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A group that says they hacked software company CDK Global is demanding tens of millions of dollars in ransom, Bloomberg reported.

CDK, which provides software to car dealerships in North America, intends to pay the ransom but discussions are subject to change, according to Bloomberg’s report which cited a person familiar with the situation.

The source said the group behind the hack is believed to be based in eastern Europe, Bloomberg reported.

A few years ago, one of my students came to me and spoke about her mother who was undergoing treatment for breast cancer.

She said her mother was losing her memory and her bearings, and was very worried because nobody knew what to do about her symptoms. The oncologist sent her to the psychiatrist. The psychiatrist sent her back, saying that her symptoms were a result of the cancer treatment.

This experience prompted my student and me to begin studying the problem of or ‘chemofog’ – the termsused by people who have experienced memory loss or cognitive impairment following cancer treatment. Scientifically, it’s referred to as ‘cancer-related cognitive impairment’ or ‘chemotherapy-related cognitive dysfunction’

Big atoms demand big energy to construct. A new model of quantum interactions now suggests some of the lightest particles in the Universe might play a critical role in how at least some heavy elements form.

Physicists in the US have shown how subatomic ‘ghost’ particles known as neutrinos could force atomic nuclei into becoming new elements.

Not only would this be an entirely different method for building elements heavier than iron, it could also describe a long-hypothesized ‘in-between’ path that sits on the border between two known processes, nuclear fusion and nucleosynthesis.

Our technological prowess is unrivaled. From the simplest inventions to the most complex machines, we have continually pushed the limits of what is possible. But as our capabilities grow exponentially, a looming question arises: are we heading towards a technological singularity that could change the course of humanity?

The concept of technological singularity has moved beyond the fringes of futurism; it is now an imminent possibility. Defined as the hypothetical future point when technologies have become so advanced that humanity undergoes a dramatic and irreversible change, the singularity presents an inescapable, exhilarating, and terrifying problem for philosophers, scientists, and every human being.

Are we prepared for the implications, the ramifications, and the profound changes that a tech-driven future might bring?

These technologies are helping researchers to explore what sets the human brain apart from those of other species, and how its cognitive abilities have evolved. For example, the role of non-invasive imaging in learning about cognitive abilities is discussed in a Perspective article by Feline Lindhout at the Medical Research Council’s Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK, and her colleagues1. In another article, Evelina Fedorenko at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge and her colleagues also draw on this literature to argue that, in humans, language probably serves mainly as a communication tool rather than as a means for thinking or reasoning2 — and that language is not a prerequisite for complex thought.

One desirable outcome for human neuroscience would be to develop personalized treatments for neurological and psychiatric disorders, because translating the results of studies in animals has not proved successful or sufficient for generating effective therapies at scale. But in grasping these opportunities, researchers must keep in mind that the brain is different from other organs — it’s the seat of people’s memory, experiences and personality. When using the human brain — whether in small cubes removed during neurosurgery, or through 3D organoids made from stem cells and grown in cultures to resemble parts of the developing human brain — for research, scientists must consider the dignity and respect owed to the individuals concerned.