Climate warming increases extreme daily wildfire growth risk in California

Climate warming makes extreme daily wildfires more likely in California. The study focuses on wildfires in California, which have become more extreme in recent years. While climate change plays a role, it’s hard to measure how much. Using machine learning, the researchers found that temperature affects wildfire risk mainly by drying out the fuel (vegetation)….

Eye-Tracking–Based Measurement of Social Visual Engagement Compared With Expert Clinical Diagnosis of Autism

Watching where kids look with their eyes can help diagnose autism, comparing it to expert clinical diagnosis. A recent study looked at whether tracking where a child looks with their eyes could help diagnose autism in young children. They tested this on 475 kids between 16 and 30 months old at specialty clinics. The results…

Single-Dose Psilocybin Treatment for Major Depressive Disorder

One-time psilocybin treatment for depression A study investigated the effectiveness and safety of psilocybin, a compound found in certain mushrooms, for treating major depressive disorder. In a controlled trial with 104 adults, a 25-mg dose of psilocybin, when combined with psychological support, resulted in a significant and enduring improvement in depressive symptoms compared to a…

Intensive vs Conventional Blood Pressure Lowering After Endovascular Thrombectomy in Acute Ischemic Stroke The OPTIMAL-BP Randomized Clinical Trial

OPTIMAL-BP trial compared intense vs. conventional blood pressure lowering after stroke thrombectomy. The study asked whether aggressively lowering blood pressure shortly after successfully opening blocked blood vessels in acute stroke patients is beneficial. They found that 39.4% of patients with aggressive blood pressure management (aiming for lower levels) achieved functional independence after three months, compared…

Molecular mechanism of de novo replication by the Ebola virus polymerase

Certain viruses like Ebola, rabies, and respiratory viruses can cause serious illnesses in both humans and animals, leading to significant health and economic challenges worldwide. These viruses rely on a specific protein called L polymerase for their replication. Researchers studied the Ebola virus as an example and discovered that the L polymerase’s replication process is…

Second-Best Fairness: The Trade-off between False Positives and False Negatives

In economics, a key question is how to create effective policies when things aren’t perfect. This often means balancing between helping some who may not entirely deserve it (false positives) and not helping others who may deserve it (false negatives). This study, conducted in the United States and Norway through large-scale experiments, reveals that most…

The Macroeconomics of the Greek Depression

Greece underwent a substantial economic boom until 2007, followed by a profound and enduring economic collapse. A detailed analysis employing a dynamic general equilibrium model revealed that the boom in production was primarily fueled by external demand and government consumption, while increased transfers contributed to higher consumption. Contrary to conventional expectations, both wages and prices…

Market Structure, Oligopsony Power, and Productivity

The study looks at how a regulation in the Chinese tobacco industry, which consolidated ownership and increased the power of a few buyers, affected efficiency and income distribution. The research shows that when some materials are unique and can’t be easily replaced, it’s difficult to measure the impact of price changes on products and productivity….

A Road to Efficiency through Communication and Commitment

This study explores a new way to improve cooperation in a coordination game called the minimum-effort game. In this game, coordination problems often happen. The researchers introduced a novel rule where players can talk to each other while making commitments step by step. This approach has a unique prediction: it should lead to the best…

Imperfect Financial Markets and Investment Inefficiencies

This study looks at how noisy information affects investment decisions. It finds that in imperfect markets, people tend to invest too much in things that could bring big gains and not enough in things that might lead to losses. This happens even more when it’s easy to make bigger investments. However, when we look at…