Discover

Several years ago, I had the pleasure of editing a Discover special issue focused on medical mysteries and breakthroughs — a topic of perennial interest for our readers. We had an item in that issue about IBM’s Watson, the buzzy, bedroom-sized computer possessed of artificial intelligence. Initially deploying Watson’s AI to dominate Jeopardy! champions, IBM ultimately had loftier goals for the system, particularly in medicine, where Watson Health was predicted to revolutionize how patients were treated. It all sounded wonderful and futuristic. Except it wasn’t. As you may have seen on the news earlier this year, Watson Health’s medical career came to a somewhat ignominious end as IBM announced they were shutting it down and essentially selling it off for parts. It seemed like that might be the end of AI…

FOSSIL FAMILY (“2021’s Hottest Fossil Was Actually Found Over 85 Years Ago,” Jan/Feb 2022) I read with great interest your article on a skull belonging to an elusive type of ancient human found in China. Does Homo longi, or Dragon Man, have any correlation to Peking Man? Peking Man’s complete skeletal remains went missing in 1941 while being guarded and transferred by the U.S. Marine Corp. in China. No further inquiries were conducted at the time because the Japanese were invading China. Tom Fitzgerald AUTHOR BRIDGET ALEX RESPONDS: Tom, thanks for your interest in the Dragon Man discovery. Peking Man is thought to belong to the ancient species of human ancestor known as Homo erectus. This species lived across Africa, Europe and Asia, starting around 1.9 million years ago until possibly as recently as 100,000…

HOW PHOTOS SAVED YELLOWSTONE HEALTH BENEFITS OF NATURAL WINE? ART AND YOUR PERSONALITY THE DISCOMFORT OF THE UNCANNY VALLEY MIRROR, MIRROR Right now, this multibillion-dollar telescope is floating through the cosmos about a million miles away. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) sports 18 hexagonal, gold-coated mirrors — just part of its many movable pieces — seen here during final tests on Earth in 2021. The microscopic layer of bling reflects up to 99 percent of infrared light, which enables the JWST to capture distant glows from the universe’s first stars. It didn’t take much gold to do the job: Only about five wedding bands’ worth was melted down and distributed across the mirrors in a layer thinner than a single human hair.…

Two centuries ago, the idea of preserving nature, rather than exploiting it, was a novel one to many U.S. settlers. One of the turning points in public support for land conservation efforts — and recognizing the magnificence of the Yellowstone region in particular — came in the form of vivid photographs. Last year marked the 150th anniversary of a series of Yellowstone photographs by the renowned landscape photographer William Henry Jackson. Jackson snapped the first-ever shots of iconic landmarks such as the Tetons, Old Faithful and the Colorado Rockies on a late 19th-century expedition through the Yellowstone Basin, conducted by the head of the U.S. Geological and Geographical Survey of the Territories, Ferdinand V. Hayden. The team included a meteorologist, a zoologist, a mineralogist, and an agricultural statistician. Though Native Americans (and…

The artwork we are attracted to can give insight into our personality, such as whether we are impulsive or deliberate, even-tempered or moody. Studies into art preferences date back to the 1930s — most of them examining the extent to which people like or dislike different paintings. Research shows that a person’s interest in art is more strongly correlated to certain personality traits than to social class, age, or gender. In particular, a personality trait called “openness” is the best predictor of whether individuals are interested in art. On the flip side, those who identify as “conscientious” are often less drawn to the arts. These traits are part of the Big Five, a widely accepted personality theory based on nearly a century of research. The model asserts that each personality is comprised…

Now a staple at trendy restaurants, natural wine has been described as funky and unusual tasting. Some say it has similar flavors to cider. While it doesn’t suit everyone’s palette, natural wine has undeniably made its mark in the past decade. In fact, some sustainability- and health-oriented consumers say they’re willing to pay more for it than conventional varieties. WHAT IS NATURAL WINE? The answer is complicated. Technically, the drink lacks any legal definition, which gives companies free rein in what they deem as “natural.” (The French government did recognize a certification system for natural wine in 2020, though it’s unclear whether any companies will pursue it.) Still, the industry tends to agree on several factors in the natural wine making process: The grapes should ideally be grown without pesticides and herbicides,…