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The GenAI Divide, Biological Qubits, Bad News for MOND, & Trouble for Cyclic Universes
This week’s science bits from SWTG
Marcus Gee-Lim
August 27, 2025
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I was recently interviewed by Colin Hunter for FirstPrinciples, a new research non-profit. You can read the interview here.
Generative AI Fails to Generate Value for Companies
Image credit: MIT NANDA
A new report by MIT's Project NANDA looked at the implementation of generative AI in global business. Based on interviews with 52 organizations and analysis of 300+ initiatives, they found a stark gap between interest and practical use, which they dubbed the “GenAI Divide.” Despite widespread adoption of tools like ChatGPT (used by ~80% of organizations), 95% of companies see no measurable return on investment or transformation. Only 5% of pilots scale to production. The reasons reported most often were GenAI’s inability to learn from feedback, retain context, or integrate into workflows. Full report here.
This week’s episode of Science News is about cyclic universes. According to Einstein’s theories, the universe started with a Big Bang singularity and is slowly expanding until it disperses into nothingness. But physicists have also come up with theories claiming that the Big Bang was non-singular and can repeat, restarting the cycle over again. These are called “cyclic models,” and they’ve re-emerged into the spotlight now that there’s mounting evidence that dark energy is weakening over time. However, a physicist from UC Berkeley recently published a paper which he claims “categorically rules out” cyclic models. Let’s take a look.
Also, you can now create and share your own quizzes on QuizWithIt for free! Each quiz has a unique URL, can be embedded into websites or newsletter, and be shared on social media. Happy quizzing!
Researchers Create First Biological Qubits
Figure: The new biological qubit (red star) compared to other types of qubits. Credit: Feder et al, Nature (2025).
Quantum bits – qubits for short – are the computational units of quantum computers. They are usually made of tiny circuits, ions, atoms, molecules, or defects in crystals, for just to name a few. In a first, researchers from the University of Chicago have now created a biological qubit using fluorescent proteins that can take on several quantum states. They say that such a qubit might one day become useful as a super-sensitive sensor compatible with biological tissue. It might be particularly useful to probe whether the tissue itself has quantum behavior. Paper here. Press release here.
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More Bad News for MOND
Artist’s impression of Gaia spacecraft. Image credit: ESA/Gaia
A new analysis of astrophysical data speaks against modified Newtonian gravity (MOND) and thereby indirectly supports theories of dark matter.
The data in question come from ESA’s Gaia mission and are about binary star systems. The typical orbital distance of these binaries crosses over from the range in which normal gravity should prevail to modified gravity, if it exists. Previous analyses have been inconclusive with some reporting evidence for modified gravity, some against it. While the binary systems do not themselves provide evidence for the presence of dark matter, the new analysis strengthens the case against modified gravity.
The major culprit in the data analysis is that some of the supposed binaries are triple systems – a close binary with a third, distant companion. These can mimic the MOND effect and must therefore somehow be removed from the data sample. Results depend on how the data is cleaned from the triples. I strongly doubt that this settles the debate. Paper here.
