Weekly: Shocking source of deep sea oxygen; Alcohol really is unhealthy; ‘Green’ plastic downsides

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Most of us imagine plants when we think about the production of oxygen. But turns out, in the deep sea, metal-rich rocks also seem to generate oxygen. This surprising discovery suggests they may have a much more important role in their ecosystem than we originally thought – and is fueling more calls to ban deep sea mining, which would target these same rocks. 

Drinking a glass of wine once in a while can’t be that bad, right? Over the decades we heard that drinking a little alcohol might reduce your risk of heart disease, and even make you live longer, but a new review of the research has found serious flaws in these studies. So what’s going on with alcohol and our health?

Physicists have been crashing atoms together for decades, in the hopes of creating heavier and heavier elements. And now, a new method to make the rare, super-heavy element livermorium may also pave the way towards making the elusive element 120, unbinilium. If successfully created, it would be the heaviest element on the periodic table. So what is this new method?

Some disheartening news: our attempts to be more environmentally friendly might still make some things worse. Biodegradable plastics appear to damage soil and hinder plant growth more than conventional ones. What’s going wrong?

Plus: How AI mathematicians are finally catching up to humans; how AI could spy on you through HDMI cables; and what caused the biggest cosmic explosion ever seen.

Hosts Christie Taylor and Timothy Revell discuss with guests Madeleine Cuff, Michael Le Page, Karmela Padavic-Callaghan and Alexandra Thompson.

To read more about these stories, visit newscientist.com.

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