A weird phrase is plaguing scientific papers – and we traced it back to a glitch in AI training data

| Insights & Views

Google Deepmind / Unsplash Earlier this year, scientists discovered a peculiar term appearing in published papers: vegetative electron microscopy. This phrase, which sounds technical but is actually nonsense, has become a...

Election Diary: for a few hours, it seemed possible the Russians might be coming

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For a few hours on Tuesday afternoon, it seemed just possible the Russians might be sending their planes to a base very near us. A claim on the military and intelligence site Janes that said the Russians were seeking to...

Does Russia have military interest in Indonesia? Here’s what we know – and why Australia would be concerned

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A news report that Russia has sought to base long-range aircraft in Indonesia caught Australias political leaders by surprise during an already hectic election campaign. The military publication Janes reported on Tuesday...

First UK birth after womb transplant is a medical breakthrough – but raises important ethical questions

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Costs and who will get access to the treatment are key questions that will need to be answered. Antonio Marca/ Shutterstock A baby girl named Amy Isabel has become the first child in the UK to be born to a mother who has...

How mine water could warm up the UK’s forgotten coal towns

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Historic coal mining in north-east England. Jingyi Li, CC BY-NC-ND The Ukraine war sent shockwaves through global energy markets, driving up prices and leaving households across the UK struggling with soaring energy bills....

Birth of India: ‘biggest experiment’ with democracy was a huge gamble. Happily the people have made it work – here’s how

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The birth of Indian democracy is the stuff of legend. It was a moment of such staggering idealism and exuberance, a leap of faith so audacious, that the famous jurist and scholar Kenneth Wheare termed it the biggest...

When dogs return to nature – just how domesticated are our pooches really?

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Photobox.ks/Shutterstock Its hard to imagine a beloved pet dog surviving in the world. But reports of a 4 kg miniature dachshund looking well 500 days after she escaped during a family holiday is raising questions about...