Tag: Science

Enjoy Your Morning Beverage, and See 25 Years Into The Future-

How The World Will Look Very Different in 2050, According to Neil deGrasse Tyson

Neil deGrasse Tyson says you’ll regrow organs and vacation in space by 2050 — lock in.

By Asheea Smith Published August 2, 2025

Leave it to Neil deGrasse Tyson to casually predict the next 25 years like it’s no biggie. During episode 1904 of the Joe Rogan Experience, the astrophysicist, author, and science celeb offered a bold glimpse into where humanity might be headed in the next 25 years. While flying cars didn’t make the cut (sad face), his projections are closely aligned with today’s advances in science and technology — and some could be closer than we might expect. 

So, who exactly is Tyson, and what does he think the world might look like by 2050? Get in — we’re going exploring.

Who is Neil deGrasse Tyson?

If you’ve ever caught the eye-watering space series, “Cosmos” or heard someone break down the mysteries of the universe without sounding like a textbook — you’ve probably heard of Tyson. Born in New York City, Tyson graduated from the Bronx High School of Science. He later earned his Bachelor of Arts in Physics from Harvard University in 1980 and went on to complete a Masters and Ph. D in Astrophysics from Columbia University in 1989 and 1991, per Britannica. 

Tyson is best known for hosting the celestial TV series, “Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey” and his radio program, “StarTalk.” Beyond his obsession with exploding stars, black holes, and dark matter, he gives viewers a grip on what the heck is going on in the cosmos, and what it has to do with us.

Now, for his next trick, Tyson’s turning that cosmic lens toward laying out what he believes is next for humanity.

Mental Illness Will Be Cured

(Photo by Eric Kayne/Getty Images)

“Neuroscience and our understanding of the human mind will become so advanced that mental illness will be cured, leaving psychologists and psychiatrists without jobs,” Tyson, 66, said during the interview.

The Take Over of Self-Driving Cars

(Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

“Self-driving electric vehicles will fully replace all cars and trucks on the road. If you wanna be nostalgic with your fancy combustion engine sports car, you can drive on specially designed tracks,” Tyson explained.

Space Tourism

“The human space program will fully transition to a space industry, supported not by tax dollars, but by tourism,” Tyson said.

It seems that in Tyson’s vision, regular folks will be able to book a trip to orbit. Voyager Station — a space hotel set to open in 2027 — is already in the works, complete with a bar, restaurant, concert hall, gym, and a cinema theatre, per Astronomy.

The Cure for Cancer & Tailored Medicine

(Photo by Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images)

“We develop a perfect ani-viral serum and cure cancer. Medicines will tailor to your own DNA, leaving no adverse side effects,” Tyson predicted to Rogan.

We’ll Regrow Limbs and Organs

(Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

“We will learn how to regrow lost limbs and failing organs, bringing us up to the level of other regenerating animals on earth, like salamanders, starfish, and lobsters,” the “Cosmos” host stated.

Artificial Intelligence Won’t Become Our Overlords

(Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

“Instead of becoming our overlord and enslaving us all, artificial intelligence will be just another helpful feature of the tech infrastructures that serve our daily lives,” Tyson concluded.

Who’da thunk it …

The US Brain Drain Begins

Good News Sunday-

Scientists develop plastic that dissolves in seawater

Scientists in Japan have developed a plastic that dissolves in seawater.

Experts say the new material breaks down quickly in around two to three hours, depending on its thickness and size.

Many existing biodegradable plastics aren’t able to fully dissolve, leaving behind harmful microplastics that can pollute the ocean and harm wildlife.

But it’s hoped that the new non-toxic material could offer a future solution as it disappears completely.

The new plastic was co-developed by the University of Tokyo in Japan and the country’s RIKEN Centre for Emergent Matter Science (CEMS).

Researchers say it is made by combining two small molecules which form a strong bond that allows the new material to stay tough and flexible.

While scientists have long experimented with biodegradable plastics, the team say their invention breaks down much more quickly and leaves no trace.

When placed in a mixture which had the same amount of salt as seawater, they found the new plastic dissolved “quickly in about two to three hours, depending on its thickness and size.”

And it’s not just in water where the new plastic can dissolve.

Takuzo Aida, lead researcher at CEMS, explained: “Similarly, when tested in soil..a piece of plastic about 5 centimetres in size, it completely disappears after a little over 200 hours.”

Plastic pollution is a big global problem, with experts at the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) saying the amount of waste is set to triple in the next 15 years.

Recent studies have shown the damage microplastics cause as they pollute the environment and create health problems for animals, because they can be easily eaten.

The new plastic is still in the early phase of development but Mr Aida said their research has attracted a lot of interest, including from those in the packaging sector.

He added: “In Japan, almost all packaging is made of plastic, and if we can really manage to reduce that, we can expect less environmental damage.”

Currently, less than 9% of global plastic waste is successfully recycled. (snip)

Largest Trans Survey Ever: Top Reason Trans People Stop Transitioning Is Transphobia

https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/largest-trans-survey-ever-top-reason?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=994764&post_id=165743053&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=2r5nx6&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

“In almost every single case, the reason was anti-trans discrimination in the form of pressure to ‘detransition’ from one’s family, friends, or community.”

s. baum's avatar
s. baum
Jun 11, 2025
a person holding a pink and blue flag next to a building

Photo by ev on Unsplash

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A report on the largest survey ever of trans Americans’ health was released on Wednesday, June 11, and its findings reaffirmed what many academics, health care providers and trans people already know: gender-affirming care saves and improves lives, but transphobia often dissuades people from pursuing or continuing it when they need it most.

Over 84,000 trans, nonbinary and gender nonconforming people aged 18 and up responded to the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey, spearheaded by Advocates for Trans Equality (A4TE). Of respondents who had transitioned, 9% had gone back to living as their sex assigned at birth at some point in their lives, at least for a short while—but in almost every single case, the reason was anti-trans discrimination from one’s family, friends, or community.

“Social and structural explanations dominated the reasons why respondents reported going back to living in their sex assigned at birth at some point,” the report found. “Only 4% of people who went back to living in their sex assigned at birth for a while cited that their reason was because they realized that gender transition was not for them. When considering all respondents who had transitioned, this number equates to only 0.36%.”

Meanwhile, respondents who received gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT) or gender-affirming surgery overwhelmingly reported feeling “more satisfied” with their lives—98% and 97% respectively.

Graphic courtesy of the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey – Health and Wellbeing Report

This watershed report contradicts the popular narrative being circulated by mainstream media, far-right politicians and anti-trans groups that transgender people are “detransitioning” en masse due to life-shattering “transition regret.” In reality, it shows gender diverse people are living rich and vibrant lives—so long as they are provided the space, support and care they need from their health care providers and communities.

The survey found a trans person’s overall health and wellbeing also heavily depends upon rates of familial support, a factor that has a profound influence over a trans person’s lifetime experience of suicidality.

Graphic courtesy of the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey – Health and Wellbeing Report

The survey has been released in increments as researchers at A4TE wade through the unprecedented amounts of data from trans people who lent their voice to the project. It is a much-needed, comprehensive overview on the challenges—and victories—seen in trans health care since the prior iteration of the study. The report is especially vital considering the Trump Administration moved to remove transgender people from the U.S. Census and other government websites, rendering trans communities potentially invisible, and robbing researchers of crucial data informing public policy decisions.

“Having real concrete and rigorous data about the realities of trans people’s day-to-day lives is also a vital part of dispelling all of those assumptions and stereotypes that plague the public discourse about our community,” said Olivia Hunt, A4TE’s Director of Federal Policy, during a press briefing this week.

The report also touched upon trans people’s access to health care, which increased between 2015 and 2022; the quality of care, as trust between doctors and trans patients has improved; disparities between trans people across racial groups, which showed trans people of color are generally more prone to experience discrimination compared to white trans people; and the mental health challenges facing the trans community, as 44% of respondents met the criteria for serious psychological distress, compared to less than 4% of the general U.S. population.

Many of these issues have likely been exacerbated since the data was collected. The lead-up to President Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office incited a new wave of anti-trans animus, impeding access to care and stirring up transphobic vitriol and harassment.

“From 2015 to 2022, state-level policy environments became more protective in some ways for trans people; however, in 2022 alone, when the USTS was administered, 315 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced across the country, many of which harm trans and nonbinary people’s access to healthcare, participation in sports, access to public facilities, or other facets of public life,” the report says.

“This political landscape has only worsened since the administration of the 2022 USTS, with the introduction of 571 anti-LGBTQ nationwide in 2023 and 489 in 2024,” it continues. “At the time of writing, data on trans and nonbinary people has been erased from federal health surveys. As funding for LGBTQ research is stripped away, the USTS has become an ever more critical resource on the lived experiences of trans and nonbinary people.”

Nonetheless, trans life and trans joy has persisted, as testimonies featured in the U.S. Trans Survey demonstrate.

“I have thrived in the past 12 months in transition, I have a genuine smile on my face most days & laugh with genuine joy,” wrote Charlotte, a trans woman, in her survey response. “I have grown into the woman I was meant to be.”

And as Roo, a nonbinary person, wrote: “Once I learned what it meant to be trans, I never looked back. I traded in my Regina George-esque life for a future with a balding head and a predisposition for a beer gut. I’ve never been more happy to be alive—every single day. ”

Erin In The Morning is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a subscriber.

 

Milky Way News-

The Milky Way Has a Mysterious ‘Broken Bone’

Galactic bones, filaments of radio-wave-emitting particles, run through our galaxy, and one of them has a fracture. New analysis suggests collision with a neutron star may have caused it.

A photo of the galactic bone known as The Snake. Photograph: NASA/CXC/Northwestern University

If you look at the Milky Way through a powerful telescope, you’ll notice that close to the center of the galaxy there are elongated filaments that seem to outline its spiral shape. Scientists have a nickname for these structures: “galactic bones.” Recently, astronomers found that one of the Milky Way’s bones is “fractured,” and they believe they’ve now found a possible culprit: a neutron star that may have collided with it.

According to NASA, these bones are huge elongated formations of energized particles that spiral along magnetic fields running through the galaxy. The particles release radio waves, and so are detectable using radio telescopes.

Scientists have found several such bones in the galaxy, but one of the most striking is called G359.13142-0.20005, also known as “the Snake.” It is a 230-light-year-long filament that appears to have a fracture. It is also one of the brightest. One of the first explanations was that some as yet undetected body had disturbed the filament.

A study by Harvard University, published in the journal Monthly Notice of the Royal Astronomical Society, set out to test this hypothesis. The research team involved found signs of a pulsar, a neutron star spinning at high speed, in the same region as the broken bone. These stars are extremely dense, and are the small remnants left after the explosion of a supermassive star.

Using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, which orbits Earth, along with the MeerKAT telescope array in South Africa and the Very Large Array in New Mexico—two systems that detect radio waves—scientists found what appear to be traces of a pulsar in the filament. Based on data from these observatories, they estimate that this pulsar impacted the bone at a speed of between 1,609,000 and 3,218,000 kilometers per hour. The suspected collision is thought to have distorted the magnetic field of the bone, causing its radio signal to deform.

A photo of the galactic bone known as The Snake.

The structure G359.13, with the fracture visible on its right-hand side. Photograph: NASA/CXC/Northwestern University

In the above image provided by NASA, the Snake can be seen, and there is a body that appears to be interacting with the structure, in the middle of its length. It is possibly the aforementioned neutron star.

Pulsars are alternative versions of a neutron star where, in addition to being compact objects, they rotate at high velocities and produce strong magnetic fields. At the moment there is no instrument that can see them directly due to their size and distance, but radio telescopes can detect the electromagnetic waves they emit and hear them by converting these into sound.

This story originally appeared on WIRED en Español and has been translated from Spanish.

Good Info From The Bee-

A Hidden Reading Suggestion

Flamingos!

Watch flamingos create water tornadoes to trap their prey

May 14, 2025 Imma Perfetto

A pink flamingo dunks its head underwater sending out ripples
Chilean flamingo. Credit: Victor Ortega Jiménez, UC Berkeley

Flamingos are known for posing serenely on one leg in extreme wetlands, placidly bobbing their heads into the shallow water to feed. But a new study has revealed there’s more going on beneath the surface than meets the eye.

It seems flamingos create controlled underwater chaos to actively trap their prey, according to the research in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

They use a repertoire of behaviours, including stomping feet, jerking heads, and chattering beaks, to create swirling “underwater tornadoes” that concentrate and funnel prey into their mouths.

“Flamingos are actually predators, they are actively looking for animals that are moving in the water,” says lead author of the paper Victor Ortega Jiménez, an assistant professor of integrative biology at the University of California Berkeley in the US.

“The problem they face is how to concentrate these animals, to pull them together and feed. Flamingos are using vortices to trap animals, like brine shrimp.

“It’s not just the head, but the neck, their legs, their feet and all the behaviours they use to effectively capture these tiny and agile organisms.”

https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/HJH3i8Guf_default/index.html?videoId=6372736054112

Credit: Victor Ortega Jiménez, UC Berkeley

Ortega Jiménez and his collaborators trained Chilean flamingos at the Nashville Zoo to feed from a shallow aquarium.

They used high speed cameras and laser light to view the gas bubbles created in the water to visualise the animals’ feeding behaviour. They then confirmed their observations using fluid dynamics computer simulations and experiments using 3D printed models of flamingo beaks and feet.

They found that flamingos stomp their floppy webbed feet to churn up the sediment beneath them, propelling it forward in whorls.

The birds then draw these vortexes towards the water’s surface by jerking their heads upward at speeds of about 40cm/s, creating mini tornadoes that concentrate particles of food.

https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/HJH3i8Guf_default/index.html?videoId=6372734765112

Credit: Victor Ortega Jiménez, UC Berkeley

These small vortices are strong enough to trap even agile invertebrates, such as brine shrimp and microscopic crustaceans called copepods.

The flamingos’ heads remain upside down within this watery vortex, with their unique beaks angled so that the flat front end stays parallel to the bottom. They then “chatter”, clapping the lower beak open and shut about 12 times every second, to create smaller vortices that direct sediment and food into their mouths.

Experiments with 3D replicas of flamingo beaks revealed that chattering increases the number of brine shrimp captured by the beak seven-fold.

They found that flamingos also use a technique called “skimming”, which involves pushing the head forward while chattering to create sheet-like vortices – called von Kármán vortices.

https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/HJH3i8Guf_default/index.html?videoId=6372736433112

Credit: Victor Ortega Jiménez, UC Berkeley

“We observed when we put a 3D printed model in a flume to mimic what we call skimming, [it produces] symmetrical vortices on the sides of the beak that recirculate the particles in the water, so they actually get into the beak,” Ortega Jiménez says.

“It’s this trick of fluid dynamics.”

The team believes that their findings could be used to design better systems for concentrating and sucking up particles, such as microplastics, from water.

Next, Ortega Jiménez aims to determine the role of the flamingo’s piston-like tongue and how the comb-like edges of the beak filter prey out of the water.

From The Morning Memo:

Quote Of The Day

“This is a once-in-a-century brain gain opportunity.”–Australian Strategic Policy Institute, urging its government to woo U.S.-based scientists and researchers caught in the Trump II attack on research and development

https://morningmemo.talkingpointsmemo.com/i/163554935/quote-of-the-day

Black Hole Week!

These pages are awesome! Here are some snippets:

Black holes are one of our favorite cosmic objects

So we created Black Hole Week to celebrate them.

Throughout the week, science communicators from across the globe will be sharing news, videos, and social media posts about black holes. Our goal is that no matter where people turn that week, they’ll run into a black hole. (Figuratively, of course — we don’t want anyone falling in!) (snip)

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First Tip: Don’t Visit Black Holes!

But if you must, read our safety guide.

Learn more about black holes, how to find them, and how to stay safe on your travels!Read More snip) Enjoy!

https://science.nasa.gov/un (snipiverse/black-hole-week

A Multi-Post

of some stuff I ran across yesterday.

Let’s All Watch Liz Warren Tariffsplain To Inattentive Dunderhead On CNBC by Rebecca Schoenkopf

Ma’am, you need to use your listening skills. Read on Substack

Snippet-go read this, the videos are delightful- Sen. Prof. Warren remains outstanding!

Oh yeah, baby, talk dirty to us.

Professor Senator Elizabeth Warren stopped by CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street” on Friday for some chattin’ and some rantin’ and some tarriffsplainin’ for the benefit of the show’s blow-dried hosts. We don’t normally watch financial news shows, because what are we, the Vanderbilts? But put Warren on anytime, and we’ll consider tuning in more. She can be entertaining!

Especially if your anchor isn’t following her argument, which sends her into her professorial did-you-not-do-the-reading voice. Which is what happened to Sara Eisen, who must have thought for one moment that she was back at the Medill School and had skipped that week’s assignment. (snip)

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Not to pick up the is-it-blue-or-green thing again, but-

Scientists Learned How to Trick Our Eyes Into Seeing an Entirely New Color

By stimulating thousands of individual cone cells, researchers made volunteers see a blue-green color of “unprecedented saturation.”

By Ed Cara Published April 18, 2025

Black Mirror, eat your heart out. Researchers have apparently just figured out how to make people see a color completely new to humanity.

Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley conducted the research, published Friday in Science Advances. Using a technique called Oz, the research team induced human volunteers into seeing a color beyond the “natural human gamut.” Oz could allow scientists to conduct experiments previously not possible before, the authors say, and the lessons we learn from it might even someday help color-blind people regain their missing color vision.

Our retinas contain certain photoreceptive cells, known as cones, that allow us to see color. There are three cone types that correspond to different wavelengths of light: short-wavelength (S) cones, medium-wavelength (M) cones, and long-wavelength (L) cones.

Typically, when we try to reproduce color in front of someone’s eyes, we do so by manipulating the spectrum of light seen by the retina’s cones. But since some of our cones, particularly M cones, share overlap in how they respond to certain wavelengths, there are theoretically colors out there that our eyes can never truly see. The UC Berkeley researchers, based on their earlier work studying cone cells, say they’ve found a way around this limitation. (snip)

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South Africa’s Ambitious Renewable Energy Masterplan involves Solar Manufacturing

The Conversation 04/19/2025

By Ricardo Amansure, Stellenbosch University

(The Conversation) – About 85% of South Africa’s electricity is produced by burning coal. The country’s move to renewable energy means that the coal industry will be phased out. To this end, the South African cabinet recently approved the country’s first renewable energy masterplan, which sets out what’s needed to establish new renewable energy industries. Ricardo Amansure of the Centre for Sustainability Transitions researches the move towards renewable energy and how communities can benefit from this. He explains what the masterplan aims to achieve, what problems it might face, and how it can succeed.

What is the South African Renewable Energy Masterplan?

It is an industrial strategy that sets out how South Africa can set up a new manufacturing industry in renewable energy and battery storage value chains.

The masterplan was developed by the government, some sections of organised labour, a non-profit organisation advocating for renewable energy, and representatives of the renewable energy industries. It sets out a framework to produce renewable technologies locally. These include solar photovoltaic panels, wind turbines and batteries.

The masterplan has been drawn up so that it aligns with South Africa’s existing national target of adding 3–5 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity each year to 2030. This is a scale that can support the development of local manufacturing hubs. (One gigawatt can supply electricity to about 700,000 average homes.) This steady supply will be enough to give businesses and investors the confidence to commit to long-term investments in local manufacturing hubs. These are zones where renewable systems and components are produced or assembled for domestic and export markets.

The state-owned electricity company, Eskom, has not directly guaranteed that it will buy 3-5 gigawatts of renewable energy each year. But the government’s national electricity plan (the Integrated Resource Plan) provides a strong indication of future demand. (snip)