Finishing | Zhou Shuyi, Wangxiang
Microsoft and OpenAI plan to spend $100 billion to build AI data centers
According to The Information, citing three people familiar with the matter, Microsoft and OpenAI executives are discussing to build a super-large global data center project, which is expected to cost up to $115 billion, about three times Microsoft's capital expenditure last year and 100 times the existing largest data center. The project will include an AI supercomputer, tentatively named Stargate (a device capable of making galaxies flip away) and, if all goes well, is expected to be operational in 2028 to cope with the current surge in demand for computing power from artificial intelligence.
It is reported that Microsoft is a possible financier, and "Stargate" will enable Microsoft's computing power to OpenAI to achieve an exponential increase. The project is divided into five phases, the fifth of which is "Stargate". At present, Microsoft and OpenAI are in the third phase, and most of the expenses in the next two phases will be mainly used to purchase AI chips. Microsoft is actively working on a smaller, Phase 4 supercomputer for OpenAI, which is scheduled to be officially launched around 2026 in Pleasant Hill, Wisconsin. Pleasant）。
Stargate faces a number of technical challenges, with its power requirements at least billions of watts, equivalent to the power required by multiple large data centers combined. In addition, current designs require the integration of far more GPUs in a single rack than are typically required, creating a thorny thermal problem. Microsoft and OpenAI have also been at odds over how millions of GPUs should be interconnected. It has been revealed that OpenAI has made it clear that it does not want to use Nvidia's proprietary InfiniBand solution, and that they prefer to reduce their dependence on Nvidia and use the more general-purpose Ethernet.
Microsoft spokesman Frank Shaw did not comment directly in response to media inquiries, but he stressed in a statement: "We have been planning for the next generation of infrastructure innovations to continue to push the frontier of AI capabilities." An OpenAI spokesperson did not comment.
What time is it above the Moon? NASA will set the time standard for the Moon
According to Reuters, on April 2, local time, a memo from Arati Prabhakar, head of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), showed that the White House instructed NASA to work with other departments to develop Coordinated Lunar Time (LTC) by the end of 2026 to establish a unified time standard for the Moon and other celestial bodies. According to the report, in the context of increasingly fierce competition between countries and private companies for lunar exploration, the initiative aims to formulate international norms in space.
The Moon and other celestial bodies have different speeds of time than the Earth due to differences in gravitational attraction and other factors. Moon time is on average 58.7 microseconds faster per Earth day compared to Earth. White House officials said that without a unified lunar time standard, it will be difficult to ensure the security of data transmission between spacecraft and to ensure the synchronization of communications between the Earth, lunar satellites, bases and astronauts. According to OSTP officials, it may be necessary to deploy atomic clocks on the surface of the moon. According to the memo, how to implement the coordination of lunar time will require a series of international agreements through "existing standards bodies".
There is now the first case of "cattle-to-human" avian influenza in the United States
On April 1, local time, the Texas Department of Health and Human Services (DSHS) reported the first case of "cattle-to-human" avian influenza, which is also the second case of human infection with H5N1 avian influenza virus in the United States.
In a statement, DSHS said the infected had had direct contact with cows presumed to be infected with avian influenza and subsequently developed only mild conjunctivitis (symptoms of red eyes). The patient is confirmatory by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and is receiving anti-influenza therapy.
The infection involved the H5N1 avian influenza virus clade 2.3.4.4b. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has confirmed that the virus has spread in cattle herds in Texas, Kansas, New Mexico and Michigan, as well as a suspected outbreak at a dairy farm in Idaho. Wild bird carcasses found on some farms may be the source of the virus, contaminating feed and water sources.
The CDC said that the risk to public health from avian influenza is low, and the case does not change this risk assessment. Tests have shown that the virus has not mutated to which humans are susceptible, but people in close or long-term contact with infected poultry are at relatively high risk of infection, and appropriate precautions should be taken.
The H5N1 avian influenza virus usually infects wild birds and can be transmitted to poultry and other animals. The virus can occasionally infect people, but human-to-human transmission is extremely rare. DSHS says cows infected with the virus will not have an impact on the commercial milk supply.
Link to report: https://www.dshs.texas.gov/news-alerts/dshs-reports-first-human-case-avian-influenza-texas
RNA lives far longer than you think
Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is involved in a variety of biological processes within the cell, such as messenger RNA (mRNA), which carries genetic information derived from the coding strand of DNA and can be used as a template to guide translation to produce proteins with specific amino acid sequences. RNA molecules often require dynamic replacement compared to stable DNA molecules, and their "life cycles" are much shorter. Previous studies have shown that mRNA has a half-life of only a few minutes to a few hours, and even relatively "stable" ribosomal RNA (rRNA) can only last a few days.
A study published April 4 in Science shattered the conventional impression that RNA was "short-lived." Researchers have discovered a special class of "long-lived RNAs" in the nuclei of neurons in mice that can remain stable throughout the life of mice. This is the first time that an RNA molecule has been found in mammals that can remain stable throughout life.
The new study fluorescently labels RNA molecules in mouse brains to track the RNA life cycle based on the fluorescence signal. It was found that a batch of RNA molecules persisted since birth in mice, with concentrations only slightly decreasing one year after birth compared to newborns, and these RNA molecules were still detectable even two years later. Given that the typical lifespan of mice is 2.5 years, it is likely that these RNA molecules remain stable throughout their lives. Further studies have shown that long-lived RNAs are composed of both mRNA and non-coding RNAs, located in the nucleus, and mainly aggregated near the heterochromatin regions of the genome. Due to their structural protection in the nucleus, they are not as susceptible to ribonucleases as RNA molecules in the cytoplasm.
A ball-and-stick model of mRNA with gray balls representing carbon atoms, red balls representing oxygen atoms, blue balls representing nitrogen atoms, and orange balls representing phosphorus atoms Source: Wikipedia
It has been found that decreased levels of long-lived RNA can lead to problems with heterochromatin structure and stability of genetic material, ultimately affecting cell viability. However, there are still many missing links in how these RNAs interact with heterochromatin and affect genome stability, and the researchers say it will be a puzzle they plan to solve in the future. (WuXi AppTec)
Paper link: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adf3481
New research reveals the mystery of bird evolution
About 66 million years ago, during the transition period from the Cretaceous to the Paleogene (K-Pg boundary), a catastrophic extinction event led to the extinction of all non-avian dinosaurs, and birds are the only surviving lineage of dinosaurs today. The new bird class, also known as the new bird, is the main group of birds today, accounting for about 95% of the living birds. They were born out of a rapidly radiative evolution event, and there has been some debate about whether this event preceded or followed the K–Pg extinction event.
Birds reproduced and differentiated rapidly after the dinosaur mass extinction event (Chen Xing, Liu Ye, UnexpectedDinoLesson, Jon Fjeldså et al.)| Source: Center for the Study of Life Evolution, Zhejiang University
A study published in Nature on April 2 reconstructed the phylogenetic tree of living birds based on genome-wide alignment data of 363 species of birds, and proposed a new set of bird taxonomic divisions, dividing the new bird subclasses into four branches: miracle birds (Phoenicopterimorphae), pigeon bustards (Columbaves), land birds (Telluraves) and elementaves (Elementaves).
Miracle birds include flamingos and pì tī, pigeon bustards include pigeons, bustards and cuckoos, and land birds include Australaves (the former) and African birds (Afroaves) which include birds, parrots, cranes and falcons, and the latter include sea eagles, eagles, American eagles, chī xiāo and woodpeckers. Elemental birds are a new group proposed in this study, including penguins, loons, albatross and other herons (Phaethoquornithes), cranes (Cursorimorphae) birds (Cursorimorphae), as well as musk pheasants that are mainly active on land, as well as nightjars and swifts that are more active in the sky.
Schematic diagram of the phylogenetic relationships of new birds. The left picture shows the new phylogenetic relationship, and the right picture shows the previous phylogenetic relationship, and the dotted line and the color block line indicate the change between the old and new phylogenetic relationships (Josefin Stiller and Chen Guangji)| Source: Center for the Study of Life Evolution, Zhejiang University
Based on the above-mentioned phylogenetic time tree of birds, the new study supports the idea that a large number of new bird populations underwent rapid radiative evolution after the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary. In addition, the study found that after the mass extinction event, the effective population size of early new birds expanded dramatically, the base substitution rate and relative brain volume increased dramatically, while the body weight decreased dramatically. This also supports the hypothesis that the diversification of new birds is a rapid radiative evolution in response to emerging ecological niches. According to the researchers, the new study clarifies the relationship between different groups of living birds, laying the foundation for a correct understanding of the evolution of bird species and complex traits.
Link to paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07323-1
Global e-waste is surging, with less than 1/4 being recycled
According to the Global E-Waste Monitor report recently released by the International Telecommunication Union and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, a total of 62 million tons of e-waste were generated worldwide in 2022, of which less than one-quarter was recycled.
In 2022, about 14 million tons of e-waste were generated in the Americas, of which about 4.3 million tons were recycled, with a recovery rate of about 30%, about 30 million tons of e-waste were generated in Asia, of which about 3.6 million tons were recycled, with a recycling rate of about 12%, about 1.3 million tons of e-waste were generated in Europe, with a recycling rate of 42.8%, and about 707,000 tons of e-waste were generated in Oceania, of which about 292,000 tons were recycled, with a recycling rate of 41.4%. About 3.5 million tonnes of e-waste is generated in Africa, but only 25,000 tonnes have been recorded to be formally recycled, with a recycling rate of about 0.7%.
Source: AvWijk
In addition, a total of 5.1 million tonnes of e-waste were transferred across borders in 2022. Of these, an estimated 3.3 million tonnes are transported across borders from high-income countries to low- and middle-income countries through uncontrolled routes, accounting for 65% of the total global cross-border flows of e-waste.
The report predicts that by 2030, e-waste generation will increase by 33% compared to 2022 to 82 million tons, but the global e-waste recycling rate will fall to 20% by 2030. The report highlights that if countries can increase the recycling rate of e-waste to 60% by 2030, it will generate more than $38 billion in economic benefits such as reducing risks to human health.
Growing a "mini-liver" in the lymph nodes
On April 2, biotech company LyGenesis announced that its "first-in-class" regenerative cell therapy has dosed its first patient in a Phase 2a clinical trial. This therapy uses a minimally invasive endoscopic ultrasound to transplant liver cells from healthy donors into the lymph nodes of patients with end-stage liver disease (ESLD), with the goal of growing multiple "mini-livers" in the lymph nodes to compensate for the function of the damaged liver and save the patient's life. LyGenesis chief executive officer Michael Hufford said the patient was treated on March 25 and is recovering well and has now been discharged.
患者接受的供体肝细胞 | 来源：LyGenesis
The clinical trial was approved by the U.S. FDA in 2020 and plans to enroll 12 ESLD patients by mid-2025 with results published in 2026. Each patient was followed up for 1 year after treatment to assess the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of the therapy. The trial will also help determine the ideal number of "mini-livers" needed to stabilize a patient's health. Currently, the first group of treated patients will be injected with 50 million hepatocytes in a single lymph node, the second group of patients will be injected with a total of 150 million hepatocytes in 3 lymph nodes, and the third group of patients will be injected with a total of 250 million cells in 5 lymph nodes, if it is proven to be safe.
Lymph nodes, which are part of the immune system that help fight infections and filter blood like the liver, are ideal sites for growing mini-livers, Hufford said. In addition, adults have hundreds of lymph nodes in their bodies, and repurposing several of them for other purposes will not have much of an impact on their overall functioning. With the new treatment, the amount of cells provided by a single liver donor can treat dozens of ESLD patients, which is expected to alleviate the current shortage of transplanted organs.
LyGenesis研发管线 | 来源:LyGenesis
These "mini-livers" do not solve all the complications of ESLD, and LyGenesis wants to use them as a stopgap measure to help ESLD patients wait for a suitable organ donor, or to improve their health so that they can receive an organ transplant. LyGenesis also plans to use this technology to grow kidney and pancreatic cells in lymph nodes, which is expected to be used to treat other related diseases.
This article is supported by the Science China Star Program
Producer: Science Popularization Department of China Association for Science and Technology
Producer: China Science and Technology Press Co., Ltd., Beijing Zhongke Xinghe Culture Media Co., Ltd
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