Science & Technology

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• ⚡ It's "alive"?? University of Minnesota researchers have achieved a breakthrough in biological engineering: the first synthetic cell that replicates a biological cell's life cycle, built entirely from non-living chemical components. Gift link.

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> First-of-its-kind NASA mission to prevent a space telescope from falling back to Earth is delayed for second time this week after a last-minute launch issue (More) | Read a 1440 summary of the plan (More)

> Honeybee queens exposed to pesticides off-load the toxins into their eggs to protect themselves (More) | How honeybees and other pollinators contribute over $200B to the global economy (More, w/video)

> Human red blood cells mature in nurseries structured differently than those found in mice; discovery upends longstanding assumptions and may shift understandings of disease progression and recovery (More)

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> Engineers develop paint-on electrodes that could one day power heart monitors, robotic prosthetics, and more wearable health technology—while letting users create designs ranging from sharks to foxes (More, w/photos)

> Children's brain responses to seeing emotional faces may predict future social life quality; girls with greater amygdala activity were more socially engaged, while the opposite was observed for boys (More) | Amygdala 101 (More, w/video)

> Distant exoplanets may harbor water in deep sinks that lie beyond the James Webb Space Telescope's reach, based on new readings of atmospheric data (More)

How dreams work: Tomorrow's 1440 Health & Medicine explores what's happening in our brains while we snooze.

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> Scientists build nearly 700 new cancer models derived from patient tumors and make them available to researchers worldwide in hopes of accelerating treatment discovery (More)

> COVID-19 infection may awaken dormant viruses, triggering more severe COVID-19 and lingering symptoms associated with long COVID (More) | What is long COVID? (More)

> Neanderthal-derived gene variant of the growth hormone receptor may contribute to a higher muscle mass among some adult carriers (More) | ... plus why scientists think Neanderthals were sprinters, not endurance athletes (More)

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1 science thing: Bird DNA breakthrough

Zebra finches rest on an electric guitar at an art installation in London in 2010. Photo: Carl de Souza/AFP via Getty Images Scientists at Rockefeller University and elsewhere say they've created the first complete genome assembly of the zebra finch, a songbird found in Australia and Indonesia. 🧬 How it works: A genome is the complete set of DNA instructions found in any given organism. Mapping genomes can help scientists better understand biology, evolution, health and more. 👂 Erich D. Jarvis, who runs Rockefeller's Laboratory of Neurogenetics of Language, said in a statement: "We can use this complete genome to interrogate the biology of vocal learning." "If there is a key molecule that converts a non-vocal learning species to a vocal learning species, it's in there somewhere." Go deeper ... Read the study.

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> Amazon to build a 35-turbine, 7.6 GW natural gas power plant to service a Texas data center; would be the single largest CO2 emitter in the US by a factor of two (More) | Why data centers need so much power (More, w/video)

> Brain study reveals the prefrontal cortex, which controls decision-making and executive functions, can suppress "outside the box" thinking (More)

> First complete genome of a songbird mapped; analysis sheds light on the neuroscience of vocal learning (More) | Listen to the zebra finch's "laser beam" vocalizations (More, w/video)

How eclipses work: Tomorrow's 1440 Science & Technology newsletter explores eclipses, how they work, and much more.

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> Scientists develop pacemaker battery that generates electricity from a patient's heartbeat, potentially eliminating the need for pacemaker replacements | How pacemakers work (More, w/diagram)

> Largest study of psychedelics outside clinical trials finds participants report relief from anxiety, depression, and PTSD symptoms three months after using psilocybin, or magic mushrooms (More) | What magic mushrooms do to the brain (More, w/video)

> Jellyfish reveal how rapid cell turnover may protect against cancer by enabling tissue to proofread, destroying and easily replacing cells that could become cancerous (More)

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> Saliva samples appear able to detect colorectal cancer and may be a more accurate diagnostic tool than widely used fecal tests (More) | Colorectal cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths among people under age 50; why? (More)

> Researchers develop electronic skin that can detect pressure and temperature with 10 times more sensitivity than current commercial glove sensors, potentially helping amputees gain feeling in their prosthetics (More)

> Mysterious lipid droplets in cats' kidneys may help create unique scent marks that cats use to identify each other (More) | How scientists are genetically modifying cats so they don't trigger allergies in humans (More, w/video)

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> New smartphone app Mobilio helps people with blindness or low vision navigate faster and avoid obstacles; early testing suggests it can rival a human guide (More, w/video demo)

> Language skills appear to stay resilient with age, new brain imaging study shows; the language network seems to remain nearly unchanged in older adults even as other cognitive systems decline (More)

> A 20-minute workout may protect memory after a sleepless night as well as a 90-minute nap; new study suggests both preserve cognitive function through different brain pathways (More) | How much deep sleep should you get per night? (More)