As Hurricane Milton made landfall on Florida’s west coast the evening of October 9, a deluge of rain ruptured the city of St. Petersburg’s water main lines. The damage meant that some hospitals in the area—including one with a large neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)—were temporarily cut off from public …
Read More »SpaceX’s Dramatic Rocket Catch Brings Interplanetary Travel One Step Closer
This story originally appeared on WIRED Italia and has been translated from Italian. SpaceX has reached an important milestone in testing Starship, the spacecraft it wants to use for crewed missions to the Moon and Mars. Following a test launch yesterday, the Super Heavy booster that launches Starship returned to …
Read More »Cells From Different Species Can Exchange ‘Text Messages’ Using RNA
The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. For a molecule of RNA, the world is a dangerous place. Unlike DNA, which can persist for millions of years in its remarkably stable, double-stranded form, RNA isn’t built to last—not even within the cell that made it. Unless it’s …
Read More »An Ultrathin Graphene Brain Implant Was Just Tested in a Person
In 2004, Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov at the University of Manchester in England achieved a breakthrough when they isolated graphene for the first time. A flat form of carbon made up of a single layer of atoms, graphene is the thinnest known material—and one of the strongest. Hailed as …
Read More »Titan Submersible Hearings Spotlight Multiple Issues With Its Carbon Fiber Hull
Wreckage of the Titan’s innovative carbon fiber hull was found separated into three distinct layers, US National Transportation Safety Board engineer Donald Kramer has told a Coast Guard hearing into the fatal implosion of the OceanGate submersible in 2023. Although Kramer would not offer an opinion on what caused the …
Read More »Patients Are Turning to Vibrators to Relieve Their Migraines
My friend Jack suffers from the most terrible migraines. But he has an unusual solution. When his migraine starts, he lays down and gently straps a vibrator to the top of his forehead. He swears that it offers instant relief from the pain. Though unconventional, Jack’s idea has historic roots. …
Read More »I Tried These Brain-Tracking Headphones That Claim to Improve Focus
Activity trackers have come a long way. No longer mere step-counters, they can monitor your heart rate, blood oxygen level, and skin temperature, and can even detect whether you suffer from sleep apnea. Now, there’s a new wearable for your brain—and I’ve been testing it out for the past two …
Read More »The AI Boom Is Raising Hopes of a Nuclear Comeback
For five years, reactor one at Three Mile Island nuclear power station in Pennsylvania has lain dormant. Now, thanks to a deal with Microsoft, the reactor will start running again in 2028—this time to exclusively supply the tech firm with oodles of low-carbon electricity. It’s all part of an ongoing …
Read More »Why Women Get Migraines More Than Men
Migraine attacks are no ordinary headache. They can cause intense pain and sickness, lasting hours or even days, making it impossible to do anything but rest in a dark, quiet room. And for millions of women, these debilitating attacks aren’t just an occasional experience but a recurring ordeal. Women suffer …
Read More »In Praise of Climate Virtue Signaling
What separates a good leader from the merely adequate? The question stalks the business section of bookshops and motivates no end of teeth-grindingly-awful podcasts. In the latest addition to this canon, Tony Blair’s new book draws some lessons on leadership from his decade as prime minister of the UK. His …
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