Collecting sex-crazed zombie cicadas on speed: Scientists track a bug-controlling super-sized fungus
Scientists are tracking a fungus called Massospora cicadina that infects periodic cicadas and controls their behavior. The fungus is unique in that it produces amphetamines, which makes the infected cicadas hypersexual and eager to mate to spread the fungal spores. This turns the cicadas into “sex-crazed zombies”. Researchers from West Virginia University collected infected cicadas […]
A Radical New Magnet Without Rare-Earth Metals Is About to Change Motors Forever
A UK-based company called Materials Nexus has developed a new type of permanent magnet called MagNex that does not require any rare-earth metals, which are needed for many green technologies but are expensive and environmentally problematic to obtain. MagNex was designed in only 3 months using an AI platform created by Materials Nexus, which they […]
Actor Donald Sutherland dies aged 88
Canadian actor Donald Sutherland, known for roles in films like The Hunger Games and Klute, has died at the age of 88 after a long illness. His son Kiefer Sutherland confirmed the news and called his father “one of the most important actors in the history of film.” Sutherland had a career spanning over 50 […]
Construction on giant network of high-speed rail line passes major milestone: ‘Shows just how much momentum is behind construction of the line’
Construction on a new high-speed rail line in Britain has passed a major milestone, with over half (29 miles) of the planned 54.8 mile tunnel network now excavated. Giant tunnel-boring machines have been digging the tunnels, which will be lined with concrete segments. The machines can advance over 16 meters per day. Completing over half […]
The sun’s magnetic field is about to flip. Here’s what to expect.
The sun’s magnetic field flips its polarity approximately every 11 years as part of the solar cycle. The last flip happened in late 2013. This upcoming flip will switch the magnetic field from northern to southern polarity in the Northern Hemisphere, and vice versa in the Southern Hemisphere. The reversal is driven by sunspots emerging […]