Will deepfakes – AI-manipulated images, videos or audio – make courts less likely to trust evidence of human rights violations gathered on mobile phones, for example by protestors? A new research project led by a Swansea law expert has been awarded €1.5 million to examine this issue. User-generated evidence has transformed our ways of knowing about mass human rights violations and holding perpetrators to account. Yet, at the same time, the public is increasingly confronted with examples of ‘deepfakes’ – extremely realistic images, videos, or audio recordings created using machine learning technology – which are only likely to become more advanced and difficult to detect as the technology progresses.

Rising temperatures due to climate change will lead to an increase in cases of kidney stones over the next seven decades, even if measures are put in place to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new study by researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Based on data from South Carolina, the study found the increase will be steeper if no action is taken, but an uptick will occur even with mitigation actions, costing the state healthcare system approximately $57 million in the latter scenario and $99 million if nothing is done. The findings were published today in Scientific Reports.

Pulses of intense light could clean organic pollutants from wastewater.

A collaborative project to 3D-print medical devices that was made possible by Virginia Tech’s strong network of trailblazers could open doors to bioinnovation now that it has received federal funding.