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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Copper’s biggest rival yet? New carbon nanotube fibers could reshape wiring for EVs, drones and aircraft

IMDEA Materials researchers develop, for the first time, CNT fibres rivalling the electrical conductivity of copper
Conceptual view of an intercalated CNT fibre cable, showing how the intercalant occupies the interstitial spaces between highly aligned nanotubes within the fibre, yielding conductivity comparable to that of commercial metal cables. Credit: IMDEA Materials Institute

Spanish researchers have demonstrated a scalable manufacturing process for carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers with electrical conductivity comparable to that of copper and aluminum. The result, published in Science, is a breakthrough for the future of electrification in aerospace, electric vehicles (EVs), drones and related applications, which require lightweight and high-strength electrical wiring.

CNTs have long been considered as ideal building blocks for electrical conductors, owing to their unique combination of low densi...

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Black hole jets measured in real time, revealing 10,000-sun power

Astronomers measure the mind-blowing power and speed of black hole jets for the first time
This image provided by International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) shows the strong stellar wind from the supergiant star pushes the jets launched by the black hole away from the star. Credit: International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) via AP

For the first time, scientists have measured the instantaneous mind-blowing power of jets blasting from a black hole.

The jet power from this relatively close black hole-star system is equivalent to 10,000 suns, an international research team reported Thursday. They also tracked the jet speed: roughly 355 million mph (540 million kph)—half the speed of light.

Located 7,200 light-years away, Cygnus X-1 features not only a black hole—the first one ever identified more than a half-century ago—but a blue supergiant...

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