Biotech startup Living Carbon is trying to design trees that grow faster and absorb more carbon than their native plants, as well as rotting-resistant ones, keeping that carbon. out of the atmosphere.
In February, the startup planted the first forest in the United States containing genetically modified trees. But there’s still a lot we don’t know. How will these trees affect the rest of the forest? How far will their genes spread? And how good are they really at drawing more carbon from the atmosphere? Read full story.
—Boyce Upholt
Google DeepMind’s gaming AI just found another way to code faster
News: A year after DeepMind used an AI version of AlphaZero to play its game to find new ways to speed up the computation of an important piece of math, the AI research lab has repeated the same trick. self—twice.
Using a new version of AlphaZero called AlphaDev, it discovered how to sort the items in a list up to 70% faster than the best method available, and also found a 30% speedup for the algorithm. key used in cryptography.
Why is it important: These algorithms are among the most common building blocks in software. Small speed increases can make a big difference, cutting costs and saving energy. Read full story.
—Will Douglas Heaven
