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Retribution : the battle for Japan, 1944-45
By the summer of 1944 it was clear that Japan's defeat was inevitable, but how the drive to victory would be achieved remained to be seen. The ensuing drama--that ended in Japan's utter devastation--was acted out across the vast stage of Asia. In recounting the saga of this time and place, Max Hastings gives us incisive portraits of the theater's key figures--MacArthur, Nimitz, Mountbatten, Chiang Kai-shek, Mao, Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin. But he is equally adept in his portrayals of the ordinary soldiers and sailors--American, British, Russian, Chinese, and Japanese--caught in some of the war's bloodiest campaigns. With unprecedented insight, Hastings discusses Japan's war against China, now all but forgotten in the West, MacArthur's follies in the Philippines, the Marines at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, and the Soviet blitzkrieg in Manchuria. He analyzes the decision-making process that led to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki--which, he convincingly argues, ultimately saved lives. Finally, he delves into the Japanese wartime mind-set, which caused an otherwise civilized society to carry out atrocities that haunt the nation to this day.
BOOK
Monkeypox goes global: why scientists are on alert
Scientists are trying to understand why the virus, a less-lethal relative of smallpox, has cropped up in so many populations around the world.
Scientists are trying to understand why the virus, a less-lethal relative of smallpox, has cropped up in so many populations around the world.
Coloured transmission electron micrograph of a yellow Monkeypox virus particle on a blue background
Journal Article
A brief history of intelligence : evolution, AI, and the five breakthroughs that made our brains
\"In the last decade, the science of understanding the human brain and replicating its most complicated processes through artificial intelligence has grown exponentially. Intricate neurological functions ranging from writing poetry to crafting original articles, arenas that had long been thought of as science fiction, have become our reality. And yet, large gaps remain in what AI can achieve-gaps that, as pioneering artificial intelligence entrepreneur Max Bennett argues compellingly, exist because there is still too much we don't understand about our own brains. Finding these answers requires diving into the long billion-year history of how animal brains emerged from matter; a history filled with countless half-starts, calamities, opportunities, and clever innovations. Not only do our brains have a story to tell-in fact the future of AI depends on it. Now, in A Brief History of Brains, Bennett bridges the gap between neuroscience and AI to tell the brain's evolutionary story, while demonstrating how understanding that story will shape the next generation of great AI breakthroughs. Deploying fresh perspective and lively storytelling, Bennett sheds long overdue light on evolutionary neuroscience, a historically small scientific field that holds the keys to the biggest secrets in AI. Working with support from many of the top minds in the field, Bennett consolidates four billion years into an approachable new model, identifying the Five Breakthroughs that mark the brain's most important evolutionary leaps. As we go back further in time, brains get much simpler and behavior gets much simpler, making it easier to understand these ancient brains and the complexity that emerges at each subsequent iteration. As each breakthrough brings new insight to the biggest mysteries of human development, it also contains fascinating corollaries to developments in AI, showing where our technological skill has matched the brain's evolution and where the missing links continue to hold us back. Indeed, until we understand and embrace every part of our brain's journey, parts of AI-including ones that we need to grow and evolve-will remain elusive. Endorsed and lauded by the brightest and best neuroscientists in the field today, Bennett's work synthesizes the most relevant scientific knowledge and cutting-edge research to create an easy-to-understand and riveting evolutionary story. With sweeping scope and stunning insights, A Brief History of Brains proves that understanding the arc of our brain's history can unlock the tools for successfully navigating our technological future\" -- Provided by publisher.
Book
Age estimates for hominin fossils and the onset of the Upper Palaeolithic at Denisova Cave
Denisova Cave in the Siberian Altai (Russia) is a key site for understanding the complex relationships between hominin groups that inhabited Eurasia in the Middle and Late Pleistocene epoch. DNA sequenced from human remains found at this site has revealed the presence of a hitherto unknown hominin group, the Denisovans
1
,
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, and high-coverage genomes from both Neanderthal and Denisovan fossils provide evidence for admixture between these two populations
3
. Determining the age of these fossils is important if we are to understand the nature of hominin interaction, and aspects of their cultural and subsistence adaptations. Here we present 50 radiocarbon determinations from the late Middle and Upper Palaeolithic layers of the site. We also report three direct dates for hominin fragments and obtain a mitochondrial DNA sequence for one of them. We apply a Bayesian age modelling approach that combines chronometric (radiocarbon, uranium series and optical ages), stratigraphic and genetic data to calculate probabilistically the age of the human fossils at the site. Our modelled estimate for the age of the oldest Denisovan fossil suggests that this group was present at the site as early as 195,000 years ago (at 95.4% probability). All Neanderthal fossils—as well as Denisova 11, the daughter of a Neanderthal and a Denisovan
4
—date to between 80,000 and 140,000 years ago. The youngest Denisovan dates to 52,000–76,000 years ago. Direct radiocarbon dating of Upper Palaeolithic tooth pendants and bone points yielded the earliest evidence for the production of these artefacts in northern Eurasia, between 43,000 and 49,000 calibrated years before present (taken as
ad
1950). On the basis of current archaeological evidence, it may be assumed that these artefacts are associated with the Denisovan population. It is not currently possible to determine whether anatomically modern humans were involved in their production, as modern-human fossil and genetic evidence of such antiquity has not yet been identified in the Altai region.
Bayesian modelling of chronometric, stratigraphic and genetic data from Denisova Cave provides a chronological framework for understanding Neanderthal and Denisovan presence at the site, as well as interactions between these groups.
Journal Article
Decolonizing geoscience requires more than equity and inclusion
Colonial relationships with Indigenous land and knowledge in geoscience disciplines must be acknowledged to address harm and change how science is done, argues Max Liboiron.
Journal Article
Growing mpox outbreak prompts WHO to declare global health emergency
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention also issued an emergency declaration as several countries see their first cases of the disease caused by the monkeypox virus.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention also issued an emergency declaration as several countries see their first cases of the disease caused by the monkeypox virus.
Journal Article
Total OH reactivity over the Amazon rainforest: variability with temperature, wind, rain, altitude, time of day, season, and an overall budget closure
The tropical forests are Earth's largest source of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) and thus also the largest atmospheric sink region for the hydroxyl radical (OH). However, the OH sink above tropical forests is poorly understood, as past studies have revealed large unattributed fractions of total OH reactivity. We present the first total OH reactivity and volatile organic compound (VOC) measurements made at the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory (ATTO) at 80, 150, and 320 m above ground level, covering two dry seasons, one wet season, and one transition season in 2018–2019. By considering a wide range of previously unaccounted for VOCs, which we identified by proton transfer reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometry (PTR-ToF-MS), the unattributed fraction was with an overall average of 19 % within the measurement uncertainty of ∼ 35 %. In terms of seasonal average OH reactivity, isoprene accounted for 23 %–43 % of the total and oxygenated VOCs (OVOCs) for 22 %–40 %, while monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and green leaf volatiles combined were responsible for 9 %–14 %. These findings show that OVOCs were until now an underestimated contributor to the OH sink above the Amazon forest. By day, total OH reactivity decreased towards higher altitudes with strongest vertical gradients observed around noon during the dry season (−0.026 s−1 m−1), while the gradient was inverted at night. Seasonal differences in total OH reactivity were observed, with the lowest daytime average and standard deviation of 19.9 ± 6.2 s−1 during a wet–dry transition season with frequent precipitation; 23.7 ± 6.5 s−1 during the wet season; and the highest average OH reactivities during two dry-season observation periods with 28.1 ± 7.9 s−1 and 29.1 ± 10.8 s−1, respectively. The effects of different environmental parameters on the OH sink were investigated, and quantified, where possible. Precipitation caused short-term spikes in total OH reactivity, which were followed by below-normal OH reactivity for several hours. Biomass burning increased total OH reactivity by 2.7 to 9.5 s−1. We present a temperature-dependent parameterization of OH reactivity that could be applied in future models of the OH sink to further reduce our knowledge gaps in tropical-forest OH chemistry.
Journal Article