Menu

Blog

Page 5223

Sep 14, 2021

1st ‘Atom Tornado’ Created From Swirling Vortex of Helium Atoms

Posted by in categories: climatology, particle physics

Not much is known about the vortex beams’ properties at the moment, but scientists plan to learn more by crashing them into other particles.

Sep 14, 2021

SpaceX: Elon Musk shares photo of drone ship that enables more missions

Posted by in categories: drones, Elon Musk, robotics/AI, space travel

A Shortfall of Gravitas: SpaceX’s new drone ship detailed

The ship supported its first mission on August 29. This was the 23rd Commercial Resupply Services mission, the latest in a series of launches for NASA that sends cargo to the International Space Station.

A Shortfall of Gravitas is a notable upgrade over previous ships. SpaceX explained during the mission launch livestream that it improves over its predecessors with a fully autonomous operation procedure. That means it can travel to sea, find its position, receive the rocket, grab the rocket with the “octograbber” robot and return it to land — all autonomously.

Sep 14, 2021

U.S. Regulators Approve Texas Nuclear Dump Despite Opposition

Posted by in category: nuclear energy

A similar nuclear waste storage project, proposed in New Mexico by Holtec International Corp., is also awaiting approval by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The agency said it expects to make a decision on that proposal in January 2022.


Texas officials vowed to fight a federal regulator’s decision to approve plans to allow thousands of tons of highly radioactive nuclear waste to be stored in oil fields in the state.

Sep 14, 2021

Startup Launches Refueling Station Into Orbit, Gets $10 Million in Funding

Posted by in categories: energy, satellites

In June, San Francisco-based startup Orbit Fab launched a prototype refueling station into Earth’s orbit — but rather than allowing astronauts to venture into deep space, this system is meant to give old satellites a new lease on life.

That’s a compelling idea, and now the company has locked down $10 million in funding to further it. Our planet’s orbit is getting cluttered with old and new satellites, increasing the risks of a collision and adding to an existing space junk problem.

Orbit Fab’s Tenzing Tanker-001, an early prototype satellite fuel tanker, launched into orbit as part of SpaceX’s Transporter-2 rideshare mission on June 30.

Sep 14, 2021

Mr. Jack Sim — Founder, World Toilet Organization — Ending The Global Sanitation Crisis

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, food, security

Ending the global sanitation crisis — jack sim, founder world toilet organization.


Around 2 billion people worldwide still lack access to the basic tools of improved sanitation (toilets and latrines). One billion people still have to defecate in the open, and at least 10% of the world’s population is thought to consume food irrigated by raw wastewater. An estimated 800,000 children, younger than 5 years of age, perish from diarrhea each year, including conditions related to cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid and polio.

Continue reading “Mr. Jack Sim — Founder, World Toilet Organization — Ending The Global Sanitation Crisis” »

Sep 14, 2021

SpaceX test-fires rocket for Inspiration4, the 1st private orbital mission

Posted by in category: space travel

Current weather forecasts are 80% go for launch!


SpaceX just test-fired the rocket that will take the private Inspiration4 mission on a three-day journey around Earth.

Sep 14, 2021

Fixing protein production errors lengthens lifespan

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, life extension

Reducing naturally occurring errors in protein synthesis (production) improves both health and lifespan, finds a new study in simple model organisms led by researchers at UCL and MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences.

The novel findings, published in Cell Metabolism, are the first to demonstrate a direct link between fewer mistakes and longevity.

Explaining the study, lead author Dr. Ivana Bjedov (UCL Cancer Institute), said: We commonly hear about DNA mutations, which can cause cancer, and are considered one of the underlying causes of ageing.

Sep 14, 2021

Scientists Claim Overeating Is Not the Primary Cause of Obesity — Point to More Effective Weight Loss Strategies

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, health

In contrast to the energy balance model, the carbohydrate-insulin model makes a bold claim: overeating isn’t the main cause of obesity. Instead, the carbohydrate-insulin model lays much of the blame for the current obesity epidemic on modern dietary patterns characterized by excessive consumption of foods with a high glycemic load: in particular, processed, rapidly digestible carbohydrates. These foods cause hormonal responses that fundamentally change our metabolism, driving fat storage, weight gain, and obesity.


Perspective published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition argues the root causes of the obesity epidemic are more related to what we eat rather than how much we eat.

Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that obesity affects more than 40% of American adults, placing them at higher risk for heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer. The USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020 – 2025 further tells us that losing weight “requires adults to reduce the number of calories they get from foods and beverages and increase the amount expended through physical activity.”

Continue reading “Scientists Claim Overeating Is Not the Primary Cause of Obesity — Point to More Effective Weight Loss Strategies” »

Sep 14, 2021

This Common Drug for Memory Loss May Also Help Restore Eye Sight

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, life extension, neuroscience

Citicoline, a drug that is naturally found in the body, is commonly used to treat a number of brain injuries and illnesses. For quite some time, doctors have prescribed it for strokes, vascular dementia, Parkinson’s disease, and general aging of the brain. Patients usually see improvement when taking the drug because the body uses it to create and repair cell membranes and lower the presence of free radicals, as noted in the Clinical Interventions in Aging Journal. (Free radicals, which are unstable molecules, can damage cells in the body and are associated with aging and illness.)

Now, researchers from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine have found evidence that citicoline can also be used to treat glaucoma. Normally, glaucoma is treated by removing fluid buildup in the eye, which creates pressure and wears down the cells in the eye and the nerves connecting to the brain. Though monitoring fluid buildup is important, glaucoma can still worsen after the pressure on the eye has been relieved.

Sep 14, 2021

SpaceX launches 51 Starlink internet satellites in the constellation’s 1st West Coast launch

Posted by in categories: internet, satellites

One of SpaceX’s oldest rockets launched on a historic 10th flight, carrying the first stack of Starlink satellites into space in more than two months before sticking a landing at sea to cap the successful mission.

The previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket blasted off from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Station at 11:55 p.m. EDT (8:55 p.m. PDT, or 355 Sept. 14 GMT), marking the company’s 22nd launch of the year. It also marked a record 10th flight for this particular first stage booster.