SJK Audio Edition Science Journal for Kids

Read this article at:   or watch at: https://youtu.be/dVoB7IS1k9g 
Summary: Researchers investigated the impact of the accuracy of COVID-19 beliefs and metacognition on public health compliance and vaccine willingness.
Abstract: During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health experts asked people to take steps to help stop the spread of the virus. These included wearing face masks, limiting contact with other people, and getting vaccinated. We wondered why some people followed recommendations while others did not. We thought what people believed about COVID-19 mattered. We also thought the way they think about their beliefs may be important.
We asked people about their COVID-19 beliefs. Some beliefs were true, and some were not. Then we asked these people how confident they were that their beliefs were correct.
We found that people who evaluated their beliefs more correctly were more likely to follow public health advice. Our results show that it’s important to be right, but it’s also important to know you might be wrong.


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Read this article at:   or watch at: https://youtu.be/SvF3TX1iO2Q 
Summary: Scientists tested how blind and sighted people used sound in tracking motion to learn more about how the brain works.
Abstract: You hear footsteps behind you. They’re getting louder! You turn around quickly. Your friend was trying to sneak up on you. How did you know they were there? Your brain was hard at work! It took clues from your senses and turned those clues into information. But not everybody’s senses work the same way. When someone is blind or deaf, their brains learn to use the other senses differently. We were interested in knowing how blind people use sounds to learn about moving objects. We found that people who became blind during early childhood were better at following sounds than sighted people. Both blind and sighted people tracked moving sounds in a similar way. But blind people were much better at ignoring background noise.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sciencejournalforkids.substack.com

Read this article at: https://www.sciencejournalforkids.org/articles/how-can-air-travel-produce-fewer-greenhouse-gas-emissions/  or watch at: https://youtu.be/d8mS4bH_G2E 
Summary: Researchers compare nine different possible scenarios to determine how the aviation industry could reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Abstract: When you think about the causes of climate change, what comes to mind? Do you think of gasoline-powered cars? Or do you think about coal and natural gas power plants? It turns out that a big source of greenhouse gas emissions is flying. To prevent Earth from becoming too warm, many countries have set net-zero emission goals. So, the aviation industry needs to make changes. We analyzed the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced in nine different scenarios in the years up to 2050. Each scenario included a change in the demand for flying, a change in the efficiency of the airplanes, and a change in the type of fuel used. We found making changes to these factors can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, the aviation industry will also need to invest in carbon dioxide removal from the atmosphere. With these changes, it is possible for the aviation industry to reach net-zero emissions by 2050!


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sciencejournalforkids.substack.com

Read this article at:   or watch at: https://youtu.be/QsLFuo8TvhI 
Summary: Researchers explore what causes online political discussions to get so mean.
Abstract: Online discussions about politics can be very nasty. But why is that? Researchers have proposed two theories. One talks about the disagreement over ideas. And the second theory is that people see others as rivals. But there is a third theory called the "troll hypothesis". It suggests that mean people are mean, regardless of the topic. To see if this is right, we analyzed comments on Reddit. We found that people who often argue and are rude in political discussions are also mean when they talk about other things. Plus, those who make comments on communities of both political sides turn out to be the meanest! So, online discussions get mean largely because of these people rather than the topic.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sciencejournalforkids.substack.com

Read this article at: https://www.sciencejournalforkids.org/articles/why-dont-whales-get-cancer/ or watch at: https://youtu.be/C11YMSLV_e4
Summary: Researchers wanted to discover how the genomes of the humpback whale have evolved to help them avoid developing cancer.
Abstract: Every day, the cells in your body are super busy growing and dividing. When something goes wrong, mutations appear. Our immune system usually detects cells with mistakes and kills them before they become a problem. But sometimes they go undetected and the rogue cell multiplies, turning into cancer. So, if an animal has more cells and a longer life, it should get more cancer. Whales have up to 1,000 times more cells than humans and some live for over 200 years. But their cancer rates are no higher than ours! To figure out why this is, we compared the humpback whale and other whale genomes to other mammal genomes. Our DNA analysis showed that in whales there was duplication of cancer-suppressing genes. We also found that whales have the slowest rate of genetic changes. Our findings help us understand the role of DNA in preventing cancer. It could also help us fight cancer in humans!


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sciencejournalforkids.substack.com

Read this article at: https://www.sciencejournalforkids.org/articles/how-can-ai-make-online-chats-kinder/ or watch at: https://youtu.be/kgt424nIx6k 
Summary: Researchers wanted to see if AI assistants can improve online political discussions.
Abstract: Imagine a world where everyone can talk and share their ideas. Even if they don't agree, they listen to each other. This is what should happen in a democracy. But sometimes, when people chat online, things can get a bit mean. We wanted to see if artificial intelligence (AI) could make online talks kinder.
So, we did an online experiment with pairs of people discussing a tricky topic: laws about who can own guns. One participant in each pair had an AI assistant that made suggestions. The participants could accept or ignore the suggestions. Most participants took the AI's advice, which made people more positive and polite. Even if they disagreed, they understood and respected each other. The good thing is that the AI didn't change the topic, it just helped people to talk to each other more kindly.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sciencejournalforkids.substack.com