ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Urine diversion shows multiple environmental benefits when used at city scale
• Accurate neural network computer vision without the 'black box'
• Researchers identify where giant jets from black holes discharge their energy
• The farthest galaxy in the universe
• Powerful electrical events quickly alter surface chemistry on Mars, other planetary bodies
• 'Earable' computing: A new research area in the making
• Researchers uncover blind spots at the intersection of AI and neuroscience

Urine diversion shows multiple environmental benefits when used at city scale Posted: 15 Dec 2020 11:08 AM PST Diverting urine away from municipal wastewater treatment plants and recycling the nutrient-rich liquid to make crop fertilizer would result in multiple environmental benefits when used at city scale, according to a new study.

Accurate neural network computer vision without the 'black box' Posted: 15 Dec 2020 11:08 AM PST New research offers clues to what goes on inside the minds of machines as they learn to see. Instead of attempting to account for a neural network's decision-making on a post hoc basis, their method shows how the network learns along the way, by revealing how much the network calls to mind different concepts to help decipher what it sees as the image travels through successive layers.

Researchers identify where giant jets from black holes discharge their energy Posted: 15 Dec 2020 10:12 AM PST Scientists have disagreed about where powerful jets from black holes discharge their energy. A new study uses standard statistical techniques and relies on very few assumptions to determine that the jets release their energy in an area called the molecular torus, which is much farther away from the black hole's center than another prime candidate, the broadline region. This finding has implications for how jets form, pick up speed, and become column-shaped.

The farthest galaxy in the universe Posted: 15 Dec 2020 07:43 AM PST A team of astronomers used the Keck I telescope to measure the distance to an ancient galaxy. They deduced the target galaxy GN-z11 is not only the oldest galaxy but also the most distant. It's so distant it defines the very boundary of the observable universe itself. The team hopes this study can shed light on a period of cosmological history when the universe was only a few hundred million years old.

Powerful electrical events quickly alter surface chemistry on Mars, other planetary bodies Posted: 15 Dec 2020 07:43 AM PST On Earth, dust particles are viewed mainly in terms of their physical effects, like erosion. But, in exotic locales from Mars to Venus to Jupiter's icy moon Europa, electrical effects can affect the chemical composition of a planetary body's surface and atmosphere in a relatively short time, according to new research.

'Earable' computing: A new research area in the making Posted: 15 Dec 2020 06:16 AM PST A research group is defining a new sub-area of mobile technology that they call 'earable computing.' The team believes that earphones will be the next significant milestone in wearable devices, and that new hardware, software, and apps will all run on this platform.

Researchers uncover blind spots at the intersection of AI and neuroscience Posted: 15 Dec 2020 05:20 AM PST Is it possible to read a person's mind by analyzing the electric signals from the brain? The answer may be much more complex than most people think. In a new article, researchers say a prominent dataset used to try to answer this question is confounded, and therefore many eye-popping findings that were based on this dataset and received high-profile recognition are false after all.

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