Abstracts: Rabies in Dogs, Honeyguides, Carbon Sink, and More
• Although rabies has been mostly eradicated in the United States, transmission from dog bites continues to kill 59,000 people a year, mostly in Africa and Asia. Now a researcher and his team have made it their goal to eradicate the disease in dogs by 2030. (Seattle Times)
• By 2018, the United States will have completed its first offshore wind farm in Lake Erie. (Pacific Standard)
• In order to get humans and technology to interact even more effectively, researchers are trying to give artificial intelligence emotions. (Popular Science)
• Scientists have determined that in Africa, humans and their honeyguides — birds that lead the way to the best beehives up in the trees — communicate through a specific set of sounds and gestures. (New York Times)
• One year after the Gold King Mine leaked toxic chemicals and turned the Animas River yellow, the incident has lead to an increased awareness of leaking mines around the country — but not to plugging up the Gold King itself. (Denver Post)
• Drought has killed off and slowed the growth of trees in the Amazon Basin, effectively shutting down the area’s capacity as a carbon sink. (BBC News)
• Our DNA already stores lots of information about us, and researchers hope to use that function to store digital memory as well. (Associated Press)
• Psychedelic drugs hold some promise for treating addiction, depression and anxiety. So why is there so little research on them? (Vox)
• And finally, a London-based technology firm has developed the first persistent Virtual Reality game, meaning that the game, MetaWorld, exists whether you are there or not. (New Scientist)