Artificial intelligence (AI) was designed to solve problems, enhance productivity, and push the boundaries of innovation. But since the rise of generative AI such as CHATGPT and DALL-E, people have had concerns about its potential to overshadow or replace key human skills. University of South Australia researchers have explored the complex relationship between AI and human creativity finding that while AI can generate creative outputs, it fundamentally relies on human intervention.

The study found that the rates of patients leaving before medically advised increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. There were 721 million emergency department visits from 2016 to 2021, of which 194 million (26.9  percent) occurred after March 2020. Patients left before medically advised in 5.9 million emergency department visits during the study period—especially in the second, third and fourth quarters of 2020 and fourth quarter of 2021—for a 53.6 percent increase over pre-pandemic levels. The researchers noted that the increase could be the result of concern about COVID-19 infection and dissatisfaction with longer waiting times and other factors triggered by the surge in pandemic-related demands on hospitals.

In the most comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of its kind, University of South Australia researchers have taken a deep dive into the effects of cold-water immersion on health and wellbeing. Analysing data from 11 studies with 3177 participants, researchers found that cold-water immersion may lower stress, improve sleep quality, and boost quality of life.