Beth Laster

In 2023, A 19-Year-Old In China Became The Youngest Known Alzheimer’s (Alz) Case, With Memory Decline Starting At 17. MRI Showed Hippocampal Shrinkage And Alz’s Biomarkers. Unlike The Prior Youngest Case (@ 21, PSEN1 Mutation—Increased Amyloid-Beta), He Had No Family History Or Mutations, Suggesting New, Unknown Causes Of Early-Onset Alz’s.

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In A World First, Scientists Have Made Soft, Transparent Contact Lenses With Upconversion Nanoparticles That Convert Non-Visible Near-Infrared Light Into Visible Colors. Unlike Night Vision Goggles, They Need No Power. Though Not Full Thermal Vision Like Snakes Have, The Tech May Aid Color Blindness, Secret Messages, And Extend Human Sight.

The “Dragon Man” Skull From China Is Now Confirmed As Denisovan (D) Via Ancient Protein Analysis Of The Cranium & mtDNA From Dental Plaque. This Links Ds To Siberia & NE China In The Late Middle Pleistocene. The Harbin Skull Gives The Most Complete View Of Ds’ Anatomy & Ancestry Since Their Initial Identification Via Ancient DNA In 2010.

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Finland’s Polar Night Energy Has Built The World’s Largest Sand Battery In Pornainen—A 100 MWh Thermal System Using Crushed Soapstone/Sand To Store Excess Renewable Energy As Heat. It Cuts Heating Emissions By 70%, Saves ~160 Tons Of CO₂/yr, & Helps Stabilize The Energy Grid Via The Heat Storage/Release, Supporting Finland’s 2035 Carbon-Neutral Goal.

JWST, For The First Time, Detected Water Ice In The Planet-Forming Disk Of A Young (23-Myr-Old) Sun-Like Star, HD 181327, 155 Ly Away. Ice Was Found Concentrated In The Outer Disk, Like In Our Kuiper Belt. This Finding Supports Theories That Comets & Asteroids Brought Water To Inner Planets, As In Earth‘s Late Heavy Bombardment 4 Byrs Ago.

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DARPA Set A World Record By Wirelessly Sending 800+ Watts Of Energy Over 8.6 Km Via Laser In A 30-Sec Burst—Achieving 20% Usable Power At The Receiving End. Though Low, It’s Impressive For Long-Range Energy Beaming. The Breakthrough Could Power Drones, Aid Disaster Zones, Battlefield Operations, And Even Popped Popcorn, Like In Real Genius.

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The Tarkhan Dress, Found Near Tarkhan, South Of Cairo In 1913 & Identified In 1977 At The V&A Museum In London, Is The World’s Oldest Known Complex-Tailored Woven Garment. Made Of Linen & Carbon-Dated To 3482–3102 B.C., It Was Likely Worn By An Elite Woman Before Burial. It Showcases Early Egyptian Textile Skills & Is Now Displayed At UCL.

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The Louvre, The World’s Most-Visited Museum, Shut Down As Staff Protested Overcrowding, Mass Tourism, And Understaffing, Stranding Thousands Of Visitors. Despite President Macron’s “Louvre New Renaissance” Plan, Workers Demand Urgent Action. Past Closures Include During War, COVID, & Strikes (2019 & 2013). Reopening May Happen On 6/18/25.

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Wildtype’s Salmon (WS) Is The First Lab-Grown Seafood & 4th Cultivated Meat That’s FDA-Approved, Confirming Its Safety. Unlike Other Lab Meats, Requiring USDA Approval, WS Is FDA-Regulated Only. Made From A Single Coho Salmon Cell To Fight Overfishing, It’s Served At Kann In Portland, OR. WS Is Ethical, But Faces Envr. & Consumer Concerns.

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Chinese Scientists Developed LICOMK++, The World’s Most Advanced Ocean Simulator With 0.6-Mile Resolution, Enabling Unprecedented Modeling At This Scale. It Simulates, E.G., Eddies, Heat Transport, & Ocean–Climate Interactions, Improving Forecasts For, E.G., Typhoons & Marine Heatwaves. LICOMK++ Has Earned Top Global Supercomputing Awards.

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