This article lists a number of significant events in science that have occurred in the first quarter of 2023.
Events
January 3 January – Researchers report molecular mechanisms that appear to underlie some of the reported health benefits of periods of intermittent fasting: changes to gene expression or rhythmicity of ~80% of young male mouse genes in at least one tissue.
4 January – Metascientists introduce the 'CD index' intended to characterize "how papers and patents change networks of citations in science and technology" and report that it has declined, which they interpret as "slowing rates of disruption". They propose linking this to changes to three "use of previous knowledge"-indicators ("the diversity of work cited, mean number of self-citations and mean age of work cited") which they interpret as "contemporary discovery and invention" being informed by "a narrower scope of existing knowledge". The overall number of papers has risen while the total of "highly disruptive" papers hasn't. The 1998 discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe has a CD index of 0. Their results also suggest scientists and inventors "may be struggling to keep up with the pace of knowledge expansion". 5 January Scientists report the discovery of an unknown thin membrane meningeal layer in brain anatomy, the SLYM, that likely plays a role in CSF functions and is both a protective barrier and host of immune cells. It appears to be substantially involved in major brain diseases and brain aging that monitor the brain for infection and neuroinflammation. Archaeologists report that notational signs from ~37,000 years ago in caves, apparently conveying calendaric meaning about the behaviour of animal species drawn next to them, are the first known (proto-)writing in history. Progress in climate change mitigation implementation research: A meta-analysis reports "required technology-level investment shifts for climate-relevant infrastructure until 2035" within the EU, which it finds to be "most drastic for power plants, electricity grids and rail infrastructure", ~€87 billion above the planned budgets and in need of sustainable finance policies. A study (12 Jan) suggests that applying the principle of extended producer responsibility to fossil fuels could deconflict energy security and climate policy at an affordable cost, in particular authors suggest the responsibility could be used to establish the financing of CO2 storage and nature-based solutions. A study (30 Jan) outlines challenges of aviation decarbonization by 2050 whose identified factors mainly are future demand, continuous efficiency improvements, new short-haul engines, higher SAF (biofuel) production, CO2 removal to compensate for non-CO2 forcing, and related policy-options. With constant air transport demand and aircraft efficiency, decarbonizing aviation would require nearly five times the 2019 worldwide biofuel production, competing with other hard-to-decarbonize sectors and land-use (or food security).
6 January An international collaboration shows that hidden marine heatwaves, associated with ocean eddies that modulate undersea internal waves, threaten coastal ecosystems by driving unexpected sub-surface heating and severe coral bleaching and mortality across depths. News outlets report on a brief meta-analysis (21 Dec 2022) that confirms gas stoves are a major risk factor for asthma and updates effect-size estimates, finding around one in eight cases in the U.S. could be attributed to these. 9 January A study suggests logged and structurally degraded (South Asian) tropical forests are carbon sources for at least a decade – even when recovering – due to larger carbon losses from soil organic matter and deadwood, indicating the tropical forest carbon sink "may be much smaller than previously estimated". Researchers demonstrate an open-brain surgery-free brain implant, Stentrode, that can record brain activity from a nearby blood vessel, showing it can be used to operate a computer. 10 January A second potentially Earth-like planet in the TOI 700 system is reported using data from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The long-term impact of biodiversity loss in Madagascar is modelled, suggesting that recovery from extinctions could take as long as 23 million years. Cyclic sighing is found to be effective in reducing anxiety, negative mood and stress, and more so than mindfulness meditation. 11 January NASA scientists report the discovery of LHS 475 b, an Earth-like exoplanet – and the first exoplanet observed by the James Webb Space Telescope. NASA publishes images of a debris disk surrounding the red dwarf AU Mic, taken by the James Webb Space Telescope, capturing details as close to the star as 5 astronomical units (~750 million km) – the equivalent of Jupiter's orbit in the Solar System. Teleportation of energy is demonstrated for the first time by researchers using an IBM quantum computer. Cellular bioengineers report the development of nonreplicating bacterial 'cyborg cells' (similar to artificial cells) using a novel approach, assembling a synthetic hydrogel polymer network as an artificial cytoskeleton inside the bacteria. The cells can resist stressors that would kill natural cells and e.g. invade cancer cells or potentially act as biosensors. The White House and federal agencies in the U.S. (a major source region of scientific work globally) declare the Year of Open Science, listing several actions towards open science. The science policy "Framework for Federal Scientific Integrity Policy and Practice" issued by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy a day later is criticized as a "gag order" on scientists by PEER in an open letter (30 Jan).
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