The rise of AI is accompanied by increased carbon emissions and increased demand for electricity. Analysts predict that AI could increase data center energy consumption by 160% over the next decade. So how worried should we be? Editor-in-Chief David Lotman, senior AI reporter Melissa Heikkila, and senior energy editor James Temple explore the energy tradeoffs associated with AI.
CRISPR Babies: 6 years later
Gene editing can modify or improve the DNA of human embryos, potentially opening the door to the “technological evolution” of humanity. But in 2018, a premature attempt to use the technology in this way resulted in a prison sentence for the researcher involved, He Jiankui. Editor-in-Chief Matt Honan and Biomedical Senior Editor Antonio Regalado sit down with He, a biophysicist and creator of the first gene-edited human, to discuss this controversial technology and in-vitro We revisited the future of editing in fertility clinics.
Why are thermal batteries attracting so much attention now?
Thermal batteries could become an important part of heavy industrial cleanup. Executive Editor Amy Nordrum and Senior Climate Reporter Casey Crownhart discuss what we can expect next from this emerging technology. This technology was also voted the 11th Breakthrough Technology of 2024 by our readers.