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WASHINGTON — If you can’t beat them, join them. That is the thinking behind a new managed network service offered by satellite operator Intelsat that integrates geostationary satellites, SpaceX’s Starlink low Earth orbit constellation and cellular broadband.

“A lot of our customers would like to use Starlink and many have been using it,” Don Claussen, Intelsat’s vice president of business development, told SpaceNews at last week’s Satellite 2022 conference.

Satellite communications companies “spend so much time fighting each other over what orbits are better, what band is better,” he said. “If we’re really listening to our customers, what they are saying is ‘we kind of need all of you.’”.

Tesla’s idea for a crazy windshield wiper that would clear debris from a driver’s line of sight using a laser beam has been officially published by the United States Patent Office. Tesla filed the application for the patent in May 2019, and it finally was granted in late 2021. Now, the U.S. Patent Office has published the patent, making it publicly viewable.

Tesla has long been interested in some pretty crazy and revolutionary ideas for automobiles. Over the years, Tesla has looked at several different designs and ideas for windshield wipers, using anything from a single-wiper system for the Next-Gen Roadster that would utilize an electromagnetic linear actuator to rid the windshield of moisture, to no wipers at all when it unveiled the Cybertruck in November 2019. Most recent sightings of Tesla’s Cybertruck have indicated the vehicle will have wipers, but Tesla is still revising the design.

With all of the crazy ideas Tesla has thrown around for wipers in the past, the patent for the automaker’s “Pulsed Laser Cleaning of Debris Accumulated on Glass Articles in Vehicles and Photovoltaic Assemblies” is among the most interesting. Originally filed in May 2019, Tesla recently had the idea published by the U.S. Patent Office, meaning if the Office does not ultimately grant the patent, the public can still learn from the work and perhaps develop another system that could be granted.

University of Notre Dame researchers have discovered another way tumor cells transfer genetic material to other cells in their microenvironment, causing cancer to spread.

In their latest study, published in Cell Reports, Crislyn D’Souza-Schorey, the Morris Pollard Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, and collaborators discovered that DNA “cargo” is transported in small informational sacs called extracellular microvesicles. Their study is a continuation of work her lab has undertaken to further understand the sharing of information between cells.

“We’ve shown that DNA present in these microvesicles is related to metastasis, so now we have a great platform to assess for genetic aberrations,” said D’Souza-Schorey, who is also affiliated with the Berthiaume Institute for Precision Health, the Boler-Parseghian Center for Rare and Neglected Diseases and the Harper Cancer Research Institute.

CEO of Tesla Elon Musk revealed in tweets posted on Saturday that he is giving serious thought to creating a social media platform.

“Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy,” Musk further tweeted.

Free speech

Meanwhile, on Friday, he put out a Twitter poll asking users if they thought Twitter adhered to the principle of free speech. Over 70% of respondents voted “no”.