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On this day, April 12, we celebrate one of humanity’s greatest milestones—when a human first left our planet and ventured into space. On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person to orbit the Earth aboard the spacecraft Vostok 1.
His legendary words—“Poyekhali!” (“Let’s go!”)—marked the dawn of the space age and a monumental achievement for science, courage, and international competition. Gagarin’s 108-minute journey turned him into a global icon and opened the door for all future space exploration.
Happy Cosmonautics Day!
#Gagarin #Space #USSR #science #history
In India, ducks are still actively used in traditional farming practices. After the rice harvest, farmers release flocks of ducks onto the fields.
These birds play several crucial roles at once: they eat pests, help control weeds, and naturally fertilize the soil. It’s a brilliant example of low-tech, sustainable agriculture where nature does the heavy lifting.
The Solar Orbiter spacecraft has obtained unprecedented footage of the solar wind. This flow of charged particles appeared as massive spiral structures, resembling a giant cyclone. Extending outwards to a distance of up to three solar radii, these formations persisted for over three hours.
These remarkable images were captured by the Metis coronagraph aboard Solar Orbiter. Metis specializes in detecting various types of radiation emitted by the solar corona, while effectively blocking direct sunlight from the star’s surface.
Visualizing the wind's structure represents a significant step forward in understanding its nature. Previously, measurements were confined to localized points reached by the particle flow. Now, scientists have observed a comprehensive, dynamic picture, witnessing how particles accelerate, escape the Sun’s gravity, and form turbulent patterns.
Solar wind continuously interacts with Earth, affecting not only phenomena like the Northern and Southern Lights (auroras), but also influencing satellite operations, communication systems, and navigation technologies. Although its intensity varies with solar activity, the exact formation mechanisms remain unclear.
These new insights from Solar Orbiter promise to enhance our comprehension of these processes. The mission is scheduled to continue until 2026, with a potential extension through 2030.
@science
Sharks can produce sounds. Scientists in New Zealand observed captive rig sharks (Mustelus lenticulatus) emitting clicking noises, marking the first documented instance of sound production in sharks. These clicks are believed to result from the sharks snapping their flat, blunt teeth together—a behavior previously unrecorded in these creatures. The purpose of these sounds remains uncertain; they may serve as a defensive mechanism or a response to being startled. This finding challenges the long-held perception of sharks as silent predators and opens new avenues for understanding their behavior and communication.
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🚨 Science Podcast Alert! 🎙️
Tune in this Friday for our exciting weekly @science podcast! We’re uncovering this week’s most amazing scientific breakthroughs:
🔹 Dark Energy is Changing? New observations from the DESI telescope hint that dark energy—responsible for the universe’s accelerated expansion—might be weakening, potentially reshaping cosmology as we know it!
🐶 Decoding Dogs’ Noses: Scientists developed an optical sensor to read canine brain activity, revealing precisely how dogs distinguish smells. This breakthrough could revolutionize scent detection, from drug sniffing to medical diagnostics!
🌌 AI Unlocks Cosmic Secrets: Artificial intelligence helped astrophysicists identify that Earth’s most energetic cosmic radiation comes predominantly from heavy nuclei like iron—not protons as previously thought. A huge leap in understanding cosmic rays!
🌎 Electricity from Earth’s Spin: Physicists propose a groundbreaking method to generate electricity using Earth’s rotational energy and magnetic field—opening a new avenue toward sustainable energy production!
🧬 Watching DNA Unwind: Researchers captured, for the first time ever, the exact moment DNA begins to unravel—an essential step in life itself. A profound leap forward in understanding DNA replication and cell biology!
🧠 Light-Powered Artificial Neurons: Cutting-edge semiconductor devices powered by light now mimic the brain’s oscillations, paving the way for ultra-fast, energy-efficient neuromorphic computing.
🛰️ Stable Dyson Spheres and Ringworlds: Surprisingly, scientists confirmed that certain Dyson spheres and ringworlds—once thought purely fictional—could actually be gravitationally stable, reigniting excitement about engineering on cosmic scales.
🔭 Neutrinos and Quantum Gravity: The Mediterranean neutrino observatory (KM3NeT) sets unprecedented limits on quantum gravity effects, deepening our understanding of the universe’s fundamental forces.
Stay curious, stay informed, and join us for more incredible discoveries! 🚀🌌
Scientists at Zhejiang University have unveiled a groundbreaking facial mask that can transform the wearer’s appearance in real time. Designed to potentially deceive facial recognition systems, the mask is composed of multiple elastic layers with distinct functions.
• Dynamic Appearance Change: The outer layer utilizes built-in heating elements to change color, while the inner layers adjust facial proportions, offering a total of eight preset facial configurations.
• Transformation Speed: The complete metamorphosis takes roughly 100 seconds, providing a swift and effective disguise.
• Current Limitations and Future Directions: Although the prototype cannot yet mimic facial expressions, ongoing developments aim to refine the technology. Engineers plan to replace the current ammonia-based chemical activation with a safer, less toxic alternative.
• Broader Implications: Beyond espionage applications, this innovative technology holds promise for the development of lifelike humanoid robots, opening up exciting new avenues in robotics and dynamic material science.
For further details, you can read more in the original publication in Science Advances.
#robots #science
🚨 Science Update Alert! 🎙️
Discover today’s hottest breakthroughs from the frontiers of science:
🌀 White Holes: A New Cosmic Beginning? Researchers from the University of Sheffield propose that black holes might not be the end of everything. Using quantum mechanics, they suggest the existence of “white holes,” cosmic regions spewing matter, energy, and time back into the universe, potentially changing how we perceive space and time itself.
🤖 AI’s Impact on Wealth Equality: A groundbreaking study from Changzhou University explores how artificial intelligence could reshape global wealth distribution. While AI-driven automation is predicted to significantly boost economic output, it might also widen the wealth gap. Policymakers are advised to support neutral AI technologies that promote balanced economic growth.
🦈 Greenland Shark’s Longevity Secrets Unveiled: Scientists decoded the genome of Greenland sharks, Earth’s longest-living vertebrates (up to 400 years old!). Unique genetic traits associated with exceptional immune response and cancer resistance could inspire future breakthroughs in human aging research.
🔄 Twisted Light Powers Next-Gen Electronics: Cambridge researchers created a revolutionary organic semiconductor emitting circularly polarized “twisted” light, potentially transforming displays, quantum computing, and spintronics. This discovery promises ultra-efficient and powerful electronics, possibly revolutionizing technology as we know it.
🧬 East Asian Lactase Genes: A Neanderthal Legacy: Fascinating genetic research reveals that approximately 25% of East Asians inherited unique lactase genes from Neanderthals. These genes allow the digestion of milk sugars, pointing to ancient interspecies interactions shaping human evolution.
♻️ Breaking Down Plastic—With Air! A groundbreaking study from Northwestern University demonstrates a simple, affordable way to recycle PET plastics using nothing but an inexpensive catalyst and moisture from the air. This revolutionary technique might pave the way toward a cleaner and sustainable circular plastic economy.
Stay curious, stay updated, and stay tuned for more discoveries! 🚀🔬
Youtube audio version
🧠 Engineers at MIT have developed a magnetic robotic thread designed to remove blood clots from the brain.
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🔬 BREAKTHROUGH IN AI-POWERED HEALTHCARE
Google Research has unveiled significant advancements in AMIE (Artificial Medical Intelligence Engine), a cutting-edge AI system designed for longitudinal disease management.
🔹 What makes this important?Unlike traditional diagnostic tools, AMIE follows patients throughout their entire treatment journey, continuously adapting and personalizing care plans based on patient progress.
🔹 Key innovations:
• Multi-modal data integration combining medical images, clinical notes, and lab results
• Temporal neural networks that detect subtle changes in patient condition over time
• Interpretable AI models that explain recommendations to physicians
🔹 Clinical results are impressive:
• 94% accuracy in detecting cancer recurrence
• 12% improvement in survival rates in oncology applications
• Early detection of neurodegenerative disease progression by 7 months compared to standard monitoring
This represents a paradigm shift from reactive to proactive healthcare, where AI doesn't just diagnose but becomes an integral part of the entire treatment process.
The research team emphasizes their commitment to ethical AI development with strong privacy protections and transparency principles built into the system.
Full research paper: https://research.google/blog/from-diagnosis-to-treatment-advancing-amie-for-longitudinal-disease-management/
#AIinHealthcare #MedicalAI #GoogleResearch #AMIE #FutureOfMedicine
Researchers at UC Santa Barbara and TU Dresden have developed a collective of disk-shaped autonomous robots that mimic the adaptive behaviors of biological tissues. Inspired by how embryonic cells transition between fluid and solid states to form structures, these robots can rearrange themselves to act either as a rigid material or flow into new configurations. This advancement opens new possibilities for adaptable robotic systems capable of self-healing and dynamic reconfiguration.
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🌍🚀 A “Seed Pyramid” on the Moon – Humanity’s Backup Plan
Alongside a suite of scientific instruments, the Blue Ghost lunar lander has delivered something truly unique to the Moon: a pyramid containing life’s seeds and Wikipedia encoded in DNA.
This project was developed by the biotech company LifeShip in collaboration with the Arch Mission Foundation, an organization dedicated to preserving human knowledge for future generations—or perhaps even extraterrestrials. If life on Earth were to face extinction, these seeds could potentially help revive it.
This is the third lunar library sent by Arch Mission Foundation, adding to their efforts to safeguard humanity’s legacy beyond Earth.
🔬 What’s inside the pyramid?
🌾 100 types of plant seeds & DNA from 500 plant species
🪴 Essential crops, iconic ornamental plants, and sacred medicinal herbs
🌲 The tallest trees on Earth – coastal redwoods
📀 Images of 100 plants preserved on ceramic plates by Cerabyte, designed to last for billions of years
A small step for @science, a giant leap for planetary backup. 🌱🌕✨
Dark Matter: Measured at Last! 🌌
For the first time, scientists directly measured the amount of dark matter in our part of the Milky Way! 🛸 Using pulsars—spinning cosmic lighthouses—they detected the faint gravitational pull of this invisible substance.
🔬 The result? Less than 1 kg of dark matter exists in a volume the size of Earth! 🤯 Even though dark matter dominates the universe, locally it’s incredibly sparse.
💡 This breakthrough helps us map dark matter in our galaxy, refine theories of gravity, and better understand the unseen forces shaping the cosmos. The invisible is becoming visible!
How Tears Dry
Tears are 98% water, with the remaining 2% containing salts, glucose, proteins, and lipids. As they evaporate, water disappears first, leaving behind tiny crystalline traces.
Interestingly, emotional tears contain more proteins than reflex tears (like from cutting onions), affecting how they dry. A little chemistry in every tear! 🔬💧
Crowd Movement Follows a Vortex Pattern, Physicists Find
Crowds don’t move chaotically—physicists from École Normale Supérieure de Lyon (France) have shown that large groups of people form rotating vortices instead.
The researchers analyzed crowd dynamics during the San Fermín festival in Spain, using balcony-mounted cameras and computational models. Unlike previous studies that treated crowds as clusters of individual agents, they modeled the crowd as a dense, fluid-like continuum.
As the crowd filled the square, it reached a critical density of 4 people per square meter, triggering the slow formation of overlapping vortices. When density rose to 9 people per square meter, new vortices appeared every 18 seconds. Interestingly, participants were likely unaware they were moving in circles.
🔗 Study in Nature
🎙️ @Science Podcast
Hey curious minds! In this episode, we’re diving into some of the wildest and most mind-blowing discoveries fresh from the front lines of science. Let’s go!
🌌 What if the universe doesn’t need dark matter or dark energy? Physicist Richard Lieu just proposed a bold new model suggesting cosmic expansion comes from sudden bursts in space-time — shaking the foundations of modern cosmology .
🪐 Meanwhile, the James Webb Space Telescope spotted a dusty disk around the central star of the famous Ring Nebula — likely the remnants of a stellar “marriage” gone dusty .
🌍 Beneath our feet, scientists uncovered a brand-new phylum of microbes deep in Earth’s soil — and these guys are purifying our water while thriving in extreme underground zones .
⚡ Think only sharks and bees can sense electric fields? Nope. Turns out fruit fly larvae have a “sixth sense” too, with special neurons in their heads guiding them like living compasses .
🌊 Out at sea, glowing “milky seas” — massive bioluminescent patches — are becoming more predictable thanks to a new 400-year database. Yes, nature’s glow-in-the-dark ocean is real .
🎣 Up in the mountains of Europe, ancient DNA reveals that as far back as the 7th century, farmers were hauling fish to alpine lakes — early aquaculture in action .
🧠 And finally, a mouse watching The Matrix helped scientists map 84,000 neurons and 500 million synapses in a tiny bit of brain — a neural map so complex, it looks like a galaxy .
🦕 Oh — and right at ground zero of the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs? Life bounced back in just a few years, thanks to a secret hydrothermal system under the sea floor .
📻 Hit play and explore how science is rewriting reality — one discovery at a time.
🔋⚛️ ETERNAL POWER: China Launches Nuclear Battery with 50-Year Lifespan
Imagine a device you won’t need to recharge for half a century. Chinese researchers have turned this concept into reality!
What is BV100?
• The world’s first commercial 3V betavoltaic battery by Betavolt
• Coin-sized nuclear battery using nickel-63
• Operational lifespan: 50 years without recharging 😱
• Converts radiation energy into electricity using semiconductor absorbers
Potential applications:
• Pacemakers and medical implants
• Spacecraft and satellites
• Remote sensors in hard-to-reach locations
• Deep-sea monitoring systems
Is it safe? 🤔
Absolutely! The beta particles from nickel-63 are so weak they can be blocked by a simple aluminum layer or even a sheet of paper. All radiation remains contained within the hermetically sealed casing.
The bigger picture:
• While the US and other countries are still developing prototypes, China has established a complete production chain
• Another Chinese project in development: carbon nuclear battery with up to 100 years of service life
• Low power output compared to conventional batteries, but revolutionary for specific applications
• High production costs, but game-changing for critical devices
This technology represents a significant milestone in creating truly long-lasting power sources for mission-critical devices.
#Nuclear #Battery #Betavoltaic #China #BV100 #Science #Energy
The James Webb Space Telescope has achieved a groundbreaking astronomical milestone, capturing clear images of auroras on Neptune—a sight astronomers are already hailing as historic.
Auroras occur when charged particles ejected by the Sun interact with a planet’s magnetic field, entering its upper atmosphere and creating a stunning luminous display.
Hints of auroral activity on Neptune were first spotted by Voyager 2 back in 1989, but concrete evidence remained elusive. Over the decades, clear visuals of auroras emerged for Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus, leaving Neptune as the mysterious missing link—until now.
Thanks to James Webb’s exceptional sensitivity in the near-infrared range, astronomers have not only clearly observed Neptune’s auroras but also captured remarkable details of their distinctive signatures.
Moreover, scientists obtained a spectrum of Neptune’s atmosphere, allowing them to study its composition and measure the temperature of its ionosphere. Excitingly, they detected, for the first time, a prominent emission line indicating the presence of trihydrogen cation—a molecule commonly formed during auroral processes.
🧠 AI-powered ring translates sign language in real-time!
Researchers at Cornell University have created SpellRing, a tiny wearable device that uses micro-sonar and AI to track finger movements in American Sign Language (ASL). The ring, no bigger than a U.S. quarter, translates fingerspelled words with an impressive accuracy of up to 92%.
This breakthrough could revolutionize digital communication for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community, making interactions with smartphones and computers smoother and more inclusive.
Read more
Terrifying "Sounds" of the Sun
Our Sun regularly emits powerful streams of high-energy electrons. When these electrons collide with other charged particles, they release radio emissions.
These emissions are captured by the RPW (Radio and Plasma Waves) instrument onboard the Solar Orbiter spacecraft. In this video, data from the RPW instrument has been converted into audible sounds, allowing us to experience the Sun's eerie "voice."
@science
Is Humanity Getting Dumber? @Science Says Yes
A recent study confirms a concerning trend: global intelligence levels have been declining since 2010. Researchers have found that many people struggle to focus on a single task, lose logical thinking skills, and spend excessive time on their smartphones.
Here are some key findings:
🔢 25% of adults in developed countries cannot solve basic math problems, with this figure rising to 35% in the U.S.
🧑🎓 Since 2015, there has been a sharp increase in 18-year-olds struggling to concentrate on a single topic.
📖 In 2022, half of those surveyed read no more than one book, while 45% of teenagers did not read at all.
The culprit? The way we consume information has changed. Social media, with its endless feeds and algorithm-driven content, overloads the brain, making it harder to seek out and process valuable information. Instead, people get stuck in an endless loop of low-value content consumption.
💡 The good news?
The brain remains highly adaptable—with effort, it’s possible to regain focus and sharpen critical thinking skills.
Time to take control of our attention!
Olivia Farnsworth: The Girl Who Feels No Pain, Hunger, or Fatigue
Olivia Farnsworth from the UK is a unique medical case—she doesn’t feel pain, hunger, or fatigue. This rare condition is caused by a deletion in her 6th chromosome, meaning a segment of the chromosome is missing. She is believed to be the only person in the world exhibiting all three symptoms simultaneously.
The inability to feel pain is the most dangerous aspect of her condition, as she could sustain serious injuries without realizing it. Her family must constantly monitor and protect her. Additionally, her mother ensures she eats regularly, as Olivia doesn’t experience hunger signals and could easily forget to eat.
Sleep is an even greater challenge. Without medication, Olivia cannot fall asleep naturally and can stay awake for up to three days in a row. To manage this, she follows a strict regimen of sleeping aids.
Olivia’s case remains a fascinating and rare example of how genetic anomalies can dramatically alter human perception and biology.
@science
The IM-2 Athena lunar lander, developed by Intuitive Machines, has completed its mission in the Moon’s southern polar region. However, it did so ahead of schedule—because it tipped over upon landing. This mishap echoes last year’s incident with the company’s first lander, IM-1 Odysseus. That one, despite ending up on its side, managed to function for some time since its solar panels could still charge the batteries.
Unfortunately, IM-2 fared worse. The designated landing ellipse was just 50 meters across near Malapert Massif, but the actual deviation was much larger—250 meters, according to the company, and up to 400 meters, per NASA. Engineers noted issues with the clarity of data from the laser altimeter, and an image sent from the lander confirmed that it had come to rest on its side inside a crater. Given that this region receives only slanted sunlight, combined with the extreme cold of the lunar night and the poor orientation of the solar panels, IM-2 has no chance of waking up again.
As a result, the two small rovers and the drill meant to extract regolith from nearly a meter deep were unable to fulfill their primary missions—though at least they managed to prove they were functional.
#space #moon #science
🚨 Science Podcast Alert! 🎙️
Tune in every Friday for our weekly @science podcast! Today, we're diving deep into the latest groundbreaking discoveries:
🔹 Mars Reveals Secrets: NASA’s Perseverance rover found unexpected minerals on Mars, hinting at ancient life-friendly conditions. Unusual deposits of kaolinite suggest Mars once had a warm, wet environment ideal for microbial life.
🌌 Ultra-Hot Nova Surprise: Gemini South telescope captured a recurrent nova eruption in a nearby galaxy with unprecedented chemical signatures, including extremely ionized silicon shining nearly 100 times brighter than our sun.
🦴 Walking Upright 2 Million Years Ago: A newly discovered fossil from South Africa confirms that our ancient relative, Paranthropus robustus, walked upright like humans and was surprisingly small, highlighting new insights into early human evolution.
🚬 Smoking Fuels Antibiotic Resistance: New research reveals cigarette waste promotes the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in water bodies and even human lungs, highlighting yet another hidden health hazard of smoking.
🧬 Nanoparticles vs. Cancer: Breakthrough research at UCLA uses innovative nanoparticle technology to stop pancreatic cancer from spreading. This method combines immune therapy and mRNA to create personalized cancer treatments.
🛰️ Voyager's Final Chapter: NASA is carefully powering down instruments on Voyager spacecraft to extend their missions as long as possible. These probes continue to send back data from beyond our solar system, over 15 billion miles from Earth.
Join us today as we explore these groundbreaking stories and more!
Stay curious, stay informed, and see you in the podcast! 🚀🌍
By the end of 2025, a lawyer’s caliber will be determined 90% by the quality of their AI assistant.
Reasoning models have made a breakthrough in legal skill qualification and practice efficiency.
The first randomized controlled study assessed how senior law students performed six legal tasks using:
• A RAG-based AI legal tool (Vincent AI),
• An AI reasoning model (O1-preview OpenAI),
• Or no AI at all (as lawyers worldwide still commonly work today).
The study revealed:
• Both AI tools significantly improved legal work quality.
AI assistance boosted performance in five out of six tested legal tasks, with:
• Vincent AI delivering a statistically significant improvement of 38% to 115%,
• O1-preview increasing performance by 34% to 140%, showing particularly strong results in complex tasks like drafting persuasive legal letters and analyzing legal complaints.
• Reasoning models enhance not just clarity, organization, and professionalism but also the depth and rigor of legal analysis.
• Hallucinations were minimal.
Notably, Vincent AI exhibited about the same error rate as law students working without AI (humans, after all, are also prone to confabulations).
• The findings sharply contrast with previous studies on older large language models like GPT-4.
In other words, a breakthrough has occurred—the emergence of AI models capable of genuine reasoning.
Two Key Takeaways
1. The study convincingly demonstrates that integrating domain-specific RAG capabilities with reasoning models creates a breakthrough synergy in legal competence and productivity.
2. These results not only herald the imminent arrival of next-generation AI legal tools but will also fundamentally reshape the future of the legal profession.
#LLM
A view of Earth from the first privately-owned spacecraft to successfully land on the Moon in history.
On March 2, 2025, the Blue Ghost lander, developed by Texas-based company Firefly Aerospace, successfully landed in the Moon’s Mare Crisium region. This marks the first time a private spacecraft has achieved a fully successful lunar landing.
🚀 Metal Made in Space Lands on Earth for the First Time! 🌍✨
The European Space Agency (ESA) has achieved a groundbreaking milestone in space manufacturing! For the first time in history, a piece of metal produced in microgravity has been successfully returned to Earth.
This achievement is part of the ElectroMagnetic Levitator (EML) experiment, which studies the behavior of metals and alloys in space. In microgravity, materials can be created with properties that are impossible to achieve under Earth’s gravity, opening up new possibilities for advanced manufacturing.
“Vacation-Style” Beaches on Mars?
Researchers have made a groundbreaking discovery on Mars, revealing evidence of “vacation-style” beaches with sand and waves. Using data from the Zhurong Mars rover, scientists identified hidden layers of rock under the planet’s surface, suggesting the presence of an ancient northern ocean. This finding offers the clearest evidence yet that Mars once had a significant body of water and a more habitable environment for life.
“We’re finding places on Mars that used to look like ancient beaches and ancient river deltas,” said Benjamin Cardenas, assistant professor of geology at Penn State. “We found evidence for wind, waves, no shortage of sand — a proper, vacation-style beach.”
The Zhurong rover’s ground-penetrating radar allowed scientists to explore the Martian subsurface, revealing formations similar to those found on Earth’s beaches. This discovery paints a picture of ancient habitable environments capable of supporting microbial life.
Read more about this fascinating discovery here: Penn State University Article
DARPA Plans to Build Structures Directly in Space
Instead of launching massive structures from Earth, DARPA’s NOM4D program aims to build them directly in orbit using advanced manufacturing. This could revolutionize space construction by eliminating launch constraints like weight and size.
- What will they build?
Large antennas, solar arrays, and reflectors—assembled or even printed in space.
This tech could lead to orbital factories and lunar bases, using materials from the Moon or asteroids. If successful, it’s a major step toward a true space economy.
🔗 More: The Debrief
Wolves Respect Borders Better Than Humans? 🐺🗺️
This map shows GPS tracking data from wolves belonging to six different packs. The fascinating part? They strictly respect territorial boundaries—there’s almost no overlap between their ranges.
#science #ecology #wildlife