After 100 years, scientists finally uncover hidden rule behind cosmic rays

A mysterious new cosmic pattern discovered by the DAMPE space telescope may finally crack the century-old mystery of cosmic rays. Scientists studying mysterious ultra-powerful cosmic rays have uncovered a surprising hidden pattern that could finally help explain where these particles come from. Using the DAMPE space telescope, researchers found that cosmic ray particles—from tiny protons to heavy iron nuclei—all begin fading away more sharply at the exact same point, hinting at a universal rule governing their behavior across the galaxy.

For more than 100 years, scientists have been trying to understand cosmic rays, incredibly powerful particles that travel across the universe at extreme energies...

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Scientists develop near-invisible solar cells that could turn windows into power generators

Scientists develop near-invisible solar cells that could turn windows into power generators
NTU Assoc Prof Annalisa Bruno seeing through the ultrathin perovskite solar cell which is just 10 nanometers. Credit: Nanyang Technological University

Imagine a car whose windows and sunroof can help top up its battery while parked under the sun, or a pair of smart glasses whose lenses can harvest light to power built-in electronics.

Such applications could become more feasible with a new type of ultrathin transparent solar cell developed by scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore).

Led by Associate Professor Annalisa Bruno, the NTU researchers created perovskite solar cells that are about 10,000 times thinner than a strand of human hair and around 50 times thinner than conventional perovskite solar cells.

Despite their thinness, the devices ...

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Wristwatch-like device enables assessment of health risks for astronauts on mission to the moon

Brazilian technology helps NASA assess health risks for astronauts on mission to the moon
Called an actigraph, the device resembles a wristwatch and uses accelerometers, as well as light and temperature sensors, to precisely map the user’s sleep and wake patterns. Credit: NASA

Just a few hours before the Orion spacecraft crossed the sky en route to the moon on April 1, mechatronics engineer Rodrigo Trevisan Okamoto received confirmation he had been waiting for since the Artemis 2 mission was announced in 2023. The email from NASA stated that the crew of the first crewed mission to orbit the moon in half a century would carry a device developed by Okamoto and his team at Condor Instruments, a São Paulo-based startup.

“The NASA announcement was sudden and caught us by surprise...

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Cutting calories by 10% to 15% may boost healthy aging without extreme diets

Eating
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Search the web, and you’ll find any number of biohacking techniques for promoting healthy lifespan, from taking cold baths to breathing pressurized oxygen to sleeping under a red light.

There’s a simpler path to healthy aging, and science from Tufts and elsewhere has shown that it really works: Just eat a little bit less. Cutting down on calorie intake by as little as 10–15% can lower the risk of developing age-related illnesses by improving cardiovascular health, lowering blood pressure, and improving glucose tolerance, among many other benefits. For some people, reaping these benefits can be as easy as giving up one large latte per day.

The work is published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

“It doesn’t have to be some extreme measure...

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