CTV National News: Researchers studying new aquatic parasite killing oysters
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Researchers say the parasite is nontoxic to humans, but fatal to oysters, devastating some marine life populations. CTV News' Sarah Plowman reports.
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CBC
35 minutes ago
- CBC
Can AI safeguard us against AI? One of its Canadian pioneers thinks so
When Yoshua Bengio first began his work developing artificial intelligence, he didn't worry about the sci-fi-esque possibilities of them becoming self-aware and acting to preserve their existence. That was, until ChatGPT came out. "And then it kind of blew [up] in my face that we were on track to build machines that would be eventually smarter than us, and that we didn't know how to control them," Bengio, a pioneering AI researcher and computer science professor at the Université de Montréal, told As It Happens host Nil Köksal. The world's most cited AI researcher is launching a new research non-profit organization called LawZero to "look for scientific solutions to how we can design AI that will not turn against us." "We need to figure this out as soon as possible before we get to machines that are dangerous on their own or with humans behind [them]," he said. "Currently, the forces of market — the competition between companies, between countries — is such that there's not enough research to try to find solutions." Meet LawZero's conception: Scientist AI Bengio started LawZero using $40 million of donor funding. Its name references science fiction writer Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics, a set of guidelines outlining the ethical behaviour of robots that prevents them from harming or opposing humans. In Asimov's 1985 novel Robots and Empire, the author introduced the Zeroth Law: "A robot cannot cause harm to mankind or, by inaction, allow mankind to come to harm." With this in mind, Bengio said LawZero's goal is to protect people. "Our mission is really to work towards AI that is aligned with the flourishing of humanity," he said. WATCH | Advocates call for better AI regulation: Why more needs to be done to regulate the use of AI 1 year ago Duration 6:07 New research out of Western University is shining a light on the federal government's use of artificial intelligence through a Tracking Automated Government Register. Joanna Redden, an associate professor of Information and Media Studies and co-director at Starling: Just Technologies. Just Societies. and Data Justice Lab, joined London Morning to talk about the data and concerns about AI use. Several AI technologies in recent months have been reported to undermine, deceive, and even manipulate people. For example, a study earlier this year found that some AIs will refuse to admit defeat after a chess match, and instead hack the computer to cheat the results. AI firm Anthropic detailed last month that during a systems test, its AI tool Claude Opus 4 tried to blackmail the engineer so that it would not be replaced by a newer update. These are the kind of scenarios that drove Bengio to design LawZero's guardian artificial intelligence, Scientist AI. According to a proposal by Bengio and his colleagues, Scientist AI is a "safe" and "trustworthy" artificial intelligence that would function as a gatekeeper and protective system for humans to continue to benefit from this technology's innovation with intentional safety. It's also "non-agentic," which Bengio and his colleagues define as having "no built-in situational awareness and no persistent goals that can drive actions or long-term plans." In other words, what differentiates agentic and non-agentic AI is their autonomous capacities to act in the world. How would Scientist AI work? Can it work? Scientist AI, Bengio says, would be paired with other AIs, and act as a kind of "guardrail." It would estimate the "probability that an [AI]'s actions will lead to harm," he told U.K. newspaper, the Guardian. If that chance is above a certain threshold, Scientist AI will reject its counterpart's suggested action. WATCH | A 2024 feature interview with Yoshua Bengio at his home in Montreal: Artificial intelligence 'godfather' Yoshua Bengio opens up about his hopes and concerns 1 year ago Duration 18:00 But can we guarantee that this guardian AI will also not turn against us? David Duvenaud, an AI safety researcher who will act as an advisor for LawZero, says it's a rational concern. "If you're skeptical about our ability to control AI with other AI, or really be sure that they're going to be acting in our best interest in the long run, you are absolutely right to be worried," Duvenaud, an assistant professor of computer science and statistics at the University of Toronto, told CBC. Still, he says, we have to try. "I think Yoshua's plan is less reckless than everyone else's plan," he said. AI researcher Jeff Clune agrees. "There are many research challenges we need to solve in order to make AI safe. The important thing is that we are trying, including allocating significant resources to this critical issue," Clune, a University of British Columbia computer scientist, said in an email. "That is one reason the creation of LawZero is so important." According to Bengio's announcement for LawZero,"the Scientist AI is trained to understand, explain and predict, like a selfless idealized and platonic scientist." Resembling the work of a psychologist, Scientist AI "tries to understand us, including what can harm us. The psychologist can study a sociopath without acting like one." Bengio says he hopes this widespread reckoning on the rapid, yet alarming, evolution of AI will catalyze a political movement to start "putting pressure on governments" worldwide to regulate it. "I often get the question of whether I'm optimistic or pessimistic," he said. "What I say is that it doesn't really matter. What matters is what each of us can do to move the needle towards a better world."
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Coal mines on Alberta's eastern slopes could push fishery 'beyond recovery': study
Old coal mines on the eastern slopes of the Alberta Rockies are leaching chemicals that are poisoning the fish downstream, says a new study by Alberta government scientists. It also suggests any new coal developments could result in "population collapse" of fish species in a nearby lake. The findings were made in a provincial government study posted online May 27. The paper is awaiting peer review. The scientists who authored it were not made available to speak to reporters. The other authors not employed by the province did not respond to requests for comment. Alberta has responded to the study with an advisory saying people should consider "limiting consumption" of three fish species drawn from Crowsnest Lake, a fishing spot downstream from the coal mines. Those species were found to have dangerously high levels of selenium, a mineral found in coal-rich deposits, in their body tissue. The authors write the study shows that "biological impacts of (mountaintop removal) coal mining can persist long after mining operations end." They suggest that "any further coal mine development may well push the Crowsnest fishery beyond sustainability." The study comes after the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) granted an Australia-based coal company permission to start a controversial coal exploration on the eastern slopes. The project was initially rejected in 2021 when a panel ruled the likely environmental effects on fish and water quality outweighed potential economic benefits. But the regulator said last month it's possible there will be runoff from the nearby pit lake that Northback Holding Corp. is using. It ultimately concluded the project won't have any effect on the water quality downstream. The AER said that "out of an abundance of caution," Northback will have to comply with a directive for managing drilling waste in response to concerns over selenium. Every fish sample exceeds selenium guideline: study The new study measured selenium levels in fish from Crowsnest Lake, which is fed by creeks connected to Tent Mountain and Grassy Mountain — both former coal mine sites. Alberta has a fish tissue selenium guideline of four micrograms per gram. The authors write that every single fish sample analyzed exceeded this value. Average selenium concentrations were highest in brown trout, coming in at 18 micrograms per gram. The authors write that the selenium levels could lead to "behavioural changes, physical symptoms ... respiratory issues, reproductive issues and ultimately population collapse." Accumulating fluid in body tissue or fin and tail damage are among the other side effects. Most people are exposed to healthy levels of selenium through grains and flours, but Health Canada says elevated consumption can lead to hair loss, decreased cognitive function and gastrointestinal disorders. The high selenium concentrations can only be explained by "the incorporation of legacy coal mine pollution," the authors write. The study goes on to say selenium levels in fish in Crowsnest Lake are similar to those found in water bodies near Fernie, B.C., that resulted in Teck Mining Company, which owned and operated a nearby mine, being forced in 2021 by B.C. provincial court to pay a $60 million fine — the largest fine ever imposed under the Fisheries Act. Fish populations in those mining-impacted streams were found in 2011 to have an average selenium concentration of 7.6 micrograms per gram. Nine years later, the adult westslope cutthroat trout population had suffered a 93 per cent decline, the study says. An 'especially vulnerable system' The authors conclude that factors including the emergence of Whirling Disease, drought conditions, high fishing activity — and now high selenium levels in fish — make the Crowsnest Lake and River "an especially vulnerable system." "Any new development of coal mining along the eastern slopes may well push the Crowsnest fishery beyond recovery," they write. Colin Cooke, one of the authors, published a 2024 study that found a former coal mine in the Crowsnest River watershed was releasing selenium to fish at rates more than dozens of times higher than federal and provincial guidelines. Cooke is a senior aquatic scientist with the Alberta government, according to his LinkedIn profile. Peter Doyle, CEO of Evolve Power Ltd., formerly Montem Resources Ltd., which previously sought to restart an old mine on Tent Mountain, said in an email that the company is complying with terms set out by the AER. "As reflected in other work by the author, there are numerous contributors to water quality in the Crowsnest River valley, not related to Tent Mountain, including changes in upstream conditions, changes in weathering rates and other anthropogenic changes in the watershed," Doyle wrote, referring to Cooke's 2024 study. That report notes those factors, among others, could be contributing to contaminant levels and concluded that coal mining activities in the Crowsnest River watershed "have been impacting ecosystems downstream for decades." Northback, in an email, wrote that Crowsnest Lake is unrelated to its Grassy Mountain project. "However, with our own project, Northback is committed to adhering to the highest environmental standards and ensuring a safe water supply." Report authors 'not trained spokespeople' Ryan Fournier, press secretary for Alberta's environment ministry, deferred questions about monitoring and enforcement to the AER. He said the province is funding a series of studies and submitting them to peer-reviewed academic journals as the province revises its coal policy. He also said the authors were not available to speak to media because they "are not trained spokespeople." The AER told The Canadian Press that it has directed Evolve Power, the Tent Mountain owner, to submit a "selenium management plan proposal" that targets reductions in selenium in mine-affected water. Evolve was to submit that plan by July 31 of last year, but the AER said it granted the company an extension to March 31, 2026. The energy regulator also said that while selenium levels are elevated, "there is no evidence of non-compliance on monitoring or selenium management requirements at this time." The province announced in December it would allow coal mining to take place in Alberta under certain conditions. However, it exempted Northback and Evolve Power's projects from those rules because they were considered "advanced."
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Don't know if you've been vaccinated against measles? Get a shot, doctors urge
A dose of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccination awaits the next patient during a vaccine clinic at Southwestern Public Health in St. Thomas, Ont. on Tuesday, March 4, CANADIAN PRESS/ Geoff Robins TORONTO — Public health doctors say if people don't know if they've been vaccinated against measles, they should get a shot. Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada's chief public health officer, says people should try their best to find their vaccine records and ask their doctors. But she says if they really have no idea, there is no harm in getting a dose of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine to ensure they are protected as Canada continues to see a rising number of cases. The exception is pregnant women, because the MMR vaccine isn't recommended during pregnancy as it contains live virus that could theoretically be transmitted to the fetus. Tam says it's vital for women of childbearing age to be vaccinated ahead of time because a measles infection can cause severe complications for both the mom and baby. She says if someone is already pregnant and thinks they might have been exposed to measles, they should talk to their health-care provider. Dr. Sarah Wilson, a physician with Public Health Ontario, says a blood test, known as serology, can be used to see if a pregnant person has antibodies to measles. 'If there is uncertainty as to whether or not they've ever had an MMR vaccine, offering serology can be helpful to understand (if) this person (is) susceptible or not, so that if they are ever exposed to measles, they can very quickly be offered something called post-exposure prophylaxis to help reduce the risk of measles,' Wilson said. But for most people who aren't sure of their vaccination status, getting a measles shot is preferable to getting a blood test to check for measles immunity, both Wilson and Tam said. That's because the time lapse between getting the test and waiting for the results is a missed opportunity to get vaccinated sooner, they said. Tam said Canada has enough MMR vaccine to meet an increased demand for the shot. As summer approaches and people prepare to travel — both within Canada and to foreign countries — making sure you get a measles shot if you're unvaccinated or unsure should be part of the plan, Tam said. 'Get ready to get vaccinated as early as possible, but I think the important point is if you really left it to the last minute, still go and get it,' she said. 'Even the last-minute immunization will offer some protection during that trip, but also it can protect you into the future.' Tam said being vaccinated against measles also helps protect others who can't be immunized, including pregnant women, children under six months old and some people who are immunocompromised. Babies usually don't get their first dose of MMR vaccine until they're 12 months old, but public health officials have lowered the age to six months in communities where there is a measles outbreak, including in southwestern Ontario. The devastating effects of the rise of measles in that hard-hit region became clear on Thursday, when the Ontario's chief medical officer of health announced a baby who was born prematurely and infected while in the womb had died. Dr. Kieran Moore noted that the infant also faced other medical complications unrelated to the virus. Tam and Wilson both expressed their condolences to the grieving family. 'That was very sad news,' said Tam. 'I think it's telling us that we've all got to be very vigilant about measles in our communities.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2025. Nicole Ireland, The Canadian Press
