NASA Finally Restores Communication with Voyager 2 After Two Weeks

On Aug. 4, the spacecraft began returning science and telemetry data, indicating it is operating normally and that it remains on its expected trajectory.

A New Mode of Cancer Treatment

It’s about a molecule which seems to have a unique mode of action in tumor cells.

== yjc
German city sends in snowplows after summer hailstorm

Around 250 workers took several hours to clear up to 30 centimeters of ice following the surprise hailstorm in the southwestern German city of Reutlingen.

== yjc, didn’t even know there was such a museum, and I’ve been in Peterborough more than once
World’s largest museum collection of canoes on the move

Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ont., changing location from former factory to new home on waterfront.

Many People Feel They Work In Pointless, Meaningless Jobs, Research Confirms

The theory that many people feel the work they do is pointless because their jobs are “bullshit” has been confirmed by a new study.

== more on the subject
Ocean heat record broken, with grim implications for the planet

The oceans have hit their hottest ever recorded temperature as they soak up warmth from climate change, with dire implications for our planet’s health.

Chance discovery helps fight against malaria [Scientists have found a naturally occurring strain of bacteria which can help stop the transmission of malaria from mosquitoes to humans.] James Webb telescope captures end stages of dying star’s life

Mesmerising images of the end stages of a distant star’s life have been captured by the James Webb space telescope (JWST).

Long-Range Weather Forecasts

Machine learning models have predicted weather a few days ahead of time. A new approach substantially extends the time horizon.

== fup
India Says Space Junk Found In Australia Is Theirs

India has confirmed that an object that washed up on a Western Australian beach recently was from one of its rockets.

IBM and NASA teamed up to build the GPT of Earth sciences

The open-source model will serve as the basis for future forest, crop and climate change-monitoring AI.

AI-assisted cancer screening could cut radiologist workloads in half

The study saw no increase in false-positive results over human screeners.

Airbus Forms Joint Venture in Bid To Replace International Space Station

Voyager Space and Airbus Defence and Space have created a joint venture that will handle development and operations of the Starlab commercial space station.

== wp, ?$
Cult of Dead Cow Hacktivists Design Encryption System for Mobile Apps

As with some other open-source endeavors, the challenge will come in persuading programmers and engineers to devote time to designing apps that are compatible with the system.

Meta releases an open source AI kit that creates audio from text prompts

Meta’s suite of three AI models can create sound effects and music from descriptions.

Is Earth ready for some sunblock? Big ideas for slowing climate change — and big risks, too

Tinkering with skies, clouds and oceans is risky, but maybe less risky than global warming.

The ‘chonkiest’ animal ever may have been this massive ancient whale

Fossil whale Perucetus colossus was shorter than record-holding blue whale, but may have outweighed it.

Space-Scanning Algorithm Spots ‘Potentially Hazardous’ 600-Foot Asteroid

Armed with this promising new tool, a cutting-edge observatory in Chile will sweep the cosmos for all sorts of transient objects.

Nvidia AI Image Generator Fits On a Floppy Disk and Takes 4 Minutes To Train

Nvidia’s new Perfusion image presonalization method takes 100KB of space and needs only 4 minutes of training to reproduce a concept.

== numerous articles discussing this situation, picked one I thought informative, ?$
Employers Feeling More Pain In Return-To-Work Policies

A trio of compelling reports collectively paint a stark picture of this brewing storm.

Canon’s new security-focused ‘SPAD’ camera can capture color video in complete darkness

Designed for applications like security monitoring, it retails for around $25,000.

AI-enabled brain implant helps patient regain feeling and movement

The researchers hope it could help patients living with paralysis ’live fuller, more independent lives.’

This jellyfish was the terror of the sea 500 million years ago

Burgess Shale fossils from B.C. are oldest adult swimming jellyfish ever found, scientists say.

== have had a number of articles on gut biome
Why you should go to sleep at the same time all week

Small differences in sleeping habits between work and rest days could lead to unhealthy changes to the bacteria in our guts, a study suggests.

UV and Blue Light Take Down Drug-Resistant Bacteria

The combination shines a light on a new way to kill tough E. coli strains.

== another one
Euclid Space Telescope Sends Back First Images of the Cosmos

The European Space Agency’s Euclid telescope launched on 1 July, and now it has delivered its first stunning pictures of stars and galaxies across the cosmos.

== UK perspective, but heat pumps are being pushed everywhere
(https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-66359093?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA)

The truth about heat pumps and the power needed to run them

== yjc
‘First English slave fort in Africa’ uncovered on Ghana’s coast

The exact location of what is thought to be the first English slave fort in Africa may have been found - the BBC has been hearing about the significance of the discovery in Ghana.

Water-soluble circuit boards could cut carbon footprints by 60 percent

Core components can be recovered and reused.

== another article on the subject
Gallium and germanium: What China’s new move in microchip war means for world

China is due to start restricting exports of two materials key to the semiconductor industry, as the chip war with the US heats up.

First US Nuclear Reactor Built In Decades Enters Commercial Operation

Nuclear power now makes up about 25% of the generation of Georgia Power, the largest unit of Atlanta-based Southern Co.

Forget Subtitles. YouTube Now Dubs (Some) Videos with AI-Generated Voices

YouTube’s automatic dubbing system is competing with human firms to help creators scale the language barrier.

What Should Happen to Empty Downtown Office Spaces?

You’d better not wait – small businesses must reconsider their location and business model to survive in this new era.

== your opinion of the value of his prognostication may differ from his
== and not like others haven’t already said the same sort of thing
Elon Musk Predicts Electricity Shortage in Two Years

Elon Musk wants more power—literally.

== British perspective, but problem everywhere
Scientists buzzing with hopes for AI bee research

There are more than 20 species of bumblebee in the British Isles. But some have gone extinct since the Second World War - and others are at risk.

Antarctica is Missing an Argentina-Sized Amount of Sea Ice This Year

Antarctic sea ice has fallen to unprecedented lows for this time of year.

Is AI Dangerous? James Cameron Says ‘I Warned You Guys in 1984 and You DIdn’t Listen’

Oscar-winning Canadian filmmaker James Cameron says he agrees with experts in the artificial intelligence field that advancements in the technology pose a serious risk to humanity.

68-Year-Old Uses AirTag (and Twitter) to Find the Bike His Airline Lost

British Airways lost Barry Sherry’s bag – until he started tracking it himself.

The Mystery of the Colorado River’s Missing Water

Snow is falling—but it doesn’t show up to replenish the river. In a drying West, researchers are racing to find out where it goes.

The return of cargo-carrying sail ships

Dutch sail barge De Tukker is now transporting cargo between the Netherlands and Portugal.

Webb Telescope Spots Water (Vapor) in a Nearby Planetary System

“…indicating that the planets forming around it might someday be able to support life.”

== lengthy
The IBM Mainframe: How It Runs and Why It Survives

In this deep-dive explainer, we look at a big-business mainstay.

The dangerous real-world consequences of our online attention economy

What would you do for a shot at internet stardom?

== opinion piece
Could NIST Delays Push Post-Quantum Security Products Into the Next Decade?

A quantum computer capable of breaking public-key encryption is likely years away. Unfortunately, so are products that support post-quantum cryptography.

== yjc
The Canadair water bombers battling Mediterranean blazes

Canadairs are an increasingly frequent summer sight off Mediterranean beaches.

America Will Convert Land from Its Nuclear Weapons Program into Clean Energy Projects

DOE Launches First-Ever ‘Cleanup to Clean Energy’ Initiative to Explore Generating Clean Energy on DOE-Owned Lands

== fup, ?$
Many Physicists ‘Skeptical’ of Spectacular Superconductor Claims

Skepticism abounds for claim that lead-based material perfectly conducts electricity at room temperature and pressure.

== a later article on the subject, ?$
A Room-Temperature Superconductor? New Developments

I’m doing this as a follow-on to my previous post on this topic, since this is a fast-changing story.

== saying North America may be a bit of an exaggeration
Seven Major Automakers Plan 30,000 More High-Speed Chargers in North America by 2030

…announced a planned joint venture today to erect easy-to-activate DC fast chargers along US and Canadian highways and in urban environments.

== yjc
Old Thom: The killer whale that everyone knows but few have seen

Beloved orca makes rare return to Bay of Fundy

== yjc
Louis Slotin and the demon core: Winnipeg’s Oppenheimer connection

North End-born physicist recruited to the Manhattan Project, assembled world’s 1st atomic bomb