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Category: food – Page 86

Computer Vision System Marries Image Recognition and Generation

Computers possess two remarkable capabilities with respect to images: They can both identify them and generate them anew. Historically, these functions have stood separate, akin to the disparate acts of a chef who is good at creating dishes (generation), and a connoisseur who is good at tasting dishes (recognition).

Yet, one can’t help but wonder: What would it take to orchestrate a harmonious union between these two distinctive capacities? Both chef and connoisseur share a common understanding in the taste of the food. Similarly, a unified vision system requires a deep understanding of the visual world.

Now, researchers in MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) have trained a system to infer the missing parts of an image, a task that requires deep comprehension of the image’s content. In successfully filling in the blanks, the system, known as the Masked Generative Encoder (MAGE), achieves two goals at the same time: accurately identifying images and creating new ones with striking resemblance to reality.

How the immune system can alter our behavior

Simply the smell of seafood can make those with an allergy to it violently ill—and therefore more likely to avoid it. The same avoidance behavior is exhibited by people who develop food poisoning after eating a certain meal.

Scientists have long known that the played a key role in our reactions to allergens and pathogens in the environment, but it was unclear whether it played any role in prompting these types of behaviors towards allergic triggers.

According to Yale-led research published July 12 in the journal Nature, it turns out that the immune system plays a crucial role in changing our behaviors.

This 1 GW solar + salt + shrimp farm is a 3-in-1 power station

A huge solar power station in China is generating clean energy, producing salt from sunlight, and serving as a shrimp-breeding site.

State-owned China Huadian Corporation said the 1-gigawatt (GW) Huadian Tianjin Haijing power station will generate 1.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year – enough to power around 1.5 million households in China.

The solar panels at the farm are bifacial, which means they benefit from both direct sun and sunlight that reflects from the water beneath.

A tiny invasive flying beetle that’s killed hundreds of millions of trees lands in Colorado

The Emerald Ash Borer Network says that once the beetles reach their adult stage, the metallic green bugs will eat up foliage on ash trees – their only food source. But it’s the larvae that eat up the inner bark of ash trees and prevent nutrients and water from circulating.

Once that happens, Littleton officials said the tree that’s been attacked becomes structurally unsound and will die within just a few years.

It’s believed that the insects were introduced to the U.S. from Asia after tagging along on solid wood packing material, the network said. They were first discovered in the U.S. near Detroit in 2002, and have since expanded to at least 35 states as well as at least five Canadian provinces. Ash trees will typically lose most of their canopy within two years of an infestation and die within three to four years, the National Invasive Species Information Center says.

Study finds, ‘greedy’ genes from father encourage unborn babies to steal their mother’s food

A mice experiment shows that genes from the father make an unborn child manipulate their mother’s metabolism so that the fetus could have more and more nutrition.

A new mice study from the University of Cambridge (UC) reveals that during pregnancy, a fetus tries to suck in as many nutrients as possible from its mother, and unique “greedy genes” from the father helps the fetus do so.

A pregnant woman’s body has to feed the unborn baby, but at the same time, it also needs to ensure her well-being. Plus, a baby which becomes over-healthy is also challenging to give birth to, and therefore, genes from the mother tend to limit fetal growth.

Seaweed to Replace Plastic | Edible & Biodegradable Packaging | Notpla

Notpla has been announced as the winner of Prince William’s Earthshot Prize, in the category of ‘Build a Waste-Free World’!

https://www.notpla.com/

We visited Notpla, a company that is challenging plastic pollution by creating edible and biodegradable packaging using seaweed.
Seaweed and other plants are 100% biodegradable and can break down in weeks, making them a great sustainable packaging alternative to plastic. We spoke with Pierre, the co-founder of Notpla to learn more about the company’s ambitions. Notpla is a company dedicated to innovation and improving the market of single use packaging through the use of their revolutionary plant-based material.

Check out Notpla-https://www.notpla.com/

Learn more about the Nick Maughan Foundation-https://nmf.org/

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FDA Grants Accelerated Approval for Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment

In January 6 2023, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration approved Leqembi (lecanemab-irmb) via the Accelerated Approval pathway for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Leqembi is the second of a new category of medications approved for Alzheimer’s disease that target the fundamental pathophysiology of the disease. These medications represent an important advancement in the ongoing fight to effectively treat Alzheimer’s disease.

Recently it has been granted full approval. Leqembi, developed jointly by Japan’s Eisai and Biogen of the United States, was shown in a clinical trial to modestly reduce cognitive decline among patients in the early stages of the disease.

But the study also raised concerns about side effects including brain bleeds and swelling.

Full approval story.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2023-07-07/New-Alzheimer-…index.html.

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