Submission + - Genetically modified mosquitoes released in Florida Keys (nature.com)

Submitted by clovis
clovis writes: https://www.nature.com/article...
Aedes aegypti makes up about 4% of the mosquito population in the Keys, a chain of tropical islands off the southern tip of Florida. But it is responsible for practically all mosquito-borne disease transmitted to humans in the region, according to the Florida Keys Mosquito Control District (FKMCD), which is working closely with Oxitec on the project. In late April of this year, project researchers placed boxes containing Oxitec’s mosquito eggs at six locations in three areas of the Keys. The first males are expected to emerge within the first two weeks of May. About 12,000 males will exit the boxes each week over the next 12 weeks. In a second phase later this year, intended to collect even more data, nearly 20 million mosquitoes will emerge over a period of about 16 weeks, according to Oxitec.
There is the usual opposition of the "It's GMO, so it should not be done" variety.
As for ecological food chain considerations, one should know that aedes aegypti is not native to the western hemisphere. It is believed to have been imported from Africa during the slave trade era.

Submission + - School Apps Send Children's Info to Ad Networks (theregister.com)

Submitted by LeeLynx
LeeLynx writes: The Register reports:

The majority of Android and iOS apps created for US public and private schools send student data to assorted third parties, researchers have found, calling into question privacy commitments from Apple and Google as app store stewards.

The Me2B Alliance, a non-profit technology policy group, examined a random sample of 73 mobile applications used in 38 different schools across 14 US states and found 60 per cent were transmitting student data.

Submission + - Ancient Australian 'superhighways' suggested by massive supercomputing study (sciencemag.org)

Submitted by sciencehabit
sciencehabit writes: When humans first set foot in Australia more than 65,000 years ago, they faced the perilous task of navigating a landscape they’d never seen. Now, researchers have used supercomputers to simulate 125 billion possible travel routes and reconstruct the most likely “superhighways” these ancient immigrants used as they spread across the continent. The project offers new insight into how landmarks and water supplies shape human migrations, and provides archaeologists with clues for where to look for undiscovered ancient settlements.

“This is a really compelling illustration of the power of using these [simulation] techniques, at a huge, continental scale, to understand how people navigate landscapes,” says archaeologist Kyle Bocinsky of the University of Montana, Missoula. “It’s impressive, extreme computing.”

The authors hope other researchers will use their technique to map early migration routes across other continents, including North America. If they do, they could get more than just an understanding of past human migrations. The muscular digital tool could help researchers understand how future migrants might flee problems such as war and global warming.

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