

A key ingredient in beer, hops grown in drought and extreme heat see lower yields and less characteristic bitter flavor. A new paper predicts further drops among hop plants grown in Europe over the next few decades, which could create a supply issue. But scientists and farmers are brewing up clever solutions.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/24/beer-hops-climate/

Despite an influx of research funding, there are no widely accepted, FDA-approved treatments to ease long Covid. In that void, desperate patients have turned to a range of proposed — and unproven — solutions. A pharmacist’s grassroots treatment survey may help.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2023/10/23/long-covid-survey/