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Meet IDEA: An AI assistant to help geoscientists explore Earth and beyond

A new artificial intelligence tool developed by researchers at the University of Hawai’i (UH) at Mānoa is making it easier for scientists to explore complex geoscience data—from tracking sea levels on Earth to analyzing atmospheric conditions on Mars.

Called the Intelligent Data Exploring Assistant (IDEA), the combines the power of large language models, like those used in ChatGPT, with scientific data, tailored instructions, and computing resources.

By simply providing questions in everyday language, researchers can ask IDEA to retrieve data, run analyses, generate plots, and even review its own results—opening up new possibilities for research, education, and scientific discovery.

Using NVIDIA TensorRT-LLM to run gpt-oss-20b

This notebook provides a step-by-step guide on how to optimizing gpt-oss models using NVIDIA’s TensorRT-LLM for high-performance inference. TensorRT-LLM provides users with an easy-to-use Python API to define Large Language Models (LLMs) and support state-of-the-art optimizations to perform inference efficiently on NVIDIA GPUs. TensorRT-LLM also contains components to create Python and C++ runtimes that orchestrate the inference execution in performant way.

Train with Terabyte-Scale Datasets on a Single NVIDIA Grace Hopper Superchip Using XGBoost 3.0

Gradient-boosted decision trees (GBDTs) power everything from real-time fraud filters to petabyte-scale demand forecasts. XGBoost open source library has long been the tool of choice thanks to state-of-the-art accuracy, SHAP-ready explainability, and flexibility to run on laptops, multi-GPU nodes, or Spark clusters. XGBoost version 3.0 was developed with scalability as its north star. A single NVIDIA GH200 Grace Hopper Superchip can now process datasets from gigabyte scale all the way to 1 terabyte (TB) scale.

The coherent memory architecture allows the new external-memory engine to stream data over the 900 GB/s NVIDIA NVLink-C2C, so a 1 TB model can be trained in minutes—up to 8x faster than a 112-core (dual socket) CPU box. This reduces the need for complex multinode GPU clusters, and makes scalability simpler to achieve.

This post explains new features and enhancements in the milestone XGBoost 3.0 release, including a deep dive into external memory and how it leverages the Grace Hopper Superchip to reach 1 TB scale.

How sputtering could drive the adoption of high-performance ScAlN-based transistors

Gallium nitride (GaN)-based high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) are a type of field-effect transistors (FETs) designed to operate at very high frequencies with low noise. As such, they have been widely applied in high-power and high-frequency applications, like high-speed wireless communications, power switching devices, and power amplifiers.

HEMTs utilize a heterojunction, which is a junction between two different semiconductor materials, typically GaN and aluminum GaN (AlGaN). This junction creates a narrow region called the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG), where electrons have very high mobility, resulting in excellent high-frequency performance.

Scandium aluminum nitride (ScAlN) has attracted significant attention as a novel barrier material that can further enhance the performance of GaN HEMTs. It exhibits large polarization, which increases electron densities in the 2DEG. Additionally, its ferroelectric nature makes it suitable for use as a ferroelectric gate material in ferroelectric HEMTs.

‘Skin in a syringe’: Researchers develop wound treatment with injectable cell technology

Researchers have created what could be called “skin in a syringe.” The gel containing live cells can be 3D printed into a skin transplant, as shown in a study conducted on mice. This technology may lead to new ways to treat burns and severe wounds. The study was led by the Center for Disaster Medicine and Traumatology and Linköping University in Sweden.

As long as we have healthy skin, we do not give it much thought. However, if we get major wounds or other injuries, it becomes clear that the skin is the body’s protection from the outside world. Helping the body restore the skin barrier after a serious burn can therefore be a matter of life and death.

Large burns are often treated by transplanting a thin layer of the top part of the skin, the epidermis. This is basically composed of a single cell type. Transplanting only this part of the skin leads to severe scarring.

Connection with nature sees dramatic decline over the last two centuries

Over the past 220 years, the connection between people and nature has declined by more than 60%. That’s the key finding of a study led by Miles Richardson, a professor of nature connectedness at the University of Derby in England.

Losing touch with nature is increasingly recognized as a contributing factor to the environmental crisis the planet is facing today. When people feel disconnected from the , they are less likely to protect it.

New Study Demonstrates Improved Survival With Combination of Lurbinectedin and Atezolizumab for Extensive-Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer

“Immunotherapy has improved survival outcomes for patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC), marking meaningful progress in a historically challenging disease. However, despite these advances, long-term outcomes remain suboptimal, underscoring the need for better strategies. The integration of lurbinectedin—a novel DNA-damaging agent—into the maintenance setting alongside atezolizumab following initial chemo-immunotherapy represents an important next step. This approach offers a way to extend disease control and may signal a shift toward more durable benefit for patients,” said Charu Aggarwal, MD, MPH, FASCO, Leslye M Heisler Professor of Lung Cancer Excellence at University of Pennsylvania – Abramson Cancer Center, and an ASCO Expert in lung cancer.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Results from a global phase 3 clinical trial found that maintenance therapy with a combination of lurbinectedin and atezolizumab helped some patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer (ES-SCLC) live longer compared to maintenance therapy with atezolizumab alone. The research will be presented at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, taking place May 30-June 3 in Chicago.

About the Study

“While the introduction of immunotherapy in first-line treatment has improved outcomes, advanced small cell lung cancer remains difficult to treat. The phase 3 IMforte trial shows that the new treatment combination of lurbinectedin and atezolizumab given as maintenance therapy after first-line treatment helps people live longer and reduces the risk of disease progression or death. This outcome represents a major milestone and could provide a much-needed option for advancing the treatment of this aggressive disease,” said lead study author Luis G. Paz Ares, MD, PhD, 12 de Octubre University Hospital in Madrid, Spain.

Equipping living cells with logic gates to fight cancer

One of the most exciting developments in cancer treatment is a wave of new cell therapies that train a patient’s immune system to attack cancer cells. Such therapies have saved the lives of patients with certain aggressive cancers and few other options. Most of these therapies work by teaching immune cells to recognize and attack specific proteins on the surface of cancer cells.

Unfortunately, most proteins found on cancer cells aren’t unique to tumors. They’re also often present on healthy cells, making it difficult to target cancer aggressively without triggering dangerous attacks on other tissue. The problem has limited the application of cell therapies to a small subset of cancers.

Now Senti Bio is working to create smarter cell therapies using synthetic biology. The company, which was founded by former MIT faculty member and current MIT Research Associate Tim Lu ’03, MEng ’03, PhD ’08 and Professor James Collins, is equipping cells with gene circuits that allow the cells to sense and respond to their environments.

Founded by MIT researchers, Senti Bio is is working to create smarter cell therapies for cancer using synthetic biology. The company equips cells with gene circuits that allow the cells to respond to their environments.

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