"EU launches E10bn space programme to rival Musk's Starlink."

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Russ Roberts (https://hawaiisciencejournal.blogspot.com).

Science | The Guardian

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EU launches €10bn space programme to rival Musk’s Starlink

EU signs contracts for Iris2 satellites

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43Science | The Guardian / 8h

UK not part of Iris2 project described as ‘a significant step towards Europe’s sovereignty and secure connectivity’ The EU has launched an ambitious €10bn (£8.3bn) space programme with a constellation of 290 satellites to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink, further widening the post-Brexit security gap with the UK. The constellation is intended to ensure the bloc’s security for governments and armies ami

Our Martian heritage must be preserved, say leading scientists

Science | The Guardian / 7h

Academics agree that by protecting robotic vehicles and landing sites we will help archaeologists of the future Just as the outline of an iron-age hut or remains of a Roman sword cause excitement today, archaeologists of the future could be brushing Martian dust off metal and marvelling at one of Nasa’s rovers. Researchers have said that such instruments, as well as other forms of human activity

Tortured by an earworm? How to get it out of your head

34Science | The Guardian / 9h

Scientists explain why the music of Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga and Wicked sticks in our minds – and the best ways to ditch an unshakeable tune Something has changed within me – and it’s really bloody annoying! Ever since Wicked stormed the global box office last month, many people have been holding space for the lyrics of Defying Gravity – which is to say, unable to get them out of their head. Cont

TODAY

More ‘discreet’ Viagra-type drug could soon be available in Britain

Viagra introduces discreet dissolving wafer

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Science | The Guardian / 10h

US company Viatris has applied for a UK trademark for wafer-like film that dissolves in the mouth It is a little blue pill that has transformed male health and the sex lives of millions. But while Viagra’s success has made the erectile dysfunction drug famous, a less conspicuous form could soon become available. Continue reading...

Lisa Kudrow says Tom Hanks movie Here is ‘an endorsement for AI’

Kudrow criticizes AI in film

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Science | The Guardian / 11h

The former Friends star criticised the film which makes extensive use of an AI-driven tool called Metaphysic Live to de-age and face-swap actors Tom Hanks’ new film Here has been criticised as “an endorsement for AI” by former Friends star Lisa Kudrow. Kudrow was discussing the implications of ageing with host Dax Shepard on the Armchair Expert podcast and pointed to Here as the harbinger of cris

YESTERDAY

Starwatch: Ursids meteor shower to appear in largely dark sky

Geminid meteor shower peaks December

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Science | The Guardian / 18h

Peak of activity will be on 22 December and early risers should definitely look up Another week, another meteor shower. Last week it was the highly reliable Geminids meteor shower, this week it is the lesser shower known as the Ursids. Whereas the Geminids were disrupted by the presence of a full moon, the Ursids will appear in a largely dark sky. Only after midnight will the moon, now progressed

‘Something horrible’: Somerset pit reveals bronze age cannibalism

Bronze Age cannibalism discovered in England

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400+Science | The Guardian / 19h

Oxford analysis shows evidence of bloody massacre, with hand and feet bones chewed by human molars A collection of human bones discovered 50 years ago in a Somerset pit are evidence of the bloodiest known massacre in British prehistory – and of bronze age cannibalism, archaeologists say. At least 37 men, women and children were killed at some point between 2200BC and 2000BC, with their bodies thr

How seeing his own brain inspired doctor to find a method to rapidly detect delirium

30Science | The Guardian / 1d

Life-saving surgery in Greg Scott’s youth instilled determination to find more effective EEG diagnosis As a student, the neurologist Greg Scott had very little interest in following a career in medicine. Computing was the focus of his studies. Then one day he suffered a grand mal seizure. Also called a tonic-clonic seizure, it causes a loss of consciousness and violent muscle contractions. Contin

Anxious scientists brace for Trump’s climate denialism: ‘We have a target on our backs’

Trump's climate threats alarm scientists

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500+Science | The Guardian / 1d

Experts express fear – and resilience – as they prepare for president-elect’s potential attacks on climate research As the world’s largest gathering of Earth and space scientists swarmed a Washington venue last week, the packed halls have been permeated by an air of anxiety and even dread over a new Donald Trump presidency that might worsen what has been a bruising few years for science. The annu

Uncertainty is part of being human, so how can we learn to live with it?

200+Science | The Guardian / 1d

A professor of statistics explains that living is about taking risks and not knowing the outcome, and why it’s important to accept and embrace that My father was an enthusiastic traveller, but as he got older he increasingly suffered from what he called “travel fever”, a vivid term for the acute anxiety felt before a journey, essentially due to uncertainty about all the things that could go wrong

DEC 14, 2024

I waited 45 minutes to buy a single croissant in Fitzroy. Why do humans queue?

41Science | The Guardian / 2d

Lines for pastries, phones, even paying respects have become famous. What is it that draws people to spend their scarce, precious time in queues? Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email I have waited in line for a Lune croissant. At the worst possible time, too – mid-morning on a Sunday, the queue stretching out the door of the vaunted bakery’s Fitzroy warehouse and curling around the corner.

Galaxies, auroras and a cosmic bat: Southern Sky astrophotography exhibition 2024 – in pictures

Science | The Guardian / 2d

The Southern Sky Astrophotography 2024 exhibition displays the top entries from the 20th David Malin awards for Australian astronomers and photographers. The images are on display at the Sydney observatory until 1 February Continue reading...

Geminid meteor shower to light up UK skies this weekend

Geminid meteor shower peaks December

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23Science | The Guardian / 2d

Storm originating from rocky asteroid expected to produce 120 meteors an hour in bright multicoloured display One of the most spectacular meteor showers of the year is expected to light up the night sky this weekend. The Geminid meteor shower, which is called a meteor storm because of its intensity, is expected to peak some time between Saturday and Sunday. Continue reading...

DEC 13, 2024

Northern lights: the six best places in Europe to see the aurora borealis in 2025

34Science | The Guardian / 2d

Head north, avoid light pollution and seek out high ground – how to plan to see the northern lights The northern lights lit up the skies across the UK and Europe several times this year, and experts are predicting 2025 will be a great year for spotting the often elusive light show. The dazzling natural phenomenon, also known as the aurora borealis, has been particularly active in late 2024 and th

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