​Researchers Create Soil Catalyst to Make Farming on Mars a Reality | Vice (1:35)

• ​Perchlorates are reactive chemicals first detected in arctic Martian soil by NASA’s Phoenix lander that touched down on Mars over 13 years ago in May 2008.
  • Microbes on Earth use perchlorate for an energy source
  • A powerful oxidizer, used in rocket fuel, fireworks, signal flares, etc.
  • High levels of perchlorate found in the Mars soil would be toxic to humans — can cause thyroid and lung problems.
• Scientists, at UC Riverside, have developed a catalyst that simplifies the perchlorate removal process.
  • Destroying 99 percent of the contaminant at ambient temperatures and pressures.
• Developed by combining common fertilizer, common organic ligand, and a common hydrogen-activating catalyst producing a powerful catalyst that would break down perchlorate in water.
  • At room temperature with no combustion.
• According to the study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, this method provides “a water-compatible, efficient, and robust catalyst to degrade and utilize [perchlorate] for water purification and space exploration.”
• Used to break down perchlorate at concentrations lower than one milligram per liter up to 10 grams per liter.
  • It can be used in many contexts, from treating groundwater to detoxifying Martian soil.
  • It could also provide useful ingredients for rocket fuel and life support.
• The researchers intend to consult with space exploration experts about the potential for their system to help future Mars astronauts survive the unforgiving environment.

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​Samsung shows off stretchable OLED screen in prototype heart rate monitor | The Verge (10:11)

• Samsung says it’s making progress building screens “that can be stretched in all directions like rubber bands,” and that the first applications for this material could be in building flexible health tech.
• The company’s researchers recently created an OLED display that can be stretched by up to 30 percent while operating as normal.
  • Rudimentary display, but it worked as normal after being stretched 1,000 times
• As a proof of concept, engineers integrated this display into a stretchable heart rate monitor that can be stuck onto the skin like a Band-Aid.
• Built from a specially designed flexible material known as elastomer.
  • Treated to resist the heat of the integrated electronics
• Samsung suggests the stretchable display could be used to support an array of health-monitoring systems in the future.
• The project’s lead researched Youngjun Yun explained the strength behind this technology:

• ​Tech like this could create wearable gadgets that are less rigid and more comfortable.

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​BYD’s electric school bus will feed electricity back to classrooms | The Next Web (17:19)

• Chinese EV automaker BYD officially introduced its new electric Type D school bus, available in the US in lengths of 10.6, 11.6, and 12 meters, and capable of carrying up to 84 passengers.
  • Bi-directional charging
• According to the company, the bus can be charged overnight when energy demand is low, and feed clean energy back to the school during school hours.
• The bus features a lithium iron phosphate battery and has a range of roughly 250 kilometers on a single charge.
• The bus has features including:
  • Electronic stability control to aid handling,
  • Collision avoidance system,
  • 360-degree monitoring system to detect pedestrians and cyclists around the bus.
  • “Predictive Stop Arm,” which monitors oncoming traffic and notifies students when it’s not safe to cross.
• There are also IMMI’S Safeguard 3-point lap-shoulder belts, integrated child seats, and portable restraints.
  • The automaker makes some interesting claims about the seats: “These school bus seats are not only designed to keep children safer, but they have the benefits of improving behavior, reducing bullying, and minimizing driver distraction,”
• End with a quote from Stella Li, President of BYD North America, on the new EV Bus:

​Breakthrough Understanding of Limb and Organ Regeneration – Closer to the Development of Regenerative Medicine Therapies | SciTechDaily (24:27)

• A team of scientists from the MDI Biological Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine, has come a step closer in figuring out why salamanders promote limb regeneration while mammals (i.e. mice) do not.
  • Related to molecular signaling
  • Mammals typically form a scar due to physical damage while salamanders don’t form a scar and it doesn’t respond to injury in the same way.
• Team lead James Godwin, Ph.D talks about the regeneration potential:

• They are looking at a specific Salamander, the axolotl (pronounced ACK-suh-LAH-tuhl).
  • Can regenerate almost any body part, including brain, heart, jaws, limbs, lungs, ovaries, spinal cord, skin, tail, and more.
• Mammalian embryos and juveniles have the ability to regenerate — for instance, neonatal mice can regenerate portions of their heart.
• Adult mammals could retain the genetic code for regeneration. Meaning?
  • Pharmaceutical therapies could be developed to encourage humans to regenerate tissues and organs lost to disease or injury instead of forming a scar.
• This research builds on earlier studies in which Godwin found that macrophages are critical to regeneration.
  • When depleted from the salamander it forms a scar instead of regenerating, just like mammals.
• The recent research found that although macrophage signaling in the salamander and in the mouse were similar when the organisms were exposed to pathogens.
• However, when it came to injury it was a different story:
  • The macrophage signaling in the salamander promoted the growth of new tissue while that in the mouse promoted scarring.
• The culprit? A class of proteins called toll-like receptors (TLRs).
  • Their signal response caused the differing responses.
• Significant opportunities exist for therapies that improve clinical outcomes in diseases in which scarring plays a major role in the pathology, including heart, kidney, liver, and lung disease.
  • Regrowing a human limb may not be realistic in the short term.

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​El Salvador Becomes First Country to Recognize Bitcoin as a Legal Currency | Interesting Engineering (34:17)

• El Salvador President Nayib Bukele delivered on his promise to adopt Bitcoin as a legal currency in the country, according to a report by the BBC, making it the first country in the world to officially adopt a solely digital currency.
  • The Bitcoin Law has been voted into effect by a majority of 62 out of 84 votes.
• Law simply means that Bitcoin will join the US dollar as an official currency for the nation.
  • Usable as payment for basic goods and services in the country.
  • Ownership of the cryptocurrency won’t be subject to capital gains tax in the country, as it is in other countries, including the US.
• According to a translated tweet from President Bukele:

• Next Tweet in Thread:

• One of the reasons President Bukele campaigned for this law is due to there being more internet users in El Salvador (3.28 million) than people who own bank accounts.
  • Adopting Bitcoin could allow many to become financially independent.
• El Salvador formed a partnership with digital wallet firm Strike to help build the infrastructure required for it to implement its new Bitcoin law.
• El Salvador’s new law may just be one more step towards the tipping point of widespread cryptocurrency adoption.
• Read a very interesting Twitter thread by Alex Gladstein (@gladstein) about this whole implementation of this law and the country of El Salvador is a much more nuanced issue.
  • Wanted to highlight part of the thread on why this action should be commended and how Bitcoin for smaller nations helps on a geopolitical level.