Water is one of the most familiar substances on Earth, yet its behavior under extreme confinement remains poorly understood. In a recent study, researchers from Japan revealed how water confined within nanopores can transition into a unique ‘premelting’ state, behaving partly like ice and partly like liquid water. Using static solid-state deuterium nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, the researchers identified hierarchical molecular structure and uncovered dynamic properties with potential applications in energy storage and materials science.

Diamonds from South Africa’s Voorspoed mine have revealed the first natural evidence of nickel-rich metallic alloys forming deep in Earth’s mantle, between 280–470 km. A new study reveals that these inclusions coexist with nickel-rich carbonates, capturing a rare snapshot of a “redox-freezing” reaction whereby oxidized melts infiltrate reduced mantle rock. The growing diamond trapped both reactants and products of a diamond-forming reaction. This finding not only confirms long-standing predictions about mantle redox conditions but also highlights how such processes may fuel diamond formation of volatile-rich magmas that erupt from hundreds of kilometers and bring the diamond to the surface.

For brain tumors, radiology reports provide essential imaging perspectives while pathology reports deliver microscopic confirmation, but each type of report typically requires domain experts to interpret separately. This separation can make it difficult to form a consistent basis for diagnosis and to reliably link findings to patient survival. Leveraging the integrative capabilities of large language models (LLMs), both sources can now be analyzed within a unified framework, reducing fragmentation and improving the accuracy of diagnostic classification and survival prediction.

To address this, a team led by Dr. Zhuoqi Ma (1^st author) and Dr. Zhicheng Jiao (corresponding) from the Department of Radiology at Brown University and Brown University Health developed a large language model (LLM)-based pipeline that integrates radiology and pathology reports within a unified framework. By leveraging the integrative capabilities of LLMs, both sources can be analyzed together and improving the accuracy of diagnostic classification and survival prediction. Their findings demonstrate the potential of this approach to enhance diagnostic reliability and support precision neuro-oncology.

In a pioneering study that explores the hidden carbon reservoirs of coastal ecosystems, researchers are quantifying the carbon stocks of macroalgal beds in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. The study, titled "Carbon Stocks of Coastal Macroalgal Beds in the SW Atlantic," is led by Prof. Angelo Fraga Bernardino from the Departamento de Oceanografia at Universidade Federal Do Espírito Santo (UFES) in Vitória, Brazil. This research offers valuable insights into the role of macroalgal beds in carbon sequestration, highlighting their importance in marine protected areas.