TARC

A reinforcement learning agent trained through self-play has beaten a strong human player at StarCraft: Brood War, as shown in a released match video. The result is drawing attention in AI and gaming communities, where people are discussing how the bot's playstyle compares to human strategy and what it says about progress in game-playing AI research.

A new study warns of a hidden climate risk beneath East Antarctica, a region long viewed as relatively stable. The ice sheet there holds enough ice to raise global sea levels by three to four metres, and researchers are calling for urgent investigation into how vulnerable it may be to warming. The findings are drawing attention because East Antarctica, unlike its western counterpart, has largely been left out of worst-case sea level projections.

The US National Science Foundation is funding a research collaboration led by the University of California, Berkeley to sequence the genomes of Antarctic organisms. The project aims to document the genetic makeup of life in one of Earth's most extreme environments, with potential insights into how species adapt to cold and climate change. Details on funding size and partner institutions were not provided.

Reports dated 29 September 2026 highlight three climate stories: a record-breaking El Niño, the EU's 'OceanEye' project, and the peak of Antarctic sea ice. The items connect ocean monitoring and observation efforts with record ocean and polar conditions, underscoring continuing concern about warming seas and shrinking polar ice coverage.