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Stronger Magnetic Fields Without Superconductors? Scientists Say Yes

Two German physicists have unveiled a compact magnet layout that outperforms the famed Halbach array, delivering stronger, more even magnetic fields without bulky superconductors.

Their 3D-printed ring stacks matched analytic predictions and could slash the cost of MRI machines while opening doors for levitation tech and particle accelerators.

Breakthrough in Magnetic Field Generation.

Does Using Artificial Intelligence Ruin Your Actual Intelligence? Scientists Investigated

Since ChatGPT appeared almost three years ago, the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies on learning has been widely debated. Are they handy tools for personalised education, or gateways to academic dishonesty?

Most importantly, there has been concern that using AI will lead to a widespread “dumbing down”, or decline in the ability to think critically. If students use AI tools too early, the argument goes, they may not develop basic skills for critical thinking and problem-solving.

Is that really the case? According to a recent study by scientists from MIT, it appears so. Using ChatGPT to help write essays, the researchers say, can lead to “cognitive debt” and a “likely decrease in learning skills”

Critical Open VSX Registry Flaw Exposes Millions of Developers to Supply Chain Attacks

Cybersecurity researchers have disclosed a critical vulnerability in the Open VSX Registry (“open-vsx[.]org”) that, if successfully exploited, could have enabled attackers to take control of the entire Visual Studio Code extensions marketplace, posing a severe supply chain risk.

“This vulnerability provides attackers full control over the entire extensions marketplace, and in turn, full control over millions of developer machines,” Koi Security researcher Oren Yomtov said. “By exploiting a CI issue a malicious actor could publish malicious updates to every extension on Open VSX.”

Following responsible disclosure on May 4, 2025, multiple rounds of fixes were proposed by the maintainers, before a final patch was deployed on June 25.