This Feb. 4, 2026, image from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) captures a strong solar flare erupting from the star. Solar flares are powerful bursts of energy that can, along with other types of solar eruptions, impact radio communications, electric power grids, navigation signals, and pose risks to spacecraft and astronauts. The flare pictured was classified as an X4.2 flare. X-class denotes the most intense flares, while the number provides more information about its strength.
Image: Strong solar flare
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Researchers, including Professor of Management and Organization Reuben Hurst at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, have produced VRscores, an unprecedented public database for understanding the partisan lean of different employers [...]
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People who sign consent forms feel more trapped—not more empowered—than those who give consent verbally, according to new research by Vanessa Bohns, the Braunstein Family Professor in the ILR School, and co-author Roseanna Sommers of [...]
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Around the world, millions of families have suffered forcible separation, through war, trafficking, natural disasters, or socioeconomic crises. In China, family separation is a particularly large-scale and far-reaching problem. Following the enactment of the country’s [...]
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Informing people about political deepfakes through text-based information and interactive games both improve people’s ability to spot AI-generated video and audio that falsely depict politicians, according to a study my colleagues and I conducted.This post [...]
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Journalism in the United States is in crisis: Local newspapers are shuttering at an alarming rate, large cities that were once served by multiple daily local newspapers now barely sustain one or two major outlets, [...]
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Would you create an interactive “digital twin” of yourself that can communicate with loved ones after your death?This post was originally published on this site
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A new briefing paper produced by the London Social Media Observatory (LSMO) at Royal Holloway and Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) details emerging risks to democratic participation on TikTok. The LSMO and WFD brought together [...]
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The introduction of mandatory photo ID in the 2024 general election may not have provided the security boost promised by the government, new research suggests. Polling clerks operating during the UK’s first mandatory voter ID [...]
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Divisions within the US population on social and political issues have increased by 64% since 1988, with almost all this coming after 2008, according to a study tracking polarization from the end of the Reagan [...]
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City council public comment periods may focus on local issues, such as housing and public services. But new research from the University of Michigan shows they also serve as powerful forums for expressing broader societal [...]
