Hyenas die also in road accidents

What factors influence the risk of fatal collisions between vehicles and spotted hyenas in the Serengeti? Findings from a long-term study over three decades

Peer-Reviewed Publication

LEIBNIZ INSTITUTE FOR ZOO AND WILDLIFE RESEARCH (IZW)

 

IMAGE: TWO ADULT FEMALE SPOTTED HYENAS KILLED BY A CAR ON A MAIN GRAVEL ROAD IN THE SERENGETI NATIONAL PARK. view more 

CREDIT: SONJA METZGER/LEIBNIZ-IZW

The Serengeti in Tanzania is home to large populations of wildlife species, including spotted hyenas (Crocuta ocaliz). While many human activities are prohibited in the national park, driving is allowed in and through the protected area. Using a 34-year long-term data set, a scientific team from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW) analysed which factors contribute significantly to hyenas being run over and killed by vehicles. The results of the analyses indicate that mainly two factors play a role: firstly, the characteristics of the road and secondly, the annual migration of the large ungulate herds in the Serengeti and the associated seasonal changes in the ocalization of the prey animals of the spotted hyenas. These findings provide new insights into which ecological and individual factors influence predators’ risk of fatal collisions with vehicles and were published in the scientific journal Biological Conservation.

 

Even in protected areas, many wild animals are killed by vehicles worldwide, and these negative impacts of roads continue to increase due to the rise of human populations on the borders of protected areas and the growing interest in wildlife tourism. However, the factors that contribute to fatal collisions between vehicles and wildlife are still poorly understood. 

As part of a long-term study in the Serengeti National Park, the Leibniz-IZW scientists found a total of 104 spotted hyenas that had been run over between 1989 and 2023. Based on these cases, they investigated the question of which spatial and temporal factors particularly contribute to spotted hyenas being run over and killed by vehicles, and whether spotted hyenas of one age group, sex or social status are particularly affected. Long-term studies of this kind are rare. The Serengeti is criss-crossed by a network of roads. The main roads are gravel roads used not only by tourist vehicles, scientists and park staff, but also by trucks, supply vehicles and national bus lines throughout the year. In addition, there are a large number of unpaved wildlife observation and camp access “tracks”.

Overall, two factors proved to be crucial. Firstly, hyenas were more often run over on main roads than on “tracks”, probably because there is more traffic on main roads and vehicles travel faster there. Secondly, the timing and location of fatal collisions varied with the seasonal migration of the large herds of ungulates (wildebeest, zebra and Thomson’s gazelles), which are the main prey of Serengeti spotted hyenas. The results are consistent with other studies showing that the risk of being killed by a vehicle increases with the mobility and distance travelled by the animals. In addition, killed hyenas were found particularly close to watercourses, human dwellings, to which the hyenas are presumably attracted by the presence of human food waste.

“Contrary to expectations, the seasonal variation in the number of tourists in the region did not seem to play a role in the level of mortality,” says Marwan Naciri, who joined the Leibniz-IZW for this project and is the lead author of the publication. 

A special feature of the dataset used in this study is that some of the hyenas that were run over were individually known and therefore factors of their life history could be included in the analysis. For example, the analyses show that adult females were most frequently run over, probably because they are the ones who regularly have to travel long distances between their den and migrating prey herds in order to be able to hunt on the one hand and nurse their cubs left at the den on the other.

“Injuries from illegally laid wire snares also particularly affect adult female hyenas, as we found in a previous study,” says Leibniz-IZW scientist Sarah Benhaiem, involved in both research projects. In summary, roadkills and death by snares could be one of the main causes of death for adult hyenas in the Serengeti.  It is still unclear whether this mortality, which mainly affects adult females, threatens the continued existence of the spotted hyena population in the Serengeti.

Road networks in the Serengenti are likely to expand in the coming decades, including in protected areas. Knowledge of the factors that contribute to fatal collisions between vehicles and wildlife, such as road characteristics, will help design effective mitigation measures, such as reducing the speed and number of vehicles on main roads. Good planning of road construction and implementation of mitigation measures will be essential to ensure wildlife conservation in protected areas.

Publication

Naciri M, Planillo A, Gicquel M, East ML, Hofer H, Metzger S, Benhaiem S (2023): Three decades of wildlife-vehicle collisions in a protected area: Main roads and long-distance commuting trips to migratory prey increase spotted hyena roadkills in the Serengeti. Biological Conservation 279, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2023.109950.

 

Benhaiem S, Kaidatzi S, Hofer H, East ML (2023): Long-term reproductive costs of snare injuries in a keystone terrestrial by-catch species. Anim Conserv 26, 61-71. https://doi.org/10.1111/acv.12798.

Photo caption

Two adult female spotted hyenas killed by a car on a main gravel road in the Serengeti National Park. Photo: Sonja Metzger

Contacts

Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (Leibniz-IZW)
in the Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V.
Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, 10315 Berlin

Dr. Sarah Benhaiem (German, English and French)
Scientist Dept. Ecological Dynamics 
Tel.: +49 30 5168-466
E-Mail: benhaiem@izw-berlin.de

Steven Seet (German, English)
Head Science Communication 
Tel.: +49 30 5168-125
E-Mail: seet@izw-berlin.de

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JOURNAL

Biological Conservation

DOI

10.1016/j.biocon.2023.109950 

ARTICLE TITLE

Three decades of wildlife-vehicle collisions in a protected area: Main roads and long-distance commuting trips to migratory prey increase spotted hyena roadkills in the Serengeti

Circular economy: joint project aims to increase recycling rate of lithium-ion batteries

Business Announcement

TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITÄT DRESDEN

Electromobility is a crucial building block for the energy transition. Most electric vehicles today use lithium-ion batteries as their main energy storage device, as these are extremely versatile due to their high energy and power density. Due to the increased demand in battery production in recent years, the raw material requirements for lithium, cobalt and other metals have also increased enormously. The costly extraction of these materials entails numerous ecological risks. Effective recycling of used batteries therefore represents an important sustainability factor for this technology.

While established recycling processes have focused predominantly on recovering the metals contained in LIBs, the "SWELL" project is addressing the recovery of the non-metallic components, i.e. the electrolytes, consisting of lithium salts, solvents and electrolyte additives, for the first time. "The electrolytes are largely lost in previous processes in the form of thermal recycling or downcycling. However, the electrolyte components have significant material value and contain critical, environmentally relevant resources, such as lithium, fluorine and phosphorus. Their recovery and efficient reprocessing with the aim of direct reuse in LIBs is therefore of great interest and can lead to a significant increase in the sustainability of battery cell production," explains team member Dr. Kai Schwedtmann from the Chair of Inorganic Molecular Chemistry at Technische Universität Dresden.

To increase the material recovery rates during the recycling of LIBs, the team led by Prof. Jan J. Weigand is working on efficient separation methods of liquid and solid electrolyte components. "By developing and evaluating such a method, we aim to improve access to battery materials in Europe and reduce the environmental footprint of LIBs. We can achieve these goals by providing secondary components from cost-efficient processes in the future, thereby reducing dependencies along the battery value chain on non-European suppliers," TUD project manager Jan J. Weigand confirms the project aim.

The project is supported by the lead partner Jülich and funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection. Led by the company Elyte Innovations GmbH, the consortium includes TU Dresden and Fuchs Schmierstoffe GmbH.

More information:
https://tu-dresden.de/mn/chemie/ac/ac3/kooperation/swell?set_language=en

Sustainable development in Africa shaped by subnational administrative capabilities

Rapid economic growth in Africa is raising concerns over the sustainability of its development. Through effective evaluation with the inclusive wealth index, regional inequalities of natural resources, produced and human capital are elucidated.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

KYUSHU UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: CAPITAL STOCKS MEASURED BY THE INCLUSIVE WEALTH INDEX view more 

CREDIT: THIERRY YEREMA COULIBALY

Fukuoka, Japan - The Inclusive Wealth Index (IWI) is a sustainable development and economic progress metric that transcends the conventional means of measuring a nation’s prosperity. This innovative metric offers a holistic portrayal of a country’s affluence and welfare by considering three fundamental elements: natural, human, and produced capital. By synthesizing these factors, the IWI presents a unified and accessible assessment of the multifaceted dimensions inherent to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The index proposed by the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) reshapes the global economic narrative and hopes to redefine the benchmarks of progress. 

 

In their paper published last month in Environmental Development, Thierry Yerema Coulibaly and Shunsuke Managi of the Departments of Civil Engineering of Kyushu University elucidate sustainability-related spatial inequity in African provinces and the factors explaining them. The study, Subnational administrative capabilities shape sustainable development in Africa, explains the effect of government presence (informed by the national capital city in each province and transnational borders) and short-term income growth tradeoffs on long-term wealth management.

 

The study found that between 2012 and 2018, provincial inclusive wealth per capita rose modestly by 1%, signaling a weak sustainability performance due to a concurrent 1% yearly depletion of natural capital. Further examination revealed that while half of the provinces demonstrate synergy between income and wealth, the tradeoffs between these factors highlight the difficulties in reconciling short-term growth with long-term development.

 

The root of these tradeoffs lies in the failure to align income and natural capital growth. Furthermore, the findings reveal that national borders significantly delineate spatial disparities in wealth levels, variations, and compositions, with sustainability achievements extending beyond mere capital cities. Ultimately, the data underscores the importance of harmonizing national and subnational need-based interventions to foster sustainable development that yields nationwide benefits.

 

The lack of consistent government data for valuing capital stocks at the provincial level was a challenge because the estimation of the IWI necessitates a comprehensive array of data, including population statistics, educational attainment, investment in infrastructure, agricultural area sizes, and wildlife populations, among other factors. To mitigate this obstacle, the authors employed remote-sensing data and harnessed the outcomes of various subnational projects, ensuring a more robust and accurate analysis of the provincial landscape.

 

The researchers were able to map distributions of African wealth consistent with the literature on development economics on the continent. Notably, they demonstrated that provinces with capital cities were summits of agglomeration economies, not only in terms of income but also in terms of capital per capita. It suggests that, although estimates used approximations to cope with the lack of data, the research stepped in the same direction as common knowledge.

 

Prof Coulibaly hopes that through studies such as this people “can learn the concept of sustainability and how the sole focus on economic growth can be detrimental to future development.”

 

The Inclusive Wealth Project aims to heighten public consciousness surrounding sustainable development. This initiative aspires to persuade global citizens of the importance of supplementing unidimensional growth indices, like GDP, with the more comprehensive IWI in devising policy. In order to achieve this ambitious goal, the project engages in collaborations with an array of stakeholders, including national governments, multinational organizations, and private-sector companies. The UNEP Inclusive Wealth Report can be found here, which aims to provide a metric for measuring intergenerational human well-being across 140 countries, authored by Prof Shunsuke Managi in 2018.

 

Moving forward, the objective is to leverage the IWI as a tool for distilling sustainability information and making it accessible to a wide array of audiences. In pursuit of this goal, the team is dedicated to issuing annual reports on IWI and collaborate with esteemed international organizations such as UNESCO, UN-Habitat, and UNEP to bolster collective efforts in promoting sustainable development.

 

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For more information about this research, see “Subnational administrative capabilities shape sustainable development in Africa,” Thierry Yerema Coulibaly, Shunsuke Managi, Enviromental Development, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2023.100817

 

About Kyushu University

Kyushu University is one of Japan’s leading research-oriented institutes of higher education since its founding in 1911. Home to around 19,000 students and 8,000 faculty and staff, Kyushu U's world-class research centers cover a wide range of study areas and research fields, from the humanities and arts to engineering and medical sciences. Its multiple campuses—including one of the largest in Japan—are located around Fukuoka City, a coastal metropolis on the southwestern Japanese island of Kyushu that is frequently ranked among the world’s most livable cities and historically known as Japan’s gateway to Asia. Through its Vision 2030, Kyushu U will ‘Drive Social Change with Integrative Knowledge.’ Its synergistic application of knowledge will encompass all of academia and solve issues in society while innovating new systems for a better future. 

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JOURNAL

Environmental Development

DOI

10.1016/j.envdev.2023.100817 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Subnational administrative capabilities shape sustainable development in Africa

Environmental impact reports hugely underestimate consequences for wildlife

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF EAST ANGLIA

Environmental Impact Assessments may hugely underestimate the effect that new developments have on wildlife, according to new research from the University of East Anglia.

This is because they don’t take into account how birds and other animals move around between different sites.

A study published today shows how a new airport development planned in Portugal could affect more than 10 times the number of Black-tailed Godwits estimated in a previous Environmental Impact Assessment.

The research team have been studying these Godwits across Europe for over 30 years but they say that any species that moves around is likely to be under-represented by such reports.

Here in the UK, the environmental impact of a planned tidal barrage across the Wash estuary could similarly be much worse than predicted for wild birds and England’s largest common seal colony.

Prof Jenny Gill from UEA’s School of Biological Sciences said: “Environmental Impact Assessments are carried out when developments are planned for sites where wildlife is protected.

“But the methods used to produce these reports seldom consider how species move around between different sites. This can drastically underestimate the number of animals impacted and this is particularly relevant for species that are very mobile, like birds.”

Josh Nightingale, a PhD researcher in UEA’s School of Biological Sciences and from the University of Aveiro in Portugal, said: “We studied the Tagus Estuary in Portugal, an enormous coastal wetland where a new airport is currently planned and has already been issued an environmental license.

“This area is Portugal’s most important wetland for waterbirds, and contains areas legally protected for conservation.

“But it faces the threat of having a new international airport operating at its heart, with low-altitude flightpaths overlapping the protected area.

“Black-tailed Godwits are one of several wading birds that we see in large numbers on the Tagus.

“The new airport’s Environmental Impact Assessment estimated that under six per cent of the Godwit population will be affected by the plans.

“However, by tracking movements of individual Godwits to and from the affected area, we found that the more than 68 per cent of Godwits in the Tagus estuary would in fact be exposed to disturbance from aeroplanes.”

The research team have been studying individual Black-tailed Godwits for three decades, by fitting them with uniquely identifiable combinations of coloured leg-rings.

With the help of a network of birdwatchers across Europe, they have recorded the whereabouts of individual Godwits throughout the birds’ lives.

“Many of these Godwits spend the winter on the Tagus Estuary,” said Dr José Alves, a researcher at the University of Aveiro and visiting academic at UEA’s School of Biological Sciences.

“So we used local sightings of colour-ringed birds to calculate how many of them use sites that are projected to be affected by airplanes. We were then able to predict the airport’s impact on future Godwit movements across the whole estuary.

“This method of calculating the footprint of environmental impact could be applied to assess many other proposed developments in the UK, particularly those affecting waterbirds and coastal habitats where tracking data is available.

“Eight environmental NGOs together with Client Earth have already taken the Portuguese government to court to contest the approval of this airport development. We hope our findings will help strengthen the case by showing the magnitude of the impacts, which substantially surpass those quantified in the developer’s Environmental Impact Assessment,” he added.

Conservation beyond Boundaries: Using animal movement networks in Protected Area assessment’ Is published in the journal Animal Conservation.

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JOURNAL

Animal Conservation

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

7-Apr-2023

Often overlooked, ‘residual emissions’ are critical to fighting climate change

Residual emissions are those that remain after efforts to eliminate such emissions have been implemented

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO

For release: April 6, 2023

Residual carbon emissions matter now

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Humanity is not on track to avoid the deadliest effects of climate change, according to University at Buffalo researcher Holly Jean Buck. “Our plans are not adequate to meet the goal of limiting the earth’s temperature increase to no more than 1.5℃ by 2050,” said Buck, PhD, assistant professor of environment and sustainability.

She is the lead author of “Why residual emissions matter right now,” published recently in Nature Climate Change. Co-authors are Wim Carton, PhD, of Lund University in Sweden; Jens Friis Lund, PhD, of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark; and Nils Markusson, PhD, of Lancaster University in the United Kingdom.

“Residual emissions” are one obstacle to achieving the goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. To limit the earth’s temperature increase, the United Nations’ panel of scientific advisors says that the world must reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions this century. Greenhouse gas emissions are a major cause of the rise in temperature.

Residual emissions are those that remain after efforts to eliminate such emissions have been implemented. For example, even with a concerted effort to eliminate all emissions, industries such as agriculture and shipping are likely to continue releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Residual emissions would need to be balanced by techniques that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to meet net-zero goals — that is, any greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere are offset by those being removed.

Immediate steps to take

Buck and collaborators argue that a better understanding of residual emissions is essential to achieving net-zero. According to countries’ long-term strategies, the average level of residual emissions by 2050 will be 18% of current emissions — an amount that cannot easily be offset by removing carbon.

They looked at long-term low-emission strategies submitted by 50 countries and found that only 28 even quantified the amount of residual emissions expected by 2050. Because managing residual emissions is critical to achieving the goal, Buck and her colleagues have identified several steps they say are necessary to tackle the problem.

The first is to develop clear projections for the amount of residual emissions. The amount, the source, and the type of gas — carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases — need to be identified so that appropriate offsetting strategies can be developed. Such strategies include enhancing existing carbon sinks, which are anything that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases. Naturally occurring carbon sinks include the ocean, forests and soil.

“We can enhance carbon sinks,” Buck said. “We can plant trees, we can conserve land, we can engineer carbon removal, but it’s not enough to bring us to net-zero by 2050 with these projections of residual emissions.”

Another issue relating to residual emissions includes detailing the approach to net-zero: is it a temporary target pending further reduction of emissions, or is it meant to be a fix requiring permanent offsetting? Some carbon-emitting activities, such as aviation and shipping, are generally seen as truly hard to abate; other sources may be challenging for economic and political reasons, but technically feasible. Clarifying such issues establishes the groundwork for including residual emissions in strategies to achieve net zero by 2050.

Why Net-Zero Matters

What happens if the goal isn’t met?

“More frequent floods,” said Buck. “Devastating heat waves. Extreme economic damage from extreme weather. Agricultural production will be affected.”

While the article identifies significant challenges to reducing residual emissions, it identifies those challenges as opportunities for research and cooperation. “We hope to affect policy makers and non-government organizations that are working to achieve net zero,” said Buck. “We can achieve it. I’m hopeful we will.”

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JOURNAL

Nature Climate Change

DOI

10.1038/s41558-022-01592-2 

ARTICLE TITLE

Why residual emissions matter right now

Internet access must become human right or we risk ever-widening inequality

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM

People around the globe are so dependent on the internet to exercise socio-economic human rights such as education, healthcare, work, and housing that online access must now be considered a basic human right, a new study reveals.

Particularly in developing countries, internet access can make the difference between people receiving an education, staying healthy, finding a home, and securing employment – or not.

Even if people have offline opportunities, such as accessing social security schemes or finding housing, they are at a comparative disadvantage to those with Internet access.

Publishing his findings today in Politics, Philosophy & Economics, Dr Merten Reglitz, Lecturer in Global Ethics at the University of Birmingham, calls for a standalone human right to internet access – based on it being a practical necessity for a range of socio-economic human rights.

He calls for public authorities to provide internet access free of charge for those unable to afford it, as well as providing training in basic digital skills training for all citizens and protecting online access from arbitrary interference by states and private companies.

Dr Reglitz commented: “The internet has unique and fundamental value for the realisation of many of our socio-economic human rights - allowing users to submit job applications, send medical information to healthcare professionals, manage their finances and business, make social security claims, and submit educational assessments.

“The internet’s structure enables a mutual exchange of information that has the potential to contribute to the progress of humankind as a whole - potential that should be protected and deployed by declaring access to the Internet a human right.”

The study outlines several areas in developed countries where internet access is essential to exercise socio-economic human rights:

• Education - students in internet-free households are disadvantaged in obtaining a good school education with essential learning aids and study materials online.
• Health – providing in-person healthcare to remote communities can be challenging, particularly in the US and Canada. Online healthcare can help to plug this gap.
• Housing - in many developed countries, significant parts of the rental housing market have moved online.
• Social Security - accessing these public services today is often unreasonably difficult without internet access.
• Work - jobs are increasingly advertised in real time online and people must be able to access relevant websites to make effective use of their right to work.

Dr Reglitz’s research also highlights similar problems for people without internet access in developing countries – for example, 20 per cent of children aged 6 to 11 are out of school in sub-Saharan Africa. Many children face long walks to their schools, where class sizes are routinely very large in crumbling, unsanitary schools with insufficient numbers of teachers.

However, online education tools can make a significant difference - allowing children living remotely from schools to complete their education. More students can be taught more effectively if teaching materials are available digitally and pupils do not have to share books.

For people in developing countries, internet access can also make the difference between receiving an adequate level of healthcare or receiving none. Digital health tools can help diagnose illnesses – for example, in Kenya, a smartphone-based Portable Eye Examination Kit (Peek) has been used to test people’s eyesight and identify people who need treatment, especially in remote areas underserved by medical practitioners.

People are often confronted with a lack of brick-and-mortar banks in developing countries and internet access makes possible financial inclusion. Small businesses can also raise money through online crowdfunding platforms - the World Bank expects such sums raised in Africa to rise from $32 million in 2015 to $2.5 billion in 2025.

ENDS

For more information or interviews, please contact Tony Moran, International Communications Manager, University of Birmingham on +44 (0) 7827 832312 or t.moran@bham.ac.uk  For out-of-hours enquiries, please call +44 (0) 121 414 2772 or pressoffice@contacts.bham.ac.uk

Notes to Editors

• The University of Birmingham is ranked amongst the world’s top 100 institutions, its work brings people from across the world to Birmingham, including researchers and teachers and more than 8,000 international students from over 150 countries.
• ‘The Socio-Economic Argument for the Human Right to Internet Access’ - Dr. Merten Reglitz is published in Politics, Philosophy & Economics. Please feel free to include a link to this research in any online article.

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JOURNAL

Politics Philosophy & Economics

DOI

10.1177/1470594X231167597 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Meta-analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

The Socio-Economic Argument for the Human Right to Internet Access

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

7-Apr-2023

Artificial intelligence: ChatGPT statements can influence users’ moral judgements

Peer-Reviewed Publication

SCIENTIFIC REPORTS

Human responses to moral dilemmas can be influenced by statements written by the artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. The findings indicate that users may underestimate the extent to which their own moral judgements can be influenced by the chatbot.

Sebastian Krügel and colleagues asked ChatGPT (powered by the artificial intelligence language processing model Generative Pretrained Transformer 3) multiple times whether it is right to sacrifice the life of one person in order to save the lives of five others. They found that ChatGPT wrote statements arguing both for and against sacrificing one life, indicating that it is not biased towards a certain moral stance. The authors then presented 767 US participants, who were on average 39 years old, with one of two moral dilemmas that required them to choose whether to sacrifice one person’s life to save five others. Before answering, participants read a statement provided by ChatGPT arguing either for or against sacrificing one life to save five. Statements were attributed to either a moral advisor or to ChatGPT. After answering, participants were asked whether the statement they read influenced their answers.

The authors found that participants were more likely to find sacrificing one life to save five acceptable or unacceptable, depending on whether the statement they read argued for or against the sacrifice. This was true even the statement was attributed to a ChatGPT. These findings suggest that participants may have been influenced by the statements they read, even when they were attributed to a chatbot.

80% of participants reported that their answers were not influenced by the statements they read. However, the authors found that the answers participants believed they would have provided without reading the statements were still more likely to agree with the moral stance of the statement they did read than with the opposite stance. This indicates that participants may have underestimated the influence of ChatGPT’s statements on their own moral judgements.

The authors suggest that the potential for chatbots to influence human moral judgements highlights the need for education to help humans better understand artificial intelligence. They propose that future research could design chatbots that either decline to answer questions requiring a moral judgement or answer these questions by providing multiple arguments and caveats.

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Article details

ChatGPT’s inconsistent moral advice influences users’ judgment

DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-31341-0

Corresponding Author:

Sebastian Krügel
Technische Hochschule Ingolstadt, Ingolstadt, Germany
Email: sebastian.kruegel@thi.de

Please link to the article in online versions of your report (the URL will go live after the embargo ends): https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-31341-0.

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JOURNAL

Scientific Reports

DOI

10.1038/s41598-023-31341-0 

ARTICLE TITLE

ChatGPT’s inconsistent moral advice influences users’ judgment

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

6-Apr-2023

Convenience, control among benefits that inspire automated feature use

Peer-Reviewed Publication

PENN STATE

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — People often complain about the occasional misfires of automated features, such as autocorrect, but users generally enjoy interacting with the tools, according to researchers. They added that focusing on certain benefits of automated features may help developers build automated tools that people use more and complain about less.

In a study, researchers said that users appreciate the convenience and control of automated features, which also include YouTube’s autoplay and Google Gmail’s smart compose. People listed the technology’s ability to learn about their personal preferences as another reason they like automated tools.

“We are awash in automated features,” said S. Shyam Sundar, James P. Jimirro Professor of Media Effects in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications and co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory at Penn State University. “Although we crave for more and more interactive media, and enjoy interactivity in our daily digital experiences, we also value these automated features, which are highly popular. So, there's a bit of a contradiction. On the one hand, we want to be involved. But on the other hand, we want the systems to do their own thing.”

According to the researchers, because automated tools offer more convenience and control, users may not mind losing some of their ability to interact with the technology.

“Automated features can make a device or tool easier to use and frees users from constantly engaging in repetitive tasks,” said Chris "Cheng" Chen, assistant professor in communication and design, Elon University, and first author of the study.

Chen, a former doctoral student in mass communication at Penn State, added that people also appreciate the ability of automated features to remember and learn from previous interactions, or “system-initiated personalization,” she said. This feature saves users from manually adding their preferences to the system.

According to the researchers, users tend to complain about automated features when these features interfere too much with their ability to interact smoothly with their devices.

Developers and designers, therefore, may want to consider designing systems that carefully blend interactivity and automation, also referred to as interpassivity, said Sundar, who is also an affiliate of Penn State’s Institute for Computational and Data Sciences and director of Penn State’s Center for Socially Responsible Artificial Intelligence.

“Interpassivity is a delicate combination of automation and interactivity,” said Sundar. “It's not just one or the other. On the one hand, we want things to be automated, and to reduce tedious tasks, which we are happy to outsource to the machine. But, we also want to reserve the right to interact and be notified so that we can to provide consent for the system to engage in this automation process.”

While convenience may often be the most obvious benefit of automated features, Sundar said that developers should also consider other gratifications as they design these services.

“Automated features are meant to give users more convenience, but designers need to keep in mind that there are these other aspects like the user control that people desire, in order for current automated features — as well as other ones that will be developed in the future — to be successful,” Sundar added.

For example, Sundar said, many of the current complaints about automated features derive from a feeling of powerlessness to change settings and a lack of consent.

"When autocorrecting our e-mail messages or autocompleting our sentences, our smartphones tend to go with their version, requiring the user to go through extra steps to over-ride system suggestions,” said Sundar. Affording easy control should be considered an important design consideration, he added.

The researchers used both focus groups and a survey to study people’s reactions to automated features. They conducted three online focus groups with a total of 18 participants, in which they were asked participants about their met and unmet needs when using automated features.

The responses from the focus groups shaped the survey, which was administered to 498 participants on an online crowdsourcing platform. Those participants were asked about 11 automated features in their daily media experience: autofill, autosave, auto-suggestions, autocomplete, auto-importing, auto-scrolling, smart replies and smart compose, auto-tagging, auto-correct, grayscale and autoplay.

The study found that users perceive higher convenience from autosave compared to grayscale, auto-scrolling and autoplay. Autosave was also rated higher for remembering users’ preferences than autofill and grayscale. However, user control was rated as equally important for all automated features.

Sangwook Lee, a doctoral student in mass communication at Penn State, worked with Chen and Sundar.

The researchers published their findings recently in the journal Behaviour & Information Technology.

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JOURNAL

Behaviour and Information Technology

DOI

10.1080/0144929X.2023.2184174 

Computer scientist confronts worldwide challenge of online security and privacy

UTA researcher aims to improve online safeguards that protect user privacy

Grant and Award Announcement

UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT ARLINGTON

 

IMAGE: SHIRIN NILIZADEH view more 

CREDIT: UT ARLINGTON

A University of Texas at Arlington computer security researcher has received a prestigious federal grant to determine what technologies and methods work best to attain and retain online security and privacy.

Shirin Nilizadeh, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, received a $200,000 National Science Foundation grant to study social media discussions and better understand what concerns are about online security and privacy, what technologies and tools they suggest to each other to use and whether they are effective. Nilizadeh called this a “worldwide challenge.”

“People care about their online security and privacy everywhere,” she said. “And sometimes, due to societal and political movements, they become more cautious or aware of the problems, where they go online and on social media, and proactively discuss their concerns and ask for tools and methods that can help protect them.

“We can help as a research community to see what’s working and what isn’t. We can take these research findings to design and develop better online safeguards and to improve the existing security and privacy-preserving systems if they are not secure, effective and efficient.”

Hong Jiang, chair of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, said Nilizadeh’s research could further the security of social network tools.

“Everyone is connected to social networks,” Jiang said. “Studying social networks’ discussions and understanding what security measures people are looking for and using allow researchers  to develop and provide such measures to improve online security and privacy.”

Previous Nilizadeh work showed that social media users extensively discussed the security and privacy threats of video communication tools more people started working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This work showed how misinformation about security and privacy spread on social media platforms.

Nilizadeh previously did work on how job applicants can “hack” hiring systems and improve their standing by using certain words on their applications. She also has studied whether security and privacy applications like content moderation tools are fair toward users from various demographics and backgrounds.

Study assesses risk of mutation due to residual radiation from the Fukushima nuclear disaster

Hereditary risk assessment of Japanese tree species suggests that mutation rates do not significantly increase under the remnant low-dose-rate radiation

FORESTRY AND FOREST PRODUCTS RESEARCH INSTITUTE

 

IMAGE: RESIDUAL LOW-DOSE RADIATIONS FROM THE FUKUSHIMA NUCLEAR POWER PLANT DISASTER IS NOT A THREAT TO THE TREE SPECIES GROWING IN THE AFFECTED AREAS, FINDS A NEW STUDY BY RESEARCHERS FROM JAPAN WHO SURVEYED DE NOVO MUTATION RATES IN JAPANESE CEDAR AND FLOWERING CHERRY GROWING IN CONTAMINATED AREAS. view more 

CREDIT: AUTHORS

Ionizing radiation from nuclear disasters are known to be harmful to the natural environment. The Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant meltdown that occurred in 2011 is a prominent example of such a disaster in recent memory. Even a decade after the incident, concerns remain about the long-term effects of the radiation. In particular, it is not clear how the residual low-dose radiation might affect living organisms at the genetic level.

The brunt of the disaster is usually borne by the floras inhabiting the contaminated areas since they cannot move. This, however, makes them ideal for studying the effects of ionizing radiation on living organisms. Coniferous plants such as the Japanese red pine and fir have, for instance, shown abnormal branching after the Fukushima disaster. However, it is unclear whether such abnormalities reflect genetic changes caused by the prevailing low-dose-rate radiation in the area.

 

To address this concern, a team of researchers from Japan developed a rapid and cost-effective method to estimate the mutation risks caused by low-dose-rate radiation (0.08 to 6.86 μGy h-1) in two widely cultivated tree species of Japan growing in the contaminated area. They used a new bioinformatics pipeline to evaluate de novo mutations (DNMs), or genetic changes/mutations that were not present earlier or inherited, in the germline of the gymnosperm Japanese cedar and the angiosperm flowering cherry. The study, led by Dr. Saneyoshi Ueno from the Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, was recently published in the journal Environment International and involved contribution from Dr. Shingo Kaneko from Fukushima University. “People living in the affected areas are worried and need to feel safe in their daily lives,” says Dr. Kaneko when asked about the motivation behind their study. “We wanted to clear the air of misinformation regarding the biological consequences of the nuclear power plant accident.”

For sampling Japanese cedar, the team first measured the radioactive cesium (137Cs) levels of the cone-bearing branches. The cones were then used to collect the seeds, which were germinated, and the remaining megagametophytes were used for DNA extraction. For the Japanese flowering cherry, an artificial crossing experiment was performed, followed by seed collection and DNA extraction. The samples were subjected to restriction site-associated DNA sequencing, which compared the DNA sequences present in the offspring seed to those present in the parent. The DNMs were detected using a bioinformatic pipeline developed by the authors.

Interestingly, the team found no DNMs for the Japanese flowering cherry and an average of 0.67 DNMs per megagametophyte sample for the Japanese cedar in the “difficult-to-return” zone. Moreover, the 137Cs concentration and ambient dose rate did not have any effects on the presence or absence of DNMs in Japanese cedar and flowering cherry. These findings suggested that the mutation rate in trees growing in contaminated areas did not increase significantly owing to the ambient radiation. “Our results also suggest that mutation rates vary across lineages and are largely influenced by the environment,” highlights Dr. Ueno.

The study is the first to use DNM frequency for assessing the after-effects of a nuclear disaster. With the number of nuclear power plants increasing globally, there is a growing risk of nuclear accidents. When asked about their study’s future implications, Dr. Ueno remarks, “The method developed in our study can not only help us better understand the relationship between genetics and radiation but also perform hereditary risk assessments for nuclear accidents quickly.”

For now, this is as reassuring as it can get.

Low-dose-rate radiations from the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster hindered living in the “difficult-to-return” zone, where two tree species were sampled to survey de novo mutation frequencies.

Residual low-dose radiations from the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster is not a threat to the tree species growing in the affected areas, finds a new study by researchers from Japan who surveyed de novo mutation rates in Japanese cedar and flowering cherry growing in contaminated areas.

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JOURNAL

Environment International

DOI

10.1016/j.envint.2023.107893 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Experimental study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Rapid survey of de novo mutations in naturally growing tree species following the March 2011 disaster in Fukushima: the effect of low-dose-rate radiation