AGP Executive Report

Climate Science: Earth has warmed about 0.35°C per decade since 2015—nearly twice the rate recorded from 1970 to 2015, a new analysis finds, suggesting global warming is accelerating. Brain Research: Scientists are developing ways to add or remove connections in living brains; experiments have altered animal behavior, opening new avenues for studying brain circuits. AI and Medicine: Edison Scientific will deploy its AI research platform across Pfizer’s drug-development work, while Google plans a Singapore research hub and clinical AI trials with local health partners. Nature Talks: Countries clashed at UN biodiversity negotiations over whether to recognize scientific assessments linking nature loss and climate change, raising concern about the role of research in global policy.

Solar Flight: A study estimates solar-powered aircraft need batteries delivering about 500 watt-hours per kilogram to fly globally, a target well above today’s standard EV batteries. Wildlife: New research finds the world’s largest bats are shrinking, with selective hunting a possible factor. Dementia: Two visual tests may help detect early cognitive changes linked to Lewy body disease, including in some people with Parkinson’s. Prosthetics: MIT researchers tracked muscle movement with tiny implanted magnetic beads, a technique that could improve control of artificial limbs. Climate: A tracker projects nearly 373,000 additional heat-related deaths over the next six months from El Niño, after estimating about 484,500 since June. Antarctica: Researchers report that a deep Southern Ocean water mass is growing saltier, denser and deeper—a shift with potential consequences for sea levels, ocean warming and weather.

Brain Health: A Maastricht University trial found that older adults who ate 60 grams of peanuts daily had improved insulin sensitivity in memory-related brain regions. The result needs confirmation in larger studies. Paleontology: DNA analysis of 18 Ice Age crane bones shows they belonged to today’s common crane, solving a 150-year-old mystery about a supposed extinct species. Physics: Researchers produced X-rays beyond a long-standing energy limit by harnessing an unusual interaction between two electrons in helium atoms. Disease Control: A gene that helps male yellow fever mosquitoes hear and find mates could offer a new target for controlling reproduction—and the diseases these mosquitoes spread. Earth Science: Experiments suggest magma can store more oxygen than previously thought, potentially linking Earth’s interior to the rise of oxygen in the ancient atmosphere. Wound Research: A compound from deep-sea bacteria showed promise in diabetic wound-healing research, but it has not been established as a treatment.

Heart Research: Scientists found that heart cells can burn glucose in the cell fluid and lactate in mitochondria at the same time, a backup energy system that may help prevent heart failure under stress. Cancer Research: A study identified a previously overlooked role for the Wee1 enzyme in healthy cells, offering clues to why Wee1-blocking cancer drugs cause side effects and how treatments might be made safer. Genomics: Researchers produced a near-complete reconstruction of J. Craig Venter’s genome, demonstrating a faster approach to building detailed personal genomes. Climate and Water: Rice University’s open WISO-SAT database standardizes 24 years of water-isotope readings from eight satellite missions, helping researchers track moisture and study the global water cycle. Origins of Life: Computer models suggest comets were unlikely to deliver enough hydrogen cyanide to Earth to spark life, challenging a century-old hypothesis. Research Funding: The Philippines spent 0.276% of GDP on research and development in 2020, far below regional leaders Singapore and Malaysia, raising concerns about its capacity to build technology and train researchers.

Science Honors: Three Pennsylvania-linked innovators won the John Scott Award for work spanning human skin-color research, drug development and Alzheimer’s diagnostics. Ovarian Aging: Harvard researcher David Pepin received a reproductive medicine prize for findings that ovarian stromal cells produce hormones, pointing to a possible target for age-related reproductive decline. Cosmic Origins: A new MIT–Harvard simulation models the universe’s first two billion years, tracking half a trillion elements of gas, dark matter and light to show how early stars and galaxies formed. Clean Shipping: Norway’s Research Council awarded $2 million toward research on microreactors for ships, an early step in a project whose first phase is expected to cost about $15 million. Water Research: A new USDA facility in Tucson will support studies of how rain, soil and plants respond to drought across the Southwest. Autism Research: In a study of about 400 children, researchers found face-recognition brain signals were less distinct in autistic participants, challenging earlier assumptions about how face processing differs.

Cancer Research: Baylor scientists found that glioblastoma can turn nearby brain cells from tumor fighters into allies, in animal models. Separate studies point to new immune-based strategies: blocking HSP90 may help immune cells recognize drug-resistant liver cancer, while prostate tumors showed a temporary boost in immune activity after hormone therapy. Brain Science: Cedars-Sinai researchers found the amygdala helps decide which everyday experiences become lasting memories, not just memories tied to strong emotions. Diabetes Technology: An experimental implant that uses an electrical reaction to remove excess blood sugar improved glucose control and promoted fat loss in mice; further animal testing is planned. Space: Two debris rings around a dead star may be remnants of planets that survived its transformation, offering clues to how planetary systems — including our own — might end. AI and Robotics: Binghamton researchers showed that hidden trigger words could make a robot’s AI-generated plan switch from a safe task to a dangerous one, highlighting risks as language models guide machines.

AI and Mathematics: OpenAI says its models proved results in harmonic analysis, quantum physics and computer science, including one that challenges the Exponential Time Hypothesis. Independent experts are reviewing the claims; practical gains remain uncertain. Crop Science: Researchers found that a jumping gene suppresses a key regulator of radish root shape, pointing to a possible target for crop breeding. Motor Neuron Disease: Macquarie researchers received more than $4 million for projects on early biomarkers, gene delivery and disease progression. Animal Sleep: Bonn scientists report that jumping spiders show REM-like sleep, including eye movements and muscle twitches, offering clues to how sleep evolved. Wild Salmon: A study of B.C. salmon farms found outbreaks of a viral disease on most farms sampled, raising concerns about risks to wild populations. Research Tools: A Georgia Tech team developed a model to reduce trial and error in mass spectrometry imaging, which maps molecules in tissue. Alzheimer’s: Researchers found a possible link between immature brain cells and resilience to Alzheimer’s-related damage, a clue to why some people remain symptom-free.

Climate Research: A framework developed by 175 scientists maps priorities for future U.S. climate assessments, including better local projections and ways to measure which responses work. Separate research suggests warming nearly tripled the area burned during four intense days of Boundary Waters wildfires this summer, worsening smoke pollution. Health Care: RTI researchers introduced a measure tracking emergency visits and hospitalizations in the first 90 days of opioid treatment, using data from 1,226 U.S. programs. Radiation Testing: Berkeley Lab scientists developed a machine-learning method that uses routine blood counts to estimate past radiation exposure, potentially helping responders screen large groups quickly. Spaceflight: A Mars-designed helicopter rotor airfoil outperformed the one used by Ingenuity in tests under Mars-like conditions, pointing to aircraft that could travel farther or carry heavier loads. Genetics: Scientists have attempted to rewrite a patient’s DNA inside the body for the first time, an early step toward treatments that act directly within living tissue. Astronomy: UC Berkeley researchers are helping coordinate science from NASA’s Roman Space Telescope, which will survey billions of cosmic objects.

Cell Biology: WLF laureate Yuan Junying’s work overturned the idea that necrosis is passive, opening new avenues to study cell death and develop treatments. Exercise: A study of 96,408 adults linked a higher share of vigorous activity to lower risks of chronic disease and premature death, though it cannot prove cause and effect. Cancer Research: Science Tokyo researchers identified an epigenetic route to liver cancer that does not rely on common driver mutations. Separately, RIKEN scientists made anticancer compounds inside cancer cells in lab tests; the effects were modest, and the approach has not been tested in animals or people. Infection Control: Researchers found airborne, drug-resistant ESKAPE bacteria in a South African clinic, raising concerns for patients with weakened immune systems. Quantum Computing: RIKEN’s team improved the accuracy of five silicon qubits operating together, addressing a barrier to scaling quantum processors. Diagnostics: Cambridge researchers developed a roughly $10 optical chip that identified several foods, plastics and medicines in tests. AI and Health: A Rutgers survey found about one in three young adults had used AI for substance-use information, which researchers warn may be unreliable.

Flexible Solar: A Chinese team reports large-area flexible perovskite devices with efficiencies above 20%, tackling a major barrier to commercial use. Brain Research: In mice, blocking an enzyme linked to Angelman syndrome restored brain growth and healthy behaviours, pointing to a possible treatment target. AI & Biology: New AI systems can generate and rank research hypotheses; automated labs could help carry promising ideas into experiments. Climate Costs: A UC San Diego-led report details California’s rising climate-related costs, including illness, lost work and higher bills. Ocean Health: Researchers found frequent disease outbreaks at sampled British Columbia salmon farms, raising concerns about risks to wild salmon. Fundamental Physics: Scientists report trapping a single antimatter particle for months, creating an opportunity to study its properties.

Materials Science: Warwick researchers used 3D imaging to reveal a hidden patchwork of atomic structures in cuprate superconductors, challenging assumptions held for 40 years. Healthy Aging: A Singapore study found exercise suppresses the DEAF1 gene, helping aging muscle cells clear damaged proteins and repair themselves. Women’s Health: Tissue from 28 women suggests ovaries remain biologically active decades after menopause, with age-related inflammatory changes. Space: Astronomers traced radio bursts directly to exoplanet Beta Pictoris b, offering a new way to study distant planets’ magnetic fields. Cancer Research: A phase III trial found an mRNA melanoma vaccine used with immunotherapy lowered the risk of cancer returning or death by 42%. Fundamental Physics: Researchers contained an elusive antimatter particle for months, opening a chance to test a long-standing physics theory.

Dementia Screening: A brief tablet-based assessment using drawing, augmented reality and spoken responses identified mild cognitive impairment with strong accuracy in a study spanning three countries, pointing to a more accessible route to diagnosis. Sleep-Supplement Risks: Mice given the cannabis compound CBN for three days developed tolerance and withdrawal signs, raising questions about a popular sleep aid; the findings need to be tested in people. Inflammation: Researchers found that L-carnitine activated an inflammatory pathway in mouse and human immune cells, worsening outcomes in mice with sepsis. The result does not establish a risk from supplements in people. Gut Health: In mice, a bout of colon inflammation left lasting changes to tissue that supports gut repair, potentially helping explain recurring disease. Clean Energy: An experimental solar-powered device produced hydrogen from seawater while breaking down toxic hydrazine in wastewater. Biodiversity: A new giant water lily species in Colombia was identified after photos on Instagram led researchers to its remote habitat.

Cancer Research: Scientists report that cancer cells can evade chemotherapy by entering a zombie-like, non-dividing state, a finding that may point to new ways to prevent treatment resistance. Separately, a skin cancer vaccine was reported to halve deaths in a trial, and researchers say they edited human DNA inside the body for the first time. Women’s Health: Researchers have developed organoids from vaginal wall tissue, offering a new model to study pelvic organ prolapse; tissue from affected ligaments did not grow into organoids under the same conditions. Climate and Environment: A new study identifies a hidden climate effect of China’s clean-air efforts, while researchers say they can forecast El Niño a year ahead. Scientists also warn that most of the world’s coral reef ecosystems could collapse by 2075. AI and Discovery: A new AI-guided approach to software testing reported high branch coverage and vulnerability detection in large web systems. Researchers also found a new “viral alarm switch” in human cells that could inform future infection research.

Gene Editing: Scientists report the first editing of human DNA inside the body, a milestone for treatments delivered directly to patients. AI in Medicine: In a study published in Science, Microsoft’s diagnostic AI reached the right answer in 83.2% of 304 complex cases, compared with 36.1% for doctors using reference tools; a patient-based hospital trial is next. Viral Defenses: Researchers in Hyderabad identified DZIP3, a protein that detects viral RNA and triggers immune responses. The pathway protected cells against several viruses, including SARS-CoV-2. Research Funding: Canada announced more than $813 million for over 450 researchers, research infrastructure and institutional costs. Outbreak Forecasting: Researchers found links between large-scale weather patterns and Ebola outbreaks, a potential route to earlier risk warnings. Photosynthesis: Tests of 15,000 altered bacterial Rubisco enzymes found changes that improved carbon processing, though combining useful mutations proved difficult. Fisheries: Russia and Norway plan to set the Barents Sea cod catch above scientific advice for a second year, raising concerns about science-based stock management.

Brain Science: A compact imaging device can monitor more than 8,500 neurons across the cortex in freely moving subjects, a development that could advance behavioral neuroscience and brain-computer interfaces. Cancer Research: In a world-first trial, a personalized mRNA vaccine cut the risk of melanoma returning or causing death by 42% among high-risk patients. Extreme Heat: Researchers estimate heat killed 50,000 people in European cities this summer, with climate change responsible for about two-thirds of the toll. Safer AI: In simulated conversations, revised chatbot instructions reduced agreement with delusional beliefs by 74%; adding a self-check raised the reduction to 77%. Coral Reefs: A global assessment warns that 96% of shallow-water reef ecosystems face critical risk of collapse by 2075, driven largely by warming seas and marine heatwaves.

Climate Risks: Venezuelan researchers warn a projected Super El Niño could bring drought and extreme rain at the same time, with sharply different impacts across the country. Genomics: The University of Washington’s FIRE tool uses long-read DNA sequencing and machine learning to map gene regulation across the human genome. Cancer Detection: A study found blood tests tracking tumor DNA detected lung cancer recurrence months before scans, potentially enabling earlier follow-up. Infectious Disease: Researchers have uncovered how hantavirus attaches to human cells, a step toward treatments for an infection with no virus-specific approved therapy. AI Research: A preliminary study found pain-like internal signals in AI models, but does not show they are conscious; amplifying the signals led some models to make harmful choices. Conservation: Researchers estimate nearly 180,000 giant tortoises live on Seychelles’ Aldabra Atoll, the highest count recorded, though dense vegetation makes comparisons with past estimates difficult.