A new study published in Big Earth Data introduces Geo-Disasters, a database that geocodes 9,217 climate-related disasters reported by EM-DAT from 1990 to 2023. The database enhances disaster risk analysis by providing accurate geocoded locations and offering an open, reproducible framework for integrating spatial climate and socioeconomic data. This framework supports machine learning applications for climate risk, vulnerability, and adaptation studies. The Geo-Disasters database aims to bridge critical data gaps in global climate-hazard risk assessment and inform more equitable adaptation planning. The link to Geo-Disasters Database is https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15487667.

Analysing longitudinal data from 2,121 adolescents aged 13–15, researchers found that problematic social media use predicted increases in depressive symptoms one year later, particularly among younger teenagers and girls. Published in Scientific Reports, the study highlights how loss of control over social media use—rather than time spent online—may be a key mental health risk factor during early adolescence.

A 25-year graph algorithm gap for the All Pairs Shortest Paths (APSP) problem has been narrowed by Dr Manoj Gupta, an Associate Professor at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar. Previous methods provided distance estimates that were no worse than twice the actual distance (2-approximation) and worked effectively only for distant points. The new method, however, offers a reliable 2-approximation guarantee for the APSP problem while handling considerably closer spots with the same efficiency. This advance helps make large-scale network analysis faster and more practical across many real-world systems.

In the paper published on Science of Traditional Chinese Medicine (STCM), the authors firstly demonstrated that Cuscutae Semen (CS) ameliorated mepanipyrim-induced visual impairment in zebrafish by modulating the phototransduction pathway. It integrated transcriptomics, behavioral assays, and histopathology to reveal CS's restorative effects on retinal structure and function. Notably, chlorogenic acid was identified as a key bioactive constituent. The research provided scientific validation for the traditional use of CS in eye health and offered a novel therapeutic strategy for visual disorders, highlighting the potential of zebrafish models in natural product pharmacology.

A new study reveals that while biochar technology can play a meaningful role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, it cannot by itself achieve carbon neutrality in one of China’s most economically developed regions.