Today in Science: AI detects consciousness in coma patients

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September 2, 2025—AI beats doctors at detecting consciousness in coma patients, how we can protect voters from misinformation, and a forgotten field of math could stabilize quantum computing.  —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor TODAY'S NEWS An aerial view over an urban gully in Kamonia, Democratic Republic of Congo on March 20, 2025. Ruben Nyanguila/Anadolu via Getty Images Gigantic trenches known as gullies are opening up in cities in Africa, swallowing up homes and businesses—sometimes in an instant. | 3 min read The EPA fired five agency employees who signed a June declaration decrying moves that contradict science and undermine public health, alongside four more served removal notices. | 3 min read  Last week scientists announced they managed to keep a genetically modified pig lung alive inside a human body for nine days. | 4 min read Physicists revisited a forgotten field of math to devise a stable path forward for quantum computing. | 5 min read  Is consciousness the hallmark of life? | 2 min read More News Don't miss a special 180th anniversary discount when you purchase a digital subscription to Scientific American. We've been on the side of science for 180 years. ENTER OUR CONTEST! Last change to enter!   Celebrate 180 years of Scientific American with our SciAm in the Wild photo contest. You could win a one-year Unlimited subscription, science gadgets and exclusive gear. Entering is easy! Snap a photo of any Scientific American cover in a great setting, share the image on your social media (or email it to us), and you're entered to win! Contest closes September 5th. Full instructions here.  TOP STORIES Consciousness Cues For people who are in an unresponsive state, doctors use subjective visual examinations to gauge a person's level of consciousness. However, they may miss small subtle cues. A new study found that artificial intelligence may help detect these changes. A team of researchers recorded videos of 37 patients with recent brain injuries who outwardly appeared to be in a coma. The team tracked the facial movements with extraordinary detail after each was given a command such as "open your eyes" or "stick out your tongue." The AI tool spotted eye and mouth movements respectively 4.1 and 8.3 days before clinicians spotted these signs.    Why this matters: "What we found was: patients develop [small] movements before going to more obvious movements," says Sima Mofakham, a computational neuroscientist at Stony Brook University and senior author of the new study. The results suggest that, in some cases, people are conscious days before doctors notice. Patients with larger and more frequent facial movements also had better clinical outcomes, which shows that the technology may help predict prognoses.   What the experts say: The ability to detect consciousness earlier is clinically meaningful, says Jan Claassen, a neurologist at Columbia University, who wasn't involved in the new research. Signs of consciousness can provide another layer of information for doctors and family members choosing between a range of treatments, from palliative care to more aggressive therapies. Earlier detection could also allow care teams to start rehabilitation programs used to improve patients' motor skills sooner. —Andrea Tamayo, newsletter writer   Countering Misinformation Researchers found that telling voters before voting about the measures that make voting secure were effective in countering misinformation about voting. The scientists call this "prebunking" (a play on debunking) and in experiments with thousands of participants in the U.S. and Brazil, it worked to counter misinformation about voter fraud. Researchers explained to their participants details on exactly how voting security is ensured at the polls and in the counting of votes. In one iteration of the experiment, beliefs in false statements about voting were chopped nearly in half. This tactic was particularly effective among those most skeptical of election security and had a lasting effect.    Why this matters: Claims of faked election results figured into the January 6, 2021, mob assault on the U.S. Capitol and President Donald Trump has made false claims about mail-in ballots and voting machines. Combating election falsehoods ahead of voting may help fortify voter confidence. The reality is that safeguards keep fake ballots from being counted. Election officials regularly update voter lists. And voting machine software undergoes rigorous testing.   What the experts say: "The best way to help guard people against misinformation is to provide accurate countervailing information," says Gordon Pennycook, a professor of psychology at Cornell University. Although this is a strong research result, experts say, people are immersed in misinformation from podcasts and television personalities (and the U.S. president). "Can just one message in a sea of misinformation offset a diet of misinformation on social media," and cable television, asks communications scholar Nathan Walter of Northwestern University, who was not part of the study. "Eating one protein shake doesn't counter all the cheeseburgers you had."

EXPERT PERSPECTIVES Misinformation goes way beyond "fake news," Jennifer Allen and David Rand, professors at New York University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, respectively, wrote in 2024. Academics must study the roots of public misbelief more broadly, they say. Plus, "journalists must maintain vigilance against misleading headlines and reporting of politicians' lies without context," and social platforms need to do more to combat misinformation. | 5 min read More Opinion PUZZLER Can you unscramble this image of our November 1946 cover? This cover shows a turbo generator under construction that, according to the editors, could support 35,000 people's electrical needs. More Jigsaws Every week in summer we gave you a book recommendation to help fill your "to-be-read" lists. As we move into fall, we'll keep providing book recommendations every couple of weeks. If you'd like us to review a forthcoming book, let us know! In the meantime, here's a recap of our August reads, and my colleague Brianne Kane did a survey of some of our best book reviews over the years (we've been reviewing books for 100 years!) and paired them with a fresh review on the same topic. Reading is good for the brain (and the soul), so keep it up.  Welcome to a new week of scientific discovery. Please send your comments or feedback on this newsletter to: newsletters@sciam.com. I'm taking a break for a couple weeks to tour around some national parks, but you'll be in good hands with Robin, our contributing editor.   —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor

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