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Kathryn Hulick

@kathrynhulick.substack.com
2.2K followers 2K following 184 posts

Science journalist and author of THE UFO FILES (Quarto, 2025). I talk about AI, fascinating research, and walks in the woods. Anything that makes me say “wow!” She/her

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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 22/09/2026
Very cool finding! The brain is likely two organs that evolved separately: “We've shown for the first time that the front of the brain arises from a totally different progenitor cell than the back of the brain.” — Kyle Loh, Stanford Medicine 🧪 med.stanford.edu/news/all-new...
med.stanford.edu
Human brain is two separate organs, Stanford Medicine-led research finds
Stanford Health Care delivers the highest levels of care and compassion. SHC treats cancer, heart disease, brain disorders, primary care issues, and many more.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 20/07/2026
We have a family of barred owls living in our yard. We see and hear them every day. I drew one of the young ones! Colored pencil on paper. substack.com/@kathrynhuli...
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Wellesley Centers for Women @wcwonline.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
Senior Research Scientist Linda Charmaraman, Ph.D. is featured in a @snexplores.bsky.social article by @kathrynhulick.substack.com on a new study showing that more than half of US teens use AI-based chatbots to complete their homework. Read here: www.snexplores.org/article/teen... #edusky #edtech
IN THE NEWS
At least half of U.S. teens use chatbots for homework and more
IN THE NEWS
‘More than half of U.S. teens use AI, according to the survey — mainly to get information or help with schoolwork. Dharunish says he and his friends often use AI to walk them through solving difficult problems in math or chemistry. “I find it really helpful,” he says, “because I learn a new way to do a problem.” However, he adds, “I never let the AI do all the work for me.”


Not all students take that approach. Six in 10 of the surveyed teens say students at their school cheat with AI, using it either somewhat often or very often.’
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 11/06/2026
“The best way that AI can be useful in research is to explore a thousand dead ends just to find this every-once-in-a-while connection that humans had missed,” Thomas Bloom told me. But there are risks to using AI for math. Read more in @sciencenews.bsky.social 🧪 www.sciencenews.org/article/ai-g...
sciencenews.org
An AI math breakthrough sparks calls for new guardrails
The result is correct but challenges core norms of mathematics: checking proofs, crediting ideas and keeping research open to everyone.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 03/06/2026
Did you know that the world's rarest wolf lives only in North Carolina? I wrote about this species and a wildlife crossing being built to help protect it for Sierra Magazine 🧪 www.sierraclub.org/sierra/new-r...
sierraclub.org
New Road Crossings Help Save World’s Rarest Wolf
Design work is underway on the project in North Carolina’s Alligator River Wildlife Refuge
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Alisa Bokulich @alisabokulich.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Follow @reckoningscience.org for insightful stories about science by @naomioreskes.bsky.social, @kaurov.org & colleagues #HPS 🧪 #STS
Screenshot text: "We, Naomi Oreskes and Sasha Kaurov, are here to launch Reckoning Science.
We hope to create a space for an in-depth, no-holds-barred discussion of science. In the current moment, many people are defending an ideal of science that is not necessarily consistent with the state of science today. We believe in science-the beauty of its achievements and its human stories-but we also think we need to be
honest about the messiness and its real and consequential entanglements with politics, money, and power.
This publication is for readers who do science, care about science, or rely on science—in other words, everyone. That includes scientists, educators, journalists, policymakers, and well-informed (or not-so-well-informed) members of the public who want to better understand or assess the state of science in today's society."
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 04/05/2026
Happy Star Wars day! Throwback to this radio interview I did about alien life and why we wonder so much about what’s out there (in a galaxy long ago and far away, perhaps?) open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
Why do we wonder about life beyond Earth?
I was on the radio this morning!
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 02/05/2026
My challenge for you today: go outside and notice something amazing. Share a picture or description. 🍃 🌼 🦎 open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
Ferns, flowers, and whorls
I’ve been posting a lot of science and tech news lately.
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WIRED @wired.com · 29/04/2026
“Never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures unless it is absolutely and unambiguously relevant,” reads OpenAI's coding agent instructions. www.wired.com/story/openai...
wired.com
OpenAI Really Wants Codex to Shut Up About Goblins
“Never talk about goblins, gremlins, raccoons, trolls, ogres, pigeons, or other animals or creatures unless it is absolutely and unambiguously relevant,” reads OpenAI's coding agent instructions.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 30/04/2026
Can AI really reason like a doctor? Read my new story for Science News 🧪 www.sciencenews.org/article/ai-h...
sciencenews.org
Can AI help doctors avoid missed diagnoses? A new study suggests yes
AI may help doctors avoid missed diagnoses, but it still needs real-world testing and human oversight before it can guide patient care.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 23/04/2026
What makes you say “Wow”? That’s where you start your science storytelling. And that’s just one tip I shared in a talk last week about science communication, hosted by APS. www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_8g...
youtube.com
Public Engagement Community Hour with Kathryn Hulick, April 2026
YouTube video by American Physical Society
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Nicole Gugliucci @noisyastronomer.com · 12/04/2026
Hey all! I'm doing a little segment with @nhpr.org called "Cosmically Curious." You'll hear from me or one of my awesome astronomy colleagues in New Hampshire every week. www.nhpr.org/show/cosmica... 🎢🔭
nhpr.org
Cosmically Curious
NHPR is proud to announce the launch of Cosmically Curious, a new space-focused segment hosted by Patrick McNameeKing. It's all about celebrating the night sky with a healthy dose of joy, curiosity an...
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 09/04/2026
Are you a scientist or academic? Join me next week at the APS Public Engagement Community Hour. I’m a children's book author & journalist. I'll be sharing how to make your science communication spark & sizzle! 🧪 🗓 April 16 ⏰ 12-1:30 p.m. ET Register for free: apsphysics.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
Author Kathryn Hulick sitting on rocks by a lake with a pensive pose.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 08/04/2026
It’s my birthday today and I get the gift of breathtaking images of Earth setting and an eclipse seen from the dark side of the moon! 🌖 Thank you NASA and the Artemis II crew. 🧪 open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
Earthset and an eclipse from the moon
Wow!
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 02/04/2026
I wrote about Moltbook and the weird world of AI agent teams for Science News. AI agents often don't work well together, it turns out, but you can wrangle them if you know what you're doing. 🧪 open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
The weird world of AI agent teams
Behind the scenes at a bot-run social network, company, and science lab
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 20/03/2026
How long have you been scrolling just now? If you don’t know, that could be a problem… learn about the science of brain rot in my new story for teens 🧪: www.snexplores.org/article/brai...
snexplores.org
Got brain rot?
Excessive scrolling through social media or viral videos can mess with your mental health — and possibly alter your brain’s development, studies show.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 23/02/2026
Did you know that trapdoor spiders weave secret lairs? Or that mangrove trees build new land? See what I drew and learned on a trip to the rainforest of Costa Rica. 🇨🇷 open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
Art and science in Costa Rica
5 interesting nature facts and a look at my drawings
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 11/02/2026
I created an activity to teach science vocab! 🔬📚 Students pick a tricky science word from my book THE UFO FILES, dig into its meaning, then create a short video, reel, or poster to teach it. patriciamnewman.com?p=13207 #STEMed #LitLinks #EduSky @patricianewman.bsky.social
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 05/02/2026
Today, I volunteered as a virtual visiting author for #WorldReadAloudDay at six classrooms around the USA. I read from my book THE UFO FILES and talked about becoming an author. But first, I test your wits with a space quiz. Ready? Let's go! 👽 open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
Happy World Read Aloud Day!
Try a space quiz and listen to me read from The UFO Files!
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 22/01/2026
I both love and hate this robot hand... the nerd in me thinks it's such a cool idea for a hand to detach and wander around, using its fingers like tentacles. But it also totally creeps me out! Anyone else? #robotics 🧪 www.sciencenews.org/article/deta...
sciencenews.org
This detached hand robot has a thing for skittering on its fingertips
The robot can bend, grasp and carry in ways humans can’t, which could help it navigate spaces too confined for human arms.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 09/01/2026
This is such a cool story about the brain science of hypnotism! www.snexplores.org/article/hypn... 🧪
snexplores.org
Hypnosis isn’t magic. It’s the brain at work
While we still don’t know much about how hypnosis works, it appears to help some people conquer pain, anxiety and other problems.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 23/12/2025
Merry T-reX-mas! 🦖 As a gift, I'm sharing an excerpt from my book, Welcome to the Future, about whether it might ever be possible to have a pet dinosaur... (because it worked out so well in Jurassic Park, right?) 🦕 Read the book excerpt: kathrynhulick.substack.com/p/merry-t-re...
kathrynhulick.substack.com
Merry T-ReX-mas!
Santa, what big teeth you have...
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Jarome Ali 🇹🇹 🏳️‍🌈 @jarome.bsky.social · 19/11/2025
Why did I only just find out that that there are water striders that live IN (ON!!) THE OPEN OCEAN? 🧪 OCEAN STRIDERS!!
journals.plos.org
Why did only one genus of insects, Halobates, take to the high seas?
Oceans cover over 70% of the earth’s surface and house a dizzying array of organisms, including five species of the peppercorn-sized ocean-skater Halobates, which live exclusively at the ocean surface...
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The Kavli Foundation @kavlifoundation.org · 01/11/2025
AI tools like DeepLabCut and SuperAnimal are changing how scientists study movement, helping them understand how brain activity drives behavior. Read more: bit.ly/4qnX7JF @trackingactions.bsky.social @deeplabcut.bsky.social
bit.ly
How AI Is Changing Neuroscience Discovery
AI is altering how scientists study the brain
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 05/11/2025
So... recently I got to speak on a panel at MIT! The conversation centered on storytelling, ethics, and humanity in AI development. Here are the main points I made: kathrynhulick.substack.com/p/i-spoke-ab...
kathrynhulick.substack.com
I spoke about AI at an MIT conference
Here's one of the key points I made about young people and AI: The real world and real human voices matter. All AI should be in service to what real people care about learning, expressing, and experie...
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 15/10/2025
This is a cool computer science story about a new method to find the shortest path between two points. “This thing might as well have been discovered 50 years ago, but it wasn’t” - Mikkel Thorup 🧪 www.quantamagazine.org/new-method-i...
quantamagazine.org
New Method Is the Fastest Way To Find the Best Routes | Quanta Magazine
A canonical problem in computer science is to find the shortest route to every point in a network. A new approach beats the classic algorithm taught in textbooks.
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Pierre-François Lenne @pflenne.bsky.social · 11/10/2025
Appreciate Quanta for shining a light on our joint work with Simon Gsell, Sham Tlili (@shamtlili.bsky.social), and Matthias Merkel (@merkellab.bsky.social).
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Anne Carpenter @drannecarpenter.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
15 years in the making, we confirmed that mitochondria - the powerhouse of the cell - have an unusual localization in patients who experience psychosis (including schizophrenia and bipolar disorders). You’ll never guess what kind of patient cells we used to make this discovery… 🧵
mitochondria from bipolar patients are closer to the nucleus in these images; control patients' are spread out further
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 03/10/2025
Welcome, fall! 🍁🍃
Leaves with rounded edges in strong light some
Orange some yellow some greenTall yellow blades of grass in front of a lake in bright sunlightAutumn trees in strong backlight with long shadows by a lake
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 30/09/2025
My latest story in Science News. 🧪 “Even when [side effects] can be rare, when they happen to you, it means all the world,” says public health researcher John Ayers.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 30/09/2025
This is starting in 15 minutes! Listen to me and several other experts tell stories about inventions.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 25/09/2025
Scientists are using AI to understand animal communication. Fact or fiction? It's actually true! A new activity I wrote to go along with my new book The UFO Files helps students use critical thinking to check facts: www.patriciamnewman.com/litlinks-tru... @patricianewman.bsky.social
patriciamnewman.com
LitLinks: True story or science fiction? How to find the truth! - Patricia Newman
An alien spacecraft has arrived on Earth, carrying intelligent beings. Is this a true story or science fiction?
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Rebecca R Helm @rebeccarhelm.bsky.social · 24/09/2025
I get that the news cycle is packed right now, but I just heard from a colleague at the Smithsonian that this is fully a GIANT SQUID BEING EATEN BY A SPERM WHALE and it’s possibly the first ever confirmed video according to a friend at NOAA 10 YEAR OLD ME IS LOSING HER MIND (a thread 🧵)
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 23/09/2025
My latest story for Science News covers a really interesting experimental computer chip. It reuses energy that typical chips waste as heat: www.sciencenews.org/article/comp... If this scales up, it could help make AI cheaper and more efficient. 🧪 @sciencenews.bsky.social
sciencenews.org
This experimental computer chip reuses energy
A first-of-its-kind test shows that reusing energy within a computer chip can work, thanks to two techy tricks.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 18/09/2025
I did a lot of colored pencil drawing this summer. Here are some of my favorites 🍃 open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
Colored pencil drawing of a tree held in handColored pencil drawing of a misty morning on a lakeColored pencil drawing of trees in front of a lake with a white dogYellow leaf lying on top of a drawing of that leaf
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Project CETI @projectceti.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Thank you @sierramagazine.bsky.social and @kathrynhulick.substack.com for highlighting our work!🐋Read the quote from Daniela Rus (@csail.mit.edu), PI on CETI Machine Learning and Robotics Team and more in the piece “Could AI Help Humanity Understand Whales?” here: bit.ly/45tksRL 📸: Arun Madisetti
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 10/09/2025
"Inventions almost always inspire curiosity since they – by their nature – have never existed before." I'm excited to be on this upcoming panel discussing invention and innovation, hosted by @ecornellonline.bsky.social September 30, 1pm ET, free to attend 🧪 ecornell.cornell.edu/keynotes/ove...
ecornell.cornell.edu
Keynote: Inventions | eCornell
Be Informed. Be Inspired. Experience the Best of Cornell, Live and On Demand.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 07/09/2025
It wasn’t even on my bucket list… but just checked off “triathlon in the pouring rain” 🌧️ 😅
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 06/09/2025
I’m here at Word on the Street until noon for an author talk and book signing! For my new book The UFO Files. Hope to see you. @quartokids.bsky.social www.quarto.com/books/978071...
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 05/09/2025
Do you wish we had holograms or helper robots in our daily lives? What might future tech be like? Here’s my latest story for kids and teens, out this week in @snexplores.bsky.social 🧪 www.snexplores.org/article/futu...
snexplores.org
Get a sneak peek at the tech you may use in the future
Holograms, 3-D printed clothing, personal robots — these technologies and more might one day transform your daily life.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 05/09/2025
Will we ever have robots doing our laundry or hologram conversations? Will we design and 3D print clothes and shoes at home? Read my new feature for @snexplores.bsky.social about tech that could change our daily lives: www.snexplores.org/article/futu...
snexplores.org
Get a sneak peek at the tech you may use in the future
Holograms, 3-D printed clothing, personal robots — these technologies and more might one day transform your daily life.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 26/08/2025
Ooh I just found out about #InverteFest - perfect time to share this oddly mutated lady crab we found earlier this summer! Folks on iNaturalist were very excited about it: www.inaturalist.org/observations... 🦀
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 26/08/2025
When tech reads your thoughts, hopefully it won't read out ALL of them! Researchers had subjects imagine the password "Chitty chitty bang bang” to activate a mental speech decoder. 🧪https://arstechnica.com/science/2025/08/an-inner-speech-decoder-reveals-some-mental-privacy-issues/
arstechnica.com
An inner-speech decoder reveals some mental privacy issues
Words you’ll never speak still cause activity in the brain’s speech centers.
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Melissa Stewart @mstewartscience.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
Wow, my upcoming book From Bam to Burp! was included in this list of recommended titles in yesterday's @washingtonpost.com book section! Thank you, librarians! tinyurl.com/yc53ahvf @charlesbridge.bsky.social @steamteambooks.bsky.social #edusky #kidlit
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 25/08/2025
What's your favorite alien story? This morning I appeared WNPR's "Where We Live" to talk about my kids book The UFO Files and why people find the possibility of alien life so fascinating. Listen to the show: www.ctpublic.org/show/where-w... @quartokids.bsky.social
ctpublic.org
Looking up: Why we wonder about life beyond Earth
From movies to mysterious lights in the sky, the possibility of life beyond Earth sparks endless curiosity. This hour, we dive into why we love to imagine alien life.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 21/08/2025
I'll be on the radio Monday morning! Tune in to WNPR at 9am on 8/25 to hear me talk about the possibility of alien life and my new book The UFO Files: www.ctpublic.org/show/where-w...
ctpublic.org
Where We Live
Where We Live is a place to hear fascinating, informed, in-depth conversations and stories beyond news headlines. We start local, but we take time to explore domestic and international issues and cons...
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 20/08/2025
If you haven't yet heard about zombie insects, get ready to squirm! This is “a pretty gruesome story” says Conrad Labandeira. 🧪 www.snexplores.org/article/fung... @snexplores.bsky.social
snexplores.org
Fungi have been ‘zombifying’ insects for 99 million years
Two bits of ancient amber sitting in a lab basement hold evidence of a fungus that's become famous for controlling its victims' minds.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 12/08/2025
One alien sees black holes. Another smells with its hair. Check out what kids imagined at my book launch for The UFO Files on Sunday! And try the activity yourself - link in my Substack. @anunlikelystory.bsky.social @quartokids.bsky.social open.substack.com/pub/kathrynh...
open.substack.com
Imagine and draw an alien being
Kids tried this activity at my book launch for The UFO Files
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 12/08/2025
Important article summing up many of the risks of AI agents. "The world is at a pivotal moment: the foundational architecture of AI agents — and the infrastructure that governs them — is being imagined and built right now." 🧪 www.nature.com/articles/d41...
nature.com
We need a new ethics for a world of AI agents
The deployment of capable AI agents raises fresh questions about safety, human–machine relationships and social coordination.
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Kathryn Hulick @kathrynhulick.substack.com · 09/08/2025
I’m at the Barnes & Noble in Natick signing books this afternoon! Look for the alien. @barnesandnoble.com @quartokids.bsky.social
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