Items of Interest

Polymer Data Storage & Encryption

Scientists at the University of Texas stored an encrypted version of The Wizard of Oz in 256 bits of data encoded within polymers of ink. The ink was used to write a letter, which can later be decoded using depolymerization and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry equipment.

Innovation

Science

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Immune System Map

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Researchers at ETH Zurich have created the first map of connection within the human immune system. The map shows how immune cells across the body link up and communicate to deal with threats.

Data Vis

Science

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Quantum Level Ice Simulation

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Researchers at Princeton have successfully simulated the freezing of water at the quantum level using neural networks to model quantum-mechanical interatomic forces.

AI & ML

Science

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COVID Immunity Rapid Test

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Researchers at MIT have developed a rapid test that can detect the amount of COVID immunity present in a drop of blood.

Life

Science

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GPS Jamming Map

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John Wiseman created a map showing areas around the world where GPS jamming is in place. The data is based on aircraft reports of their navigation system accuracy.

Data Vis

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Small Scale Nuclear Reactor Approval

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The Nuclear Regulator Commission is set to approve NuScale modular nuclear reactor for use. The NuScale reactor is small enough to be manufactured and shipped to its site of use, uses external water supplies for cooling and features an operator free shut down procedure using gravity if a problem occurs.

Environment

Innovation

Tech

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Reusing Silica Gel Packs

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Popsci posted an interesting piece about why you shouldn't throw away those little silica gel packs because they are harmful to the environment. The article lists some ways you can reuse them to keep things like electronics and documents free of moisture.

Environment

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UTF-8 Character Encoding

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When I was studying computer science, myself and my class mates always had at least one topic that was a blind spot. An area that we were either too afraid or too lazy to dive into and learn the details properly. For me and some others, character encoding was one such topic.

Web Dev

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5 Hour Trains

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Benjamin TD created a handy map that shows you how far you can travel by train in 5 hours from any main station on a map.

Data Vis

Environment

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Dead Spider Grappling Hooks

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Researchers at the University of Texas have discovered that by injecting air into a dead spider, they can open and close the legs of the spider and use it as a zombie spider grappling hook to lift 130% of the spider's weight.

Science

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