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Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, the birthplace of modern astrophysics, announced on May 10 the appointment of Dr. Amy Steele as its new Director of Astronomy and Research.

Coming to Yerkes from the Trottier Space Institute in Montréal, Quebec, Canada, Steele studies the building blocks of planets living around stars like our sun that have reached the final phase of their lives. She will begin her role in June, reporting to Yerkes’ Montgomery Foundation Deputy Director and Head of Science and Education Dr. Amanda Bauer.

“The opportunity to lead the direction of astronomy and research at Yerkes is a dream come true for me as an astronomer,” Steele said. “It is an honor to be able to work alongside an adventurous and passionate team who share the same love for this observatory and communion with the night sky. I am truly excited to collaborate with my colleagues and the Yerkes Future Foundation to inspire astronomers young and old, near and far, to follow their curiosity and chase their dreams.”

Two cases of highly contagious, drug-resistant ringworm infections have been detected in New York City — the first such cases reported in the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Thursday.

The infection was first identified in a 47-year-old woman who had developed a bad case of ringworm, also known as tinea, while traveling in Bangladesh.

A rash had erupted across most of her body and typical antifungal creams did nothing to alleviate it.

The new feature powered by online travel agent Hopper will roll out for users in the United Kingdom this summer.

Astronomers have created a stunning mosaic of baby star clusters hiding in our galactic backyard. The montage, published Thursday, reveals five vast stellar nurseries less than 1,500 light-years away. To come up with their atlas, scientists pieced together more than 1 million images taken over five years by the European Southern Observatory in Chile. The observatory’s infrared survey telescope was able to peer through clouds of dust and discern infant stars never seen before. Researchers say the observations will help them better understand how stars evolve from dust.

Helion Energy has announced that Microsoft will become its first customer, in a deal that aims to supply 50 MW of fusion power by 2028.

Assembled electromagnetic coils that will be used in Helion’s 7th fusion prototype, Polaris. (Photo: Business Wire)

Continue reading “Helion aims for commercial fusion by 2028” »

Canada’s largest oilsands companies under the umbrella of the Pathways Alliance are accused of greenwashing and making false environmental claims. via @torontostar

Greenpeace Canada alleges the consortium’s ad campaign, “Let’s clear the air,” is greenwashing — when a company makes false or misleading claims about the environmental attributes of their business.

“Our request to the Competition Bureau regarding the Pathways Alliance’s misleading ad campaign was accepted and has set off an official inquiry into the dubious advertising practices of the Pathways Alliance,” Greenpeace Canada’s senior researcher and writer, Nola Poirier, said in a statement. “We think the public deserves to be told the truth about the environmental harm caused by fossil fuel production, not fed misleading sound bites by industry.”

Continue reading “Canada’s largest oilsands companies being investigated over allegations they made false environmental claims” »

AIOps platform Avantra has launched a new cloud edition for RISE with SAP. A SAP product, RISE with SAP helps companies to get started with cloud SAP solutions. Avantra’s new offering with help RISE customers to automate cloud, on-premise, and third-party operation activities for migrating their business operations to the cloud.

The Avantra cloud edition for RISE with SAP will offer a single point of access to services like configuration management for regulated industries, one-off services, and cloud application services, along with offering operating data. In addition, the new edition will support over 100 services for customers to manage data files, determine security requirements, and perform end-to-end application monitoring.

“At a time when more and more companies are looking at enterprise-wide digital transformation and wanting to connect rather than isolate operations, impeding the ability to optimise hybrid operations presents a significant barrier to business advancement. We developed a Cloud edition designed to work with RISE with SAP to remove this barrier, recognising that this need is not likely to go away any time soon,” said John Appleby, chief executive officer, Avantra.

Marketing and business. In marketing, businesses can use art and science to create compelling, memorable and emotionally resonant campaigns. By leveraging scientific knowledge of consumer behavior and psychology and using art to create visually striking and emotionally engaging advertisements, businesses can create marketing campaigns that are both effective and memorable.

Artificial intelligence (AI). AI design involves scientific research to develop algorithms and models that simulate human intelligence and decision-making. However, AI design requires artistic input to create user interfaces, visualizations and other interactive features that engage users and make AI more accessible. For example, an AI-powered virtual assistant may require an appealing visual interface to help users interact with the system more efficiently, such as graphic design, animation and other visual arts, to create a user-friendly pleasing interface. Moreover, AI-powered applications and systems can incorporate creative design and artistry elements to enhance functionality and appeal (generative AI algorithms can generate music or art or analyze and interpret cultural trends and patterns.)

The intersection of scientific research and art is exciting for generating novel business ideas. By bringing together different perspectives and skill sets, it is possible to create a more comprehensive and innovative approach to problem-solving. Whether through interdisciplinary research or using art as a tool for communication, the possibilities for collaboration are endless. The art of innovation is not about creating something out of nothing but finding new and unexpected ways to combine existing elements. By embracing the intersection of science and art, we can unlock a wealth of possibilities for the future of business by leading in new business ideas leveraging on new technologies, materials and creative solutions to problems. The integration of these domains enables the formation of groundbreaking and lucrative business concepts that can revolutionize industries and enhance individuals’ well-being.

Elon Musk broke ground on a facility that’s unique among U.S. automakers.