Concept
This article lists a number of significant events in science that have occurred in the first quarter of 2023. 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 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 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 that monitor the brain for infection and inflammation. 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 storage and nature-based solutions.