Hsieh Forbes Column on Blood Type and Covid Risk

My latest Forbes piece is now out: "Blood Type May Have Minimal Effect On Covid-19 Health Risk"

Another cautionary tale on how early science reporting can be easily overturned by further study.

Alzheimer's Test

NYT: "'Amazing, Isn't It?' Long-Sought Blood Test for Alzheimer's in Reach"

Old Microbes

"Scientists revive 100 million-year-old microbes from deep under seafloor"

Mars In 4K

Video: "New footage from Mars rendered in stunning 4K resolution". (Via H.R.)

Aeroscreen Lifesaver

"IndyCar’s Aeroscreen gets first real test, saves lives at Iowa race". (Via H.R.)

Redesigned Chocolate Chips

"A Tesla Designer Reengineers the Chocolate Chip":

Labesque’s redesign for artisanal Dandelion Chocolate is a square, faceted pyramid, kind of like a flattened diamond. Two edges are thick, and two exceedingly thin, for even more textural pleasure...

 

Enhanced Moon Landing Video

"Historic Moon Landing Footage Has Been Enhanced by AI, And The Results Are Incredible". (Via H.R.)

Searching Before Google

"What Did People Use Before Google to Search the Web?" (Via H.R.)

Tiny Cameras

"A Bug-Sized Camera for Bug-Sized Robots and Bug-Sized Bugs"

Movie Recommendation: A Town Has Turned To Dust

I recently watched "A Town Turned To Dust", available on YouTube.

Excellent 90-minute play, written by Rod Serling before Twilight Zone. Although it was written in 1958, it touches on various themes of human nature and political behavior that are chillingly relevant for today.

Bonus #1: It stars a very young William Shatner, who does a great job of playing the lead role as an unsavory storekeeper in an Old West town.

Bonus #2: Includes embedded 1950's commercials. OMG.

Serling's experiences in getting the script approved apparently pushed him to the direction of science fiction:

Network pressure and sponsor meddling was making it almost impossible for him to say anything meaningful in a straight dramatic setting. A series with a sci-fi/fantasy twist, on the other hand, would open up new story possibilities — and allow Serling's social jabs to fly under the radar of nervous sponsors.

"On The Twilight Zone, I knew I could get away with Martians saying things that Republicans and Democrats couldn't," he said. And a TV legend was born.

Super Hard Proteus

"This new ultrahard material inspired by nature could make uncuttable bike locks"

Ultrablack Fish

"Scientists unlocked the secret of how these ultrablack fish absorb light". (Via H.R.)

Corona-Knights

"Swedish region hires medieval knights on horseback to fight coronavirus". 

The UK really needs to up their game and get The Knights Who Say "Ni!" into action.

Solar Flares Everywhere

"The closest images of the Sun ever taken reveal tiny solar flares dotting the star's surface". (Via H.R.)

Big Map

"Scientists produce the largest 3D map of the Universe"

Sketchy Health Advice?

"Report: Millennials, Generation Z Turn To Social Media First For Health Advice"

Space Law

"How Not to Deal With Murder in Space"

Trending Searches Over Time

Video: "The Top Trending Google Searches in Every US State Throughout the 2010s"

Amazon Fake Review Marketplace

"My Bizarre Stint As An Amazon Reviewer for Hire"

Enigma Rebuilt

"Enigma code-breaking machine rebuilt at Cambridge". (Via H.R.)

Light Posting

Admin note: Posting may be lighter than usual the rest of this week due to external circumstances.

Cat Burglar

"Mysterious clothing thief turns out to be neighborhood kitty". (Via H.R.)

Noise-Cancelling Window

"Noise-Cancelling Smart Window Blocks Street Din"

Work In Barbados

CNBC: "Barbados is planning to let people stay and work remotely for a year"

Robo-Bird

"Festo's New Bio-Inspired Robots Include a Feathery Bionic Bird". (Via H.R.)

Kung Fu Nuns

"The Kung Fu Nuns Of Kathmandu"

Penguin Poo Physics

"The explosive physics of pooping penguins: They can shoot poo over four feet"

Colonizing The Sun

Robin Hanson: "We Colonize The Sun First"

New Larson

New cartoons from Far Side cartoonist Gary Larson.

Tesseract Visualization

Bartosz Ciechanowski has an amazing interactive Tesseract visualization tool.

High Res Last Supper

"See 'The Last Supper' in a New High-Resolution Scan Online"

F-15C Cockpit

"Human Interface: What (almost) every button in an F-15C fighter’s cockpit does". (Via H.R.)

Black Hole Collision

"A supermassive black hole lit up a collision of two smaller black holes":

Astronomers from Caltech have reported that they’ve observed a collision between two black holes. Normally such an event is invisible, but this time a more massive black hole sitting nearby helped illuminate the other two as they collided. If confirmed, the findings, published in Physical Review Letters, would be the first optical observations ever made of a black hole merger.

Mega Coffee

"What Does Death Wish Coffee Taste Like? (And Is It Safe?)"

Death Wish is billed as the “world’s strongest coffee.” And although the company doesn’t release caffeine-content figures, we have seen third-party test results in an eye-opening range of 650 to 728 milligrams of caffeine in a 12-ounce (Starbucks “tall”-size) cup. By contrast, Starbucks’s dark, medium, and blonde roasts have 193, 235, and 270 mg, respectively. (Darker beans generally have less caffeine than lighter ones.) So drinking a cup of Death Wish is like drinking 2½ to 3 cups of Starbucks coffee.

After brewing a 12-ounce cup of Death Wish (using the company’s recommended brewing ratio and grind size, and our top-pick pour-over dripper), I found the taste hearty and, yes, potently strong—all coffee, no subtlety. It was stronger than two Starbucks dark roasts I compared it with, but not bitter or unpleasant. It’s what I’d expect to find in the thermos of a lumberjack or a Bering Sea crab-boat skipper.

Holiday Hiatus

Admin note: I'll be taking a quick posting break for the long holiday weekend!

Herd Immunity Math

"The Tricky Math of Herd Immunity for COVID-19"

Patron Saint Of Internet?

"Italian teen moves closer to becoming 'patron saint of the internet' as miracle recognized"