About 20% of the employees at the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration are set to depart the space agency, a NASA spokesperson said on Friday.

You fucked with squirrels, Morty!

Lately there has been a lot of controversy about age verification and it's implementation in places such as UK and US.

The main critic to this mechanism is due being done through facial recognition or a government ID which are privacy invasive.

So here is my question as someone who comes from IT, wouldn't it be possible to create a device which just gives out true or false depending if the person is of age, given some kind of piece of DNA (hair, blood, nails) ?

I known there is carbon dating, but from what I understand is a bit of complicated process. The human body however shows it's age visually and I would be interested to know if genetically there are some signs as well that could be somewhat used in a automatic process.

Again I come from IT, just curious about the implications and your takes on the problem.

For nearly two decades, no one had spotted the world’s smallest-known snake.

Some scientists worried that maybe the Barbados threadsnake had become extinct, but one sunny morning, Connor Blades lifted a rock in a tiny forest in the eastern Caribbean island and held his breath.

“After a year of searching, you begin to get a little pessimistic,” said Blades, project officer with the Ministry of Environment in Barbados.

The snake can fit comfortably on a coin, so it was able to elude scientists for almost 20 years. Too tiny to identify with the naked eye, Blades placed it in a small glass jar and added soil, substrate and leaf litter.

Researchers believe humans’ closest relatives may have stored meat from their kills for months before eating it

For hungry Neanderthals, there was more on the menu than wild mammals, roasted pigeon, seafood and plants. Chemical signatures in the ancient bones point to a nutritious and somewhat inevitable side dish: handfuls of fresh maggots.

The theory from US researchers undermines previous thinking that Neanderthals were “hypercarnivores” who stood at the top of the food chain with cave lions, sabre-toothed tigers and other beasts that consumed impressive quantities of meat.

Rather than feasting on endless mammoth steaks, they stored their kills for months, the scientists believe, favouring the fatty parts over lean meat, and the maggots that riddled the putrefying carcasses.

Twenty years later, Edison would be selling (his lowest cost) cylinder phonographs for US $20. At the time, East coast pro carpenters were making about $2.50 a day.

Erythritol, a widely used sugar substitute found in many low-carb and sugar-free products, may not be as harmless as once believed. New research from the University of Colorado Boulder reveals that even small amounts of erythritol can harm brain blood vessel cells, promoting constriction, clotting, and inflammation—all of which may raise the risk of stroke.

Published Wednesday by the American Chemical Society (ACS), the study from Korean researchers developed a multicoloured temporary tattoo that reacts to the presence of GHB, a compound described as “commonly associated with drug-facilitated sexual assault.”

According to the study, the chemicals in the tattoo can detect concentrations of GHB in beer, liquor or coffee, changing colour from yellow to red in order to alert the wearer that their beverage may have been spiked.

“In practice, a wearer could dip a finger into a beverage, touch the drop to the sticker and see the result almost immediately,” the release reads.

The newly developed tattoos not only allow the users to test their drinks discreetly, but also act far faster than some older tests, delivering results in less than a second, rather than minutes.

Researchers also say the results last for up to a month, which can help preserve evidence of suspected tampering.

Also direct link to ACS

https://www.acs.org/pressroom/presspacs/2025/july/this-temporary-tattoo-could-detect-an-unwanted-drug-in-your-drink.html

In the 2020 Good Morning America interview, the Osbourne family disclosed Ozzy Osbourne’s condition. He had volunteered to have his genome sequenced in 2010 to see if his DNA could offer more clues about his health.

A groundbreaking study reveals that anxiety felt on Mondays triggers lasting biological stress responses, with cortisol levels remaining elevated for up to two months - even in retirees[^1].

The research, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders in 2025, analyzed over 3,500 older adults in England and found those reporting Monday anxiety had 23% higher cortisol levels in hair samples compared to peers anxious on other days[^2]. This "Anxious Monday" effect disrupts the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which regulates stress hormones[^3].

Key findings show:

• The effect persists regardless of employment status, challenging assumptions that workplace stress drives Monday's health toll[^1]
• Only 25% of the elevated cortisol stems from higher anxiety levels on Mondays - the remaining 75% comes from an amplified physiological response specific to Mondays[^3]
• Mondays are linked to a 19% spike in heart attacks, with HPA-axis dysregulation potentially providing the biological bridge[^3]

"Mondays act as a cultural 'stress amplifier,'" said Professor Tarani Chandola from the University of Hong Kong. "For some older adults, the week's transition triggers a biological cascade that lingers for months. This isn't about work—it's about how deeply ingrained Mondays are in our stress physiology, even after careers end."[^4]

The study marks the first research to isolate Mondays as uniquely disruptive to stress regulation. While previous studies noted higher cortisol on weekdays versus weekends, this work demonstrates that societal rhythms—not just job demands—embed themselves in human physiology with lasting health consequences[^3].

[^1]: Are anxious Mondays associated with HPA-axis dysregulation? A longitudinal study of older adults in England - PubMed

[^2]: Anxious Mondays Leave Lasting Mark on Stress - Neuroscience News

[^3]: New research shows Monday stress is etched into your biology

[^4]: HKU research reveals "Anxious Monday" effect: chronic stress hormone surge linked to start of week in older adults

Scientists at Rice University and the University of Houston have developed a groundbreaking technique to create stronger, more versatile bacterial cellulose by controlling how bacteria align cellulose fibers during growth[^1][^3].

The research team designed a rotational culture device that uses fluid flow to guide bacteria as they produce cellulose, resulting in aligned nanofibers with tensile strength up to 436 MPa - comparable to some metals and glasses[^1]. By adding boron nitride nanosheets during synthesis, they created hybrid materials with even greater strength (553 MPa) and three times faster heat dissipation[^1].

"Our approach involved developing a rotational bioreactor that directs the movement of cellulose-producing bacteria, aligning their motion during growth," said M.A.S.R. Saadi, the study's first author[^3]. The resulting material is flexible, foldable, transparent and environmentally friendly.

The breakthrough, published in Nature Communications in July 2025, offers a sustainable alternative to petroleum-based plastics[^1]. The single-step process is scalable and could enable applications in structural materials, thermal management, packaging, textiles, green electronics and energy storage[^3].

[^1]: Nature Communications - Flow-induced 2D nanomaterials intercalated aligned bacterial cellulose

[^3]: ScienceDaily - Goodbye plastic? Scientists create new supermaterial that outperforms metals and glass

NASA scientists are intensifying their investigation into a vision disorder that affects 70% of astronauts on long-duration space missions, as new research reveals the condition poses mounting risks for future Mars exploration 1 2. Space- Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome (SANS) causes crew members to experience blurred reading vision, swollen optic discs, and flattened eyeballs that can persist for years after returning to Earth