How Superintelligence Will Emerge, How Fogs Form, Megalosaurus' 200- Year Anniversary, and More

The latest from The Porthole and the wider world of science. [View in browser](| [Join Nautilus]( Did a friend forward this? [Subscribe here.]( This Tuesday, check out the top science news—and the latest short sharp looks at science from The Porthole [READ NAUTILUS]( DISCOVERIES The Top Science News This Week [Palestinians Feel More Group Pride When Speaking Hebrew]( The positive psychology of using a dominant group’s language. [PNAS→]( [Why Superintelligent AI’s Arrival Won’t Surprise Us]( It’s been thought superintelligence might unpredictably emerge in language AIs like ChatGPT as they scale. Here’s why that’s unlikely. [NeurIPS 2023→]( [How Fogs Form in the Mountains]( Fog is the second most likely cause of weather-related aviation accidents behind strong winds. [American Meteorological Society→]( [Lack of Carbon in an Exoplanet Atmosphere May Be a Sign of Life]( The James Webb Telescope can already perform a search for missing carbon in some selected systems such as TRAPPIST-1. [Nature Astronomy→]( [The Times Sues OpenAI and Microsoft Over A.I. Use of Copyrighted Work]( Millions of articles from The New York Times were used to train chatbots that now compete with it, the lawsuit said. [The New York Times→]( [How Far Away Brain Regions Stay Connected]( Ripples, or high-frequency oscillations, traveling across the brain can bind distant neurons together, coordinating their firing. [PNAS→]( [The 200-Year Anniversary of Megalosaurus, the First Ever Dinosaur Discovery]( Charles Dickens imagined meeting a Megalosaurus on the muddy streets of London in the opening of his 1852 novel, Bleak House. [CNN→]( [What Was It Like When Life First Became Possible?]( Earth wasn't created until more than 9 billion years after the Big Bang. In some lucky places, life could have arisen almost right away. [Big Think→]( [Pique Your Curiosity]( The [Curiosity Box]( is the perfect subscription for deep thinkers. Satiate your curiosity with premium science toys, engaging experiments, and limited-edition collectibles delivered straight to your door four times per year. [Enjoy 30% off your first Curiosity Box]( with the code MERRY. [SHOP NOW]( WE ARE CURIOUS TO KNOW... Which of your New Year’s resolutions are you most excited about? Let us know! Reply to this newsletter with your response, briefly explaining your choice, and we’ll reveal the top answers. Top Answers to Our Previous Question (On What a Climate Apocalypse Might Look Like) - I don't think it would look very different from what we are already seeing—more numerous, more intense thunderstorms and cyclones, and huge swings between the highest and lowest temperatures by season, along with gradually worsening air quality. It's a bit like the proverbial frog in the pot of water—we notice something, but it's not rapid enough or intense enough to get us to change our behavior. – Christopher L. - Desertification, loss of the lungs of the Earth, the Amazon and various other tropical jungles replaced by palm oil and beef production. Inevitably CO2 rises, and I think we will soon be recording lower oxygen levels. A hotter Africa seems to me to mean crop failures and, inevitably, famines. – Jon P. - A climate apocalypse would look like hurricane driven winds causing monstrous waves to come crashing over the Pacific Northwest coast beaches and the urban sea walls shielding coastal areas of the Salish Sea in vain. In the background to this water hell are raging fires, burning even in the fog zone of coastal British Columbia and the Olympic Rain Forest of Washington. – Louise Manelia - Most people envision a long period of climate change, where the planet heats up slowly and the environment degrades little by little, but I think we’ll all be shocked when it suddenly collapses. I don’t know what the collapse will look like, but I think it will be dramatic and instantaneous. – James D. From The Porthole—short sharp looks at science [ZOOLOGY]( [Night Swimming]( Specialized underwater photographers reveal secrets of the sea’s flamboyant babies. BY SARAH GILMAN Just as many staid adults were once rebellious teenagers in interesting clothing, many marine fish species enter life as flamboyant larvae that bear little resemblance to their mature forms. [Keep on reading]( Apply to be a 2024 World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer The [World Economic]( Forum will select 100 leading technology start-ups to bring their cutting-edge insights to critical global discussions with business and government leaders. Applications for the 2024 Technology Pioneers Community cohort are [now open]( until January 31, 2024. [SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION]( Your free story this Tuesday! [ASTRONOMY]( [The Echoes of Light]( What astronomers see in the light bouncing across the universe. BY LIZ KRUESI Twenty years ago, Andrea Tiengo was a junior scientist watching data stream in from a distant space telescope. [Continue reading for free→]( EXCLUSIVE MEMBER CONTENT | [Explore Memberships→]( [Where Art Meets Science]( Our readers often tell us that our commitment to art and illustration is one of the most cherished parts of Nautilus. It’s a key ingredient in the special sauce that makes Nautilus and our community so unique—the recognition that art is another outlet for the creativity that drives our storytelling. With that in mind, we’ve got a gift you’re going to like: our favorite art platform, Colossal, is offering $25 towards a membership to their platform, exclusive to Nautilus members. Colossal is a leading contemporary art platform that celebrates the work of thousands of artists, many of whom are influenced by science. It’s an online gallery, where you’ll find rich stories behind the work and artists. Recently, they’ve featured [puzzles designed to mirror the rare element bismuth’s crystalline network](, [historic glass models of marine invertebrates,]( and [an ambitious project to photograph every edible plant seed in exquisite detail.]( This $25 credit is only available to Nautilus members, so [join Nautilus]( with any membership to claim yours. [JOIN NOW]( P.S. The writer and biochemist Isaac Asimov, famed for his science-fiction stories like I, Robot and the Foundation series, was born on this day in 1920. In Asimov’s story “The Mad Scientist,” Marco Altamirano wrote, he takes a shot at explaining the so-called “Tunguska event,” in which a mysteriously powerful shock wave—the largest in recorded history—leveled a forest [without leaving any trace]( of an impact crater. Today’s newsletter was written by Brian Gallagher Thanks for reading.[Tell us](mailto:brian.gallagher@nautil.us?subject=&body=) your thoughts on today’s note. Plus, [browse our archive]( of past print issues, and inspire a friend to sign up for [the Nautilus newsletter](. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( Copyright © 2023 NautilusNext, All rights reserved.You were subscribed to the newsletter from [nautil.us](. Our mailing address is: NautilusNext360 W 36th Street, 7S,New York, NY 10018 Don't want to hear from us anymore? [Unsubscribe](