Some parts of town have dropped by about 11 feet. Going Down

In central California, almost exactly in between Los Angeles and San Francisco, a farming town called Corcoran is sinking into the Earth at an alarming rate.

While the descent has been uneven over the years and happens at too large a scale to notice on the ground NASA satellites had to confirm the problem some parts of Corcoran have dropped by more than 11 feet over the last 14 years, The New York Times reports. And with several more feet expected in the near future, the towns infrastructure is now in serious danger.

Its a risk for us, Corcoran resident Mary Gonzalez-Gomez told the NYT. We all know that, but what are we going to do? Theres really nothing that we can do. And I dont want to move.

The problem stems from the heavy water usage of the areas agricultural industry. When rivers dont provide enough water for farms in the area, theyll start to pump water from underground reservoirs. The challenge, according to the NYT, is that those reservoirs are directly underneath Corcoran. After generations of pumping, the ground is beginning to crumble and compact together.

Theres no way around it, Jay Famiglietti, a former NASA Scientist, told the NYT. The scale of the bowl thats been created from the pumping is large and that may be why people dont perceive it. But a careful analysis would find there is lots of infrastructure potentially at risk.

Famiglietti, whos now the director of the Global Institute for Water Security at Canadas University of Saskatchewan, was one of the first to use satellite data to show that Corcoran was sinking.

Theres not much that Corcoran can do to lift itself back up, according to the NYT, but it can try to mitigate further damage by limiting pumping and imposing better control over groundwater usage among neighboring towns and agricultural companies that have done much of the damage.

The plight of Corcoran is the absolute poster child for legacy unmanaged groundwater pumping that is unacceptable in California, California Department of Water Resources director Karla Nemeth told the NYT.

READ MORE: The Central California Town That Keeps Sinking [The New York Times]

More on groundwater: An Underground Tank Is Leaking Massive Amounts of Radioactive Waste

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An Entire Town Is Getting Swallowed by the Earth - Futurism

According to a new detailed map of dark matter, the universe may be smoother and more spread out than theories have previously predicted, the BBC reports.

The survey,which covered about a quarter of the southern hemispheres sky, may serve to undermine Einsteins theory of general relativity and could potentially force us to alter understanding of the cosmos.

If this disparity is true then maybe Einstein was wrong, cole Normale Suprieure researcher Niall Jeffrey, who worked on the map, told the BBC.

You might think that this is a bad thing, that maybe physics is broken, he said. But to a physicist, it is extremely exciting. It means that we can find out something new about the way the universe really is.

Scientists believe dark matter makes up around 80 percent of the stuff found in the universe. Yet it is still a great mystery, as we still dont know what it is made of or how exactly it interacts with other matter.

We do, however, know that dark matter distorts light emanating from faraway stars. The greater this effect, scientists believe, the greater the concentration of dark matter present.

The new map, created by an international team of researchers at the Dark Energy Survey Collaboration, is the largest and most detailed of its kind to date. Using data collected by the Victor M Blanco telescope in Chile, the team mapped some 100 million galaxies.

The resulting map shows that galaxies make up much larger super-structures. The brightest areas are the densest areas of dark matter, made up of superclusters of galaxies. The black parts are cosmic voids, areas where our current laws of physics may not apply.

To Jeffrey, its an exciting new moment in our understanding of the Universe, having unveiled vast new swathes which show much more of [dark matters] structure, as he told the BBC. For the first time we can see the universe in a different way.

Using theories set forth by Einstein, astronomers have been able to predict how matter has spread over the 13.8 billion years of the universe, starting shortly after the Big Bang.

Those predictions, however, are a few percent off from the new observations made by the Dark Energy Survey.

We may have uncovered something really fundamental about the fabric of the universe, Carlos Frenk, professor at Durham University, who worked on current cosmological theories, told the British broadcaster.

With Einsteins theories building the groundwork, Frenk helped determine the spread of matter in the universe.

The new map did come as a bit of surprise.

I spent my life working on this theory and my heart tells me I dont want to see it collapse, Frenk told the BBC. But my brain tells me that the measurements were correct, and we have to look at the possibility of new physics.

But according to Frenk, its not quite time to dismiss Einsteins theory. The big question is whether Einsteins theory is perfect, he said.

It seems to pass every test but with some deviations here and there, he added. Maybe the astrophysics of the galaxies just needs some tweaks.

READ MORE: New dark matter map reveals cosmic mystery [BBC]

More on dark matter: A Blob of Dark Matter Appears to Be Floating Outside Our Galaxy

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New Evidence About the Universe Suggests Einstein Was Wrong - Futurism

Researchers say theyve figured out the maximum lifespan for humans.

They concluded that with perfect health, humans could live to anywhere between 120 and 150 years, as detailed in a study published this week in the journal Nature Communications.

Those ages, they say, can only be achieved by humans lucky enough to make it through life without major health issues like cancer or heart disease. It is instead meant to estimate how long the natural process of aging takes over a human lifespan a fascinating look at the resilience of the human body.

In their study, a team of researchers at Singapore-based company Gero looked into this pace of aging, examining residents of the US, UK, and Russia.

By looking at the number of steps taken and changes in blood cell counts, they found that as age increased, the body declined at a predictable rate.

Between the ages of 120 and 150, according to their findings, the human bodys natural resilience would eventually fail entirely and lead to death.

To put those numbers into perspective, the oldest person on record to have lived was Jeanne Calment, who died in France at the age of 122, as Scientific American points out.

The conclusion is surprising, considering that step and blood cell counts are inherently different factors yet they both led to largely the same decline.

Experts, however, argue that rather than asking how long humans can live, the real question should be how long we can life a healthy life.

Death is not the only thing that matters, Heather Whitson, director of the Duke University Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, told SA. Other things, like quality of life, start mattering more and more as people experience the loss of them.

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Scientists Say This Is the Maximum Human Lifespan - Futurism

Take that, demons!Super Shotgun

An independent programmer is dead-set on making CAPTCHA tests fun for a change.

So instead of identifying pictures of buses and traffic lights, now you can prove youre a human by gunning down demonic enemies in a mini version of the iconic game Doom before time runs out, according to PCMag. Its pretty straightforward as far as gameplay is concerned just point and shoot and its not exactly secure, but its a whole lot better than squinting at blurry pictures to guess whether or not they have a stop sign in them.

By the way, you can play it here. As a warning, the authentic Doom music and sound effects are pretty loud so turn down your headphones first.

A typical CAPTCHA involves more than a simple puzzle. They also require some way for the system to verify the users answers to make sure theyre not a bet. Because it basically plays like an old-school Flash game, the Doom CAPTCHA lacks that added layer of security.

My CAPTCHA about Doom only validates from user-side (client), Miquel Camps Orteza, the programmer behind the minigame, told PCMag. There is no backend to a server to validate the user request. For [someone] who can code, they can see how easy it is to validate the CAPTCHA.

Instead of an actual security tool, the CAPTCHA was meant to be a showcase of Ortezas programming skills while he hunts for a job.

I thought that maybe the CAPTCHA will catch the attention of some people and companies, he told PCMag. Before this CAPTCHA, I did another one that forces you to do some squats before purchasing on Amazon using [your PCs] webcam.

READ MORE: Tired of Boring CAPTCHAs, This Developer Created a Doom-Themed One [PCMag]

More on Doom: Artificial Intelligence Is Making Video Game Levels So Good That Even Other AI Thinks Theyre Man-Made

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New CAPTCHA Forces Users to Prove They're Human by Playing "Doom" - Futurism

The number of deadly black fungus infections, also known as mucormycosis, among coronavirus patients and survivors in India has reached alarming new heights.

The government tallied up 11,717 ongoing cases of the fungal infection on Tuesday, according to New Delhi Television (NDTV), prompting the countrys health ministry to declare an official epidemic and take emergency measures.

The black fungus, which attacks the brain, lungs, and sinuses, is actually common in nature a healthy immune system can readily fend it off. But when it does take hold, mucormycosis kills as many as half the people it infects.

Compared to the mere handful of cases that were reported in India and then Pakistan earlier this month, thats an alarming surge in new infections. Part of the reason for that astronomical increase could come from doctors keeping a closer look for cases that might have previously gone under the radar. But with some Indian states reporting thousands of new mucormycosis cases, NDTV reports that the government is mobilizing to distribute tens of thousands of doses of medication for the infections.

Cases of mucormycosis are particularly common among diabetic COVID-19 patients who had severe infections treated with steroids. The combination of diabetes and aggressive steroid regimens can weaken the immune system, allowing the fungus to take hold.

Now that theyre better acquainted with the signs and risks of mucormycosis, doctors may have a better chance of spotting and treating the infection before it gets out of control. But lots of people are buying and self-administering high doses of steroids on their own, according to NDTV, which is likely exacerbating the problem.

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India Reports More Than 11,000 Cases of Brain-Eating Fungus - Futurism

2021 is already replaying the hits.Mayday

Another day, another gigantic container ship broken down in the Suez Canal.

On Friday, a ship called the Maersk Emerald experienced engine troubles near Ismailia, Egypt while it passed through the canal, Reuters reports. Thankfully, unlike when the Ever Given got stuck and totally blocked anyone else from using the canal back in March, the canal remains open and unobstructed this time around.

The Maersk Emerald was safely towed out of the way for repairs, allowing other ships to continue to pass through the Suez Canal and averting economic disaster.

The incident once again calls attention, though, to just how much of global commerce depends on one narrow channel of water, as we all learned during the six long days that the Ever Given was wedged up against the walls of the channel, practically grinding shipping to a halt.

After a few hours of trouble, in contrast, the Maersk Emerald was refloated, ferried away by four tugboats, and anchored for repairs, according to Marine News. Meanwhile, the Ever Given is actually still in the area, Reuters reports, as its been detained nearby for the nearly two months since it finally broke free while officials figure out what to do about the whole mess.

READ MORE: Ship suffers engine trouble in Suez Canal, no impact on traffic-sources [Reuters]

More on the Suez Canal: 5 Ways Elon Musk Can Help the Ship Trapped in the Suez Canal

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Another Ship Just Got Stuck in the Suez Canal - Futurism

The New England Produce Council Inc. BB #:170872 has announced that Suzy Badaracco, president of Culinary Tides Inc., will speak about a future without fear at the NEPC Produce, Floral & Food Service Expo, scheduled to take place Sept. 29-30 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston.

In the coming weeks, the council will be announcing additional speakers to its annual event, which as always will feature a VIP reception and a keynote breakfast in addition to the trade show.

The title of Badaraccos presentation is How to Use Strategic Thinking to Navigate Trends for 2021 & Beyond: A Future Without Fear.

Gearing up for a post-pandemic environment, the expo committee believes that Badaracco will offer much insight on produce trends for the next two years. Not only is the current environment changing rapidly, there are two influences that are acting independently: COVID-19 and recession.

Products and messaging should evolve ahead of consumer behavioral changes so they hit when consumers are their most receptive, said Badaracco.

Other influences, including health and consumer drivers, will be discussed as they pertain to the shaping of marketplace trends and how they impact the creation of new products. Equally important is the ability to recognize and adapt to upcoming changes in trend direction and to differentiate between long- and short-lived trends.

Some tools that Badaracco will offer as take-aways from the presentation will be: Understand the issues pertaining to elements influencing produce trends in order to successfully navigate them. Cross analyze trend information to generate actionable intelligence. Better predict the opportunities and pathways for making produce products successful in the marketplace.

Badaracco holds a bachelor of science degree in criminalistics, an associate degree in culinary arts, and a master of science degree in human nutrition. She has been trained in military intelligence, chaos theory and predictive analysis techniques, and has been practicing trends intelligence and predictive forecasting for more than 15 years.

Using these techniques, she has been able to successfully predict and profile government, technology, adversary and ally, food, flavor, consumer, industry and health trends.

Culinary Tides Inc. helps food industry partners navigate trends by revealing relevant patterns so they can create products that connect with customers. The company specializes in foretelling a trends birth and forecasting its trajectory, personality and longevity. The forecast results are used to create entrance, navigation and exit strategies.

For additional information on the NEPC expo, visit http://www.newenglandproducecouncil.com or contact NEPC Executive Director,Laura Sullivan at 781-273-0444.

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Food futurist to speak at NEPC expo this fall Produce Blue Book - Produce Blue Book

This tiny spherical robot has a trick up its sleeve.Transformer

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced that its sending a baseball-sized rover to the Moon some time next year to collect data on lunar dust.

And the tiny spherical robot has a trick up its sleeve: it can transform itself to drive across the surface instead of roll.

Japanese company ispacewill be delivering the 250-gram rover using the commercial HAKUTO-R lander.

If successful, Japan has a chance to join a highly exclusive club of just three countries that have managed to softly land spacecraft on the surface of the Moon the US, the Soviet Union, and most recently China and, in doing so, earn its space program unprecedented global credibility.

The transformer will be packed with scientific equipment with the aid of several industry heavy hitters. Sony will be developing imaging technologies for the transformer, according to a press release, and Japanese toy maker Tomy will aid in miniaturizing technologies to make sure everything fits.

The robot also has another very important job. It will collect data to make sure the agencys massive crewed pressurized rover will be ready to hit the road on the lunar surface as soon as 2029.

The data to be acquired by ispace is intended to improve the design accuracy and automatic operation and driving technology for the crewed pressurized rover, currently under research at JAXA, an ispace press release reads.

The lander will also be delivering the United Arab Emirates Rashid, a 22-pound four-wheeled rover that will be studying the lunar surface for about 14 Earth days using a high-resolution camera, thermal imager, and microscope.

With a successful journey to asteroid Ryugu under its belt, JAXA stands a very real chance of successfully making it to the lunar surface.

READ MORE: Japan will send a transforming robot ball to the moon to test lunar rover tech [Space.com]

More on lunar landers: Canada Wants to Land Its Own Rover on the Moon by 2026

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Japan Is Sending a Robot to the Moon and It's a Transformer - Futurism

Russias space agency Roscosmos has announced that its planning to send a nuclear-powered space tug as far as Jupiter in 2030.

According to state-owned news agency TASS, the mission of the uncrewed transport and energy module, dubbed Zeus, will last for about 50 months.

Together with the Russian Academy of Sciences, were are now making calculations about this flights ballistics and payload, Roscosmos executive director for long-term programs and science Alexander Bloshenko told reporters over the weekend, as quoted by the outlet.

Its yet another announcement of an ambitious deep space mission by Russias space agency, rounding out an already packed schedule between now and the end of this decade. The country is also looking to get its own orbital space station off the ground and land a probe on the south pole of the Moon by the end of the year.

The space tug itself will feature a 500 kilowatt nuclear reactor and weigh up to 22 tons, according to state-owned news outlet Sputnik.

Bloshenko detailed Zeus ambitious journeyduring his remarks. First the space tug will first fly to the Moon, where it will release a spacecraft that will go on to Venus. Then it will use Venus as a gravity assist to deliver yet another spacecraft, which will make its own long journey to Jupiter.

A nuclear-powered spacecraft could greatly shorten lengthy trips through deep space for astronauts. Currently, spacecraft rely on chemical propellants, solar energy and gravity for acceleration, as Insider points out.

With existing technologies, a round-trip to Mars could take more than three years.A nuclear-powered spacecraft could cut that time to just two years, according to NASA.

The Zeus module will act as a mobile source of nuclear power for future spacecraft that may attempt to make longer journeys through space.

Roscosmos has also signed a contract with design bureau Arsenal last year to develop a separate nuclear-powered space tug called Nuklon, according to TASS. The delivery date of the project is July 2024 and will reportedly cost more than $56.7 million.

Similar nuclear technologies could also be used to power future satellites and orbital stations, according to Sputnik.

Russia isnt the only country betting on nuclear energy in space. NASA is also working on a nuclear-power plant to be established in deep space, more specifically on the surface of the Moon.

Once the technology is proven through the demonstration, future systems could be scaled up or multiple units could be used together for long-duration missions to the moon and eventually Mars, Anthony Calomino, NASAs nuclear technology portfolio lead, told CNBC in November.

Calomino also noted that the ability to produce large amounts of electrical power on planetary surfaces using a fission surface power system would enable large-scale exploration, establishment of human outposts, and utilization of in situ resources.

Both Russia and the US are betting big on nuclear power in space. Not only would the technology provide future outposts with power, but nuclear fission reactors could also allow us to cross larger distances within our solar system in significantly less time.

READ MORE: Russia plans to launch a nuclear-powered spacecraft that can travel from the moon to Jupiter [Insider]

More on Roscosmos: Russia Says Its Quitting the ISS, But Its Also Testing a New ISS Module

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Russia Wants to Send a Nuclear-Powered "Space Tug" to Jupiter - Futurism

Regulators in Chinas Sichuan province are gathering information on cryptocurrency mining, potentially leading to a full crackdown on the practice, Reuters reports.

The news comes after the Chinese government announced it will crack down on bitcoin mining and trading behavior, and resolutely prevent the transfer of individual risks to the society.

Its yet another warning sign that Bitcoin could soon be on shaky grounds. With officials preparing for a crackdown, the effects on the digital token could be significant. China currently accounts for well over half of the global cryptocurrency mining supply.

Just last week, China banned any financial institutions and payment companies from doing any cryptocurrency-related business. As a result, Bitcoin plummeted to a four-month low of just $31,926, according to Coindesk before bouncing back to roughly around $39,000, down from its lofty highs earlier this year.

While regulators in Sichuan are meeting with local power companies to gather information, Reuters sources stopped short from claiming a crackdown was imminent. A seminar is scheduled next week for Sichuanese officials to discuss cryptomining.

Sichuan has plenty of hydropower available for mining businesses. It is the second biggest bitcoin mining province, according to Reuters, after Xinjiang.

The future of Bitcoin is more uncertain than it has ever been. Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk has contributed to Bitcoins recent fall in recent months by publicly flip-flopping on the token, first accepting Bitcoin as form of payment for Tesla vehicles in March, and then reversing the decision just two months later.

Musk cited environmental concerns for his decision to ditch Bitcoin, though Tesla still holds considerable amounts of the cryptocurrency and that may be affecting Chinas decision as well. The country is looking to drastically cut carbon emissions within the next decade.

By cracking down on cryptocurrency mining, a carbon-heavy practice, China could certainly make a dent. According to a recent report by CNN, China could soon generate as much emissions through Bitcoin mining alone as some entire European countries.

An alternative explanation for Chinas crackdown on cryptomining, apart from its massive carbon footprint, could be its push to establish a central bank digital currency (CBDC), a currency very unlike its blockchain-based counterparts.

Such a digital currency could give Chinas government unprecedented control over transactions, critics argue, which cant really be said about transactions made via a decentralized blockchain.

Its impossible to predict the outcome of Chinas plans to stop cryptomining businesses in their tracks but investors will certainly be watching closely.

READ MORE: In widening Chinese bitcoin crackdown, Sichuan to probe cryptomining official [Reuters]

More on Bitcoin: China Announces Huge Crackdown on Cryptocurrency Mining

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Chinese Officials Are Investigating Crypto Mining Operations - Futurism

Former Senator Bill Nelson, the newly-minted Administrator of NASA, made some unusual remarks about China, the pandemic, and national security during a virtual event.

Specifically, Nelson cited unofficial reports that the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, may have escaped from a lab at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, according to The Verge reporter Joey Roulette and added that the US ought to watch the Chinese.

We have to be concerned its nothing to snooze at and ignore, Nelson said of the lab leak hypothesis, according to Roulette.

Lets be clear. Its possible that the coronavirus indeed escaped from a lab, and more and more scientists are calling for a full and independent investigation of the pandemics origins.

But no publicly available evidence has emerged that conclusively shows that it either did or did not leak out of a lab and, due to the ephemeral nature of microorganisms, it may never. And even if scientists in Wuhan did accidentally leak the virus, it seems overwhelmingly likely that it was a terrible mistake rather than an act of malice by China or anybody else.

Add it all up, and its downright strange that the head of NASA an entity that specializes in space, not epidemiology is weighing in on such an explosive topic thats so far outside his wheelhouse.

Its equally unclear why he made the remarks at all. Nelson, who was addressing the National Academies Space Studies Board and the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board at a National Academies of Science event, was slated to talk about the primary challenges facing NASA.

Beyond speculation about a lab leak, abudding rivalry with Chinas space agency is certainly among the challenges Nelson faces in his new role, which he acknowledged during the same remarks.

Nelson told the boards that [China] is starting to get very aggressive in space, according to Roulette, which seems to be what brought Nelson to the matter of the pandemic.

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The New Head of NASA Says COVID May Have Leaked From a Lab - Futurism

The force is strong with this luxurious Texan abode. Known to many as the Darth Vader House, the space-age property is at once epic and commanding, and has a multimillion-dollar price tag to match.

Built a short time ago in a galaxy not so far awaythat is, Houston circa 1992the two-story structure has a striking, angular silhouette that resembles the Dark Lord of the Siths personal flagship, the Executor, as well as his infamous TIE Fighter and Death Star.

The overlords lair is located on a large lot on a prestigious West University street and offers an impressive 7,000 square feet of living space. With contemporary styling throughout, it is characterized by a flowing open-plan layout and massive windows that let in plenty of natural light.

The home sports lightsaber-like neon lights.TK IMAGES

At the heart of the home is an angular atrium that comes complete with a sunken neon-lit lounge and dual floating staircases. Elsewhere, there are four generous bedrooms with ample closet space for your Galactic Empire regalia, five full bathrooms, an office, a dining room and a kitchen whose stone countertops have a rockface edgea naturalistic counterpoint to all the sharp angles inside and out.

The furniture and art throughout toes the line between elegant, mid-century modern and abstract futurism. Think large, intricate sculptures mixed with stately wooden tables and consoles.

The sprawling backyard features perfectly manicured grass.TK IMAGES

The exterior, meanwhile, features large stretches of manicured grass that offer versatility in spades: You could add a bunch of Star Wars-themed furniture or even a pool. The property also boasts a sizable four-car garage where you could park your extra Imperial Star Destroyers or store your lightsabers.

As to be expected, Vaders pad does not come cheap. Listed by Wade Knight and Nadia Carron of Sothebys International Realty, its priced at an astronomical $4.3 million. But, hey, its a small price to pay to enter the dark side.

Check out more photos of the property below:

TK IMAGES

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This Otherworldly Darth Vader House in Houston Could Be Yours for $4.3 Million - Robb Report

Countries around the world are beginning to reckon with a years-long drop in new births that has skewed population demographics heavily toward older age groups.

Thanks to that near-global drop in fertility rates, experts suggest that the planets population could enter a period of continued decline for the first time in known human history by the second half of the 21st century, The New York Times reports.

In a more local perspective, some cities are already reckoning with the challenges of precipitous drops in new births, the NYT reports, including ghost cities in Chinaand maternity wards with too few births to justify staying open in Italy. Some South Korean universities have so few students that the government is pressuring them to merge with others, and entire towns where deaths outnumber births are being consolidated in Japan.

A paradigm shift is necessary, former United Nations chief of population trends and analysis Frank Swiaczny told the NYT. Countries need to learn to live with and adapt to decline.

One Chinese city, Hegang, lost about ten percent of its population over the course of a decade. As a result, the cost of housing has fallen enormously.

Interestingly, Germany has found some ways to revitalize its dropping fertility rate by supporting would-be parents with social services like parental leave and childcare. The resulting increase in the local fertility rate, up to 1.54 from its 2006 low point of 1.3, is marginal but does offer some insights that other countries and cities could use for themselves.

Growth is a challenge, as is decline, Swiaczny told the NYT.

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Gearing Up

As China prepares to launch the modules of its next space station into orbit, the astronauts who will help assemble it in space are completing rigorous training.

China plans to launch several individual space station modules in the coming months, Space.com reports, and human crews will follow to help with assembly. China plans to get the components and modules of its Tiangong-3 space station into orbit over the course of 11 launches, so the crewmembers will have their work cut out for them as they piece it together — a dazzling test of China’s growing space prowess.

Familiar Face

So far, there’s no timeline available for the individual missions, but astronauts will follow the space station’s modules into orbit inside the Shcnzhou capsule, launched from China’s new Long March 2F rockets.

So far, the crewmembers’ identities have been kept under wraps. But Space.com spotted astronaut Wang Yaping, the second Chinese woman to go to space, in a recent video report by the state-owned Xinhua News Agency that showed some of the training astronauts are undergoing — suggesting she may have made the cut.

China’s space agency revealed a new roster of astronauts in October, but even the people on that list will need to complete the ongoing training before they’re actually selected for a given mission.

Practice Run

Part of the rigorous training program includes putting on a spacesuit and plunging underwater to work inside a full-scale replica of the space station, according to Space.com.

The crewmembers will need to be able to perform risky spacewalks that last up to six hours while they assemble Tiangong-3, according to footage released by the Chinese government, so the ongoing training is designed to put them through the paces as much as possible while they’re still here on Earth and the stakes are much lower.

READ MORE: With 1st space station launch this spring, Chinese astronauts are training for flight [Space.com]

More on China’s space program: Congress Bars NASA From Working With China. That’s Likely a Mistake.

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Chinese Astronauts Prepare To Assemble Space Station in Orbit

Air Raid

The death count as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic has been astronomical — but there may be an even bigger threat facing humanity that often goes unnoticed: air pollution, as Guardian columnist Rebecca Solnit argues in a recent opinion piece for the newspaper.

She points to one recent study that found that air pollution caused by the use of fossil fuels results in the deaths of around 8.7 million people worldwide each year, with 62 percent of deaths occurring in China and India — meaning it kills roughly three times annually as many people as the COVID-19 pandemic did last year.

Pollution Killer

Solnit argues that while the death toll of COVID-19 has been brought to the forefront of every discussion, the same can’t be said about air pollution and climate change.

“We have learned to ignore other forms of death and destruction, by which I mean we have normalized them as a kind of moral background noise,” Solnit argues.

“What if we treated those 8.7 million annual deaths from air pollution as an emergency and a crisis,” she writes, “and recognized that respiratory impact from particulates is only a small part of the devastating impact of burning fossil fuels?”

Impact Assessment

Solnit suggests we could use the same amount of funds made available to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic and use them to fight climate change.

“In response to the pandemic, we in the US have spent trillions of dollars and changed how we live and work,” she argues. “We need the will to do the same for the climate crisis.”

It’s certainly not an argument to look away as thousands succumb to the deadly coronavirus every day. More than 2.8 million people have died from the virus, according to the New York Times tracker, since the start of the pandemic.

But our mobilizing efforts prove that we have the resources to make a dent in much bigger problems facing humanity today — like climate change.

READ MORE: There’s another pandemic under our noses, and it kills 8.7m people a year [The Guardian]

More on air pollution: This $350 Breathing Mask Is Cashing in on Climate Change

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Something Else Killed Three Times as Many People As COVID This Year

There’s something exhilarating about getting a COVID-19 vaccine injected into your arm.

The past year and change has been a disaster, especially in the United States: Over 500,000 of our friends, family members, loved ones, and neighbors have died, and the government’s response illuminated and exacerbated the structural inequalities that are deeply entrenched in American society.

But for many — soon to be many more as more states plan to open vaccination appointments to the general public — getting that jab gives a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel. It’s a sign that, after months and months of lockdown blurring together, you’re a lot more likely to make it out.

And also, after the horror stories we endured regarding missing, faulty, or insufficient tests, the act of getting a vaccine might leave you walking away in awe over a public health initiative that actually runs smoothly.

“After I got the shot, I left Javits Center in such a good mood,” NBC News reporter Ben Collins tweeted Thursday. “I realize now I had some sort of contact high from experiencing something communal and in public that worked, and did exactly what they said it was going to do. Haven’t seen anything like that in years, literally.”

“Literally I volunteer at a vaccine pod every Saturday with [the] Chicago dept of public health [because] of this feeling !!!!” tweeted Sruti Ramadugu, a Strategic Initiatives Advisor at the Sheryl Sandberg & Dave Goldberg Family Foundation.

When I got my first shot, I walked into a clinic, filled out a form, and got a free injection. There’s no doubt in my mind that my experience was easier than many others — especially given some areas’ horrible vaccine rollouts and the lack of national coordination early on — and there’s an undeniable privilege in being able to hide indoors until it was time to get jabbed.

But still, the experience was remarkably straightforward and felt like it took less time than planning out which masks and face shield I’d wear. The simplicity felt unreal, and I get what Collins is talking about: I jumped in the air and clicked my heels like a cartoon character (holding the champagne I’d impulse bought) when I got outside.

“I realized how relentlessly let down I am by basic stuff here,” Collins tweeted. “Nothing ever works, everything is always a pain in the ass, but I make do. It is shocking when you walk into a place then leave and there was no trap or trick. Borderline euphoric.”

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People Are Experiencing a “Contact High” at Vaccination Centers

The concept of a space elevator, a consistently popular topic in works of science fiction, has been around since at least the late 19th century.

The basic idea is to allow us to reach space by using a cable that’s tethered to the Earth on one end and to a counterweight, orbiting the Earth, on the other.

But rather than having one end cemented in the Earth, scientists are now arguing that a more recently developed iteration of the space elevator design could be built much sooner. The design involves having both ends of the tether float entirely in space, making transportation of payloads from one orbit to the other much easier.

And, as George Zhu, professor of mechanical engineering at York University, tells The Academic Times, the concept isn’t nearly as far fetched as we might think.

“Technical-wise, it’s kind of ready,” Zhu told the outlet. “It just has small engineering [adjustments], and there’s no fundamental difficulty to do that.”

In his paper, published in the journal Acta Astronautica last month,  Zhu argues that a “partial space elevator” that sends payloads from a lower to a higher Earth orbit is already mechanically feasible today.

In short, the idea is to send payloads to the lower reaches of space via rockets, attach them to the lower end of the tether, and have them be zipped up to the further reaches of Earth’s orbit via the elevator.

Such an elevator could use two, instead of one, cable tethers to keep the elevator stable.

That’s mainly to stop the Earth’s rotational force, the Coriolis effect, moving the cable back and forth, a phenomenon referred to by Zhu as “libration.”

“Our idea is, when we put two tethers together, one cargo will be moving up and the other cargo will be moving down, so the forces will cancel each other,” Zhu told The Academic Times.

Since “both ends are floating in space,” according to Zhu, “the tension within the tether is limited. Current material can support that tension.”

As a result of the significant fuel savings involved in only sending a rocket to the lower reaches of space, today’s rockets could send up to ten times more payload by weight into space, according to the researcher.

There are several downsides to the approach, however. Zhu did admit to The Academic Times that a kilometers-long tether would make it very difficult for existing objects in Earth’s orbit to avoid debris.

For instance, the International Space Station routinely has to fire its thrusters to avoid oncoming bits of space junk. If it were tied to an extremely long tether, as Zhang suggests, such maneuvers would be near impossible.

While such a space elevator doesn’t quite solve the issue of having to spend massive amounts of fuel to get off the ground and escape the Earth’s powerful gravitational pull, it could still cut the required journey short significantly, saving plenty of fuel in the process — an intriguing possibility.

READ MORE: Far from science fiction, space elevators may be nearing deployment [The Academic Times]

More on space elevators: These Researchers Want to Run a Cable From the Earth to the Moon

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Professor Says We Could Already Build a Floating Space Elevator

Left Behind

Roughly 4.5 billion years ago, an ancient protoplanet called Theia likely crashed into the Earth, sending shrapnel and debris into space and ultimately forming the Moon.

But the crash also likely left pieces of Theia buried beneath the Earth in the form of two incredibly huge blobs of rock and metal, according to research by Arizona State University scientists. Now, in a new interview with Insider, the lead scientist behind that research has clarified their utterly unfathomable scale.

Those ancient, buried fragments are “millions of times larger than Mount Everest in terms of volume,” Arizona State researcher Qian Yuan told the site.

Dream Summit

The gargantuan masses are 621 miles tall and two to three times as wide, according to Yuan’s research, scheduled to be published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. And the rock isn’t just sitting there — scientists have previously been able to study the blobs after their contents oozed up and out of Samoan and Icelandic volcanoes, according to Insider.

Studying that lava, according to Insider, is part of what led scientists to believe that the blobs are drastically different from the surrounding mantle, lending evidence to the idea they came from somewhere other than Earth.

Nearby Shrapnel

If these underground blobs really are pieces of Theia, it would mean that Earth had a shockingly violent past. But it would also help explain where the Moon came from.

A “hit-and-run” theory of the Earth-Theia collision, Yuan told Insider, would say that the two planets glanced off each other and the pieces they flung into space eventually formed the Moon. Scientists have previously suggested there are pieces of Theia under the lunar surface, but the Moon’s composition is highly similar to Earth. Given that and the incredible size of the blobs that got buried, it seems most of the ancient planet’s surviving remains got stuck here instead.

READ MORE: Earth contains buried chunks of an alien world that are ‘millions of times larger than Mount Everest,’ research suggests [Insider]

More on Theia: There Appears to be a Huge Chunk of an Ancient Planet Buried Inside Earth

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Pieces of Alien Planet Buried Inside Earth Are “Millions of Times Larger Than Mount Everest”

Power and Propulsion

NASA has recently tested a propulsion system for its future lunar space station.

The agency conducted the ground test of a subsystem for their Power and Propulsion Element (PPE), according to a NASA press release. The PPE will allow NASA’s Gateway, an outpost to orbit the Moon, to maneuver above the lunar surface. 

Check out a video of the ground test below (complete with cheesy 90s house music):

Exciting First Steps

The test was for a six-kilowatt solar electric propulsion subsystem. NASA plans to combine several of these thrusters to create the PPE’s 50-kilowatt electric propulsion system. When completed, it’ll be the most “powerful electric propulsion spacecraft ever flown,” according to the press release.

“This is an exciting first step toward proving the PPE’s propulsion system will meet Gateway’s requirements,” said Power and Propulsion Element manager at NASA’s Glenn Research Center Mike Barret in the press release. “These thrusters will be critical in delivering the first elements of Gateway to lunar orbit and will help us create a dynamic exploration platform over Gateway’s 15-year lifespan.”

Gateway to the Moon

Gateway is a part of NASA’s Artemis program to land the first woman (along with yet another man) on the Moon by 2024. The agency hopes that the orbiting lunar outpost will provide support for “sustainable, long-term human and robotic exploration,” according to the press release. 

To create Gateway, NASA is partnering with SpaceX to launch the portion of the outpost where astronauts will live. Once that happens, the first crewed mission for the Artemis program will launch in 2023 — with a touchdown on the lunar surface slated the next year. 

READ MORE: We’re Fired Up! Gateway’s Propulsion System Passes First Test [NASA]

More on Artemis: NASA Releases Beautiful New Renders of Lunar Gateway Space Station

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NASA Tests Propulsion System for Lunar Space Station

Well-Armed Confrontation

Most vacation souvenirs come in the form of cheap, plastic tchotchkes bought at gift shops — but sometimes they come in the form of scars from giant octopus attacks.

That was the case with an Australian man who was attacked by a giant octopus while on vacation with his family in March. 

Lance Karlson, a 34-year-old geologist from Perth, was vacationing with his wife and daughter on a beach in Dunsborough, Australia on March 18 when he spotted a giant octopus in shallow waters, according to The New York Times. He decided to approach the creature with his 2-year-old daughter in one hand and a phone to record the encounter in the other. 

Here’s what happened:

The Angriest Octopus

Karlson and his daughter made it away unscathed from that particular interaction. However, when the geologist decided to do some snorkeling later, he was attacked by what he described as “the angriest octopus” to the NYT. 

As he swam out into the ocean, he spotted a pile of crab shells stacked on the ocean floor — a common way for octopi to conceal their hiding spots. He told the NYT that an octopus then lashed out at him twice, striking him on his neck, back, and arms. 

His injuries consisted of visible red marks on his neck, back, and arms. He also felt a stinging sensation where he was struck, and his wife later poured soda down his back to alleviate the pain.

“The stinging sensation went away almost instantly,” Karlson said to the NYT. 

Judit Pungor, an octopus researcher at the University of Oregon, told the NYT that octopus don’t have venom in their tentacles that would be “alleviated by pouring something acidic over it.” She believes that Karlson might have been coincidentally attacked by a jellyfish.

But it wouldn’t be too surprising if he was attacked by an octopus. After all, they’ve been known to punch fish out of spite.

Octopuses punch fishes. YES. OCTOPUSES. PUNCH. FISHES!!

Our new paper is out on @ESAEcology, showing that octos express this behavior during collaborative hunting with other fishes. This was probably the most fun I had writing a paper. Ever! (small )https://t.co/Vwg9BoaSUo pic.twitter.com/PIYuVXpM9t

— Eduardo Sampaio (@OctoEduardo) December 18, 2020

Beautiful Creatures

After posting the video to his Instagram, it quickly went viral. Now, Karlson fears that people will get the wrong idea about octopuses saying that folks should “give some love to these beautiful creatures and not treat them with disdain.”

Peter Ulric Tse, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at Dartmouth College who has studied octopus behavior, believes that the creature in the viral video wasn’t trying to harm Karlson.

“My guess is that the octopus here is sending a warning meaning ‘back off,’” he told the NYT. “Octopuses will lunge or shoot an arm out when they feel a fish, another octopus or a human is in their space. I think this is often pre-emptive aggression, meant to signal ‘don’t mess with me,’ rather than aggression seriously meant to harm the ‘invader.’”

So instead of having a Jaws-esque backlash against our favorite eight-tentacled vertebrate, we should appreciate them from afar — and maybe avoid bothering them for the ‘gram.

READ MORE: ‘The Angriest Octopus’ Lashes at a Tourist on an Australian Beach [NYT]

More on octopi: Scientists Say That “Spiteful” Octopuses Punch Fish When They’re Angry  

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