Phys.org
Digital tools reveal hidden extinctions as AI reshapes global conservation
A decade after its inaugural report, Kew Gardens' sixth State of the World's Plants and Fungi report draws on more than 400 scientists across 40 countries to document how AI and digital tools are transforming conservation. The findings reveal previously hidden extinction risks, exposing critical gaps in scientific knowledge that traditional methods had missed. The report makes a pointed case that technology, deployed strategically, can accelerate efforts to protect plant biodiversity before irreversible losses occur.
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Thermochemical mantle plume identified as the likely origin of Earth's largest oceanic plateau
The Ontong Java Plateau, the largest oceanic plateau on Earth, has long puzzled geologists — but new research points to a thermochemical mantle plume as the most likely driver of its formation. This type of plume combines both thermal and chemical buoyancy forces, distinguishing it from simpler heat-driven models previously considered. The finding reshapes our understanding of how large igneous provinces form and the deep mantle processes that have shaped Earth's geology over millions of years.
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Fungal highways are vast, yet hidden underground—new study
Underground fungal networks span some of the largest living organisms on Earth, yet they remain almost entirely invisible to the human eye. These sprawling systems play a critical role in sustaining ecosystems and the food chains humans depend on. A new study is bringing long-overdue scientific attention to the hidden infrastructure keeping our world alive.
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Only 10 viral particles cause H5N1 avian flu infection in cows
Just 10 viral particles of the H5N1 bird flu that caused hundreds of influenza outbreaks in U.S. dairy cattle can cause infection in cows, a new study shows. The research also hints at why the outbreaks have confounded scientists, farmers and livestock handlers hoping to contain and prevent the disease—an effort likely complicated by the fact that the virus has an affinity for cow mammary glands rather than airways.
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New tool helps protect communities from flooding during rain-on-snow events and optimize reservoir management
Rain-on-snow events — where warm rainstorms accelerate snowmelt — can overwhelm rivers and flood communities with little warning, as Reno learned catastrophically in 1997. A new tool aims to help water managers better predict and respond to these dangerous conditions by improving how reservoirs are managed ahead of storms. The technology could prove critical as climate variability makes such events harder to anticipate and more destructive.
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