El Salvador Harnesses Volcanic Power for Bitcoin Mining

El Salvador has used volcanic heat to power its Bitcoin mining operations. The government has successfully mined almost 474 Bitcoins, valued at around USD$29 million, by using ground heat in the volcanic region Metapán to generate electricity for cryptocurrency mining. It is as telling as it is tragic that this was the best thing they could think of doing with all that energy. Read more here.

Check out this video on portals! I've spent too much time thinking about how portals could work in the real world and, yes, I guess that is somewhat weird, but well. From energy conservation to momentum conservation to moving portals, I have it all sorted out for you. And the cake is not a lie. You can now create your own quizzes on our platform!

Lasers Are the Best Way to Get Rid of Space Junk, NASA Says

Space debris illustration, not to scale. Image: NASA

NASA just published a report evaluating possible approaches to tackle the escalating problem of orbital debris, A.K.A. space junk. They have found that nudging large debris away from collisions or removing smaller 1-10 cm fragments using laser systems would be among the most cost-effective and feasible near-term solutions. NASA is now gathering feedback from the space community to refine these findings. Press release here, report here.

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We Are Not As Irrational As They Say

You know how they say if one person dies in a shark attack, everyone thinks they’ll be killed by sharks? Well, a new study published in the journal Cognition has found that people's perception of risks is influenced more by personal experiences than by media coverage. The researchers analysed data from previous studies that compared people's estimates of annual deaths from various causes with actual statistics and media reporting on those causes. The findings suggest that most people are fully capable of critically evaluating news reports. It’s a shame that I can no longer decline dinner invitations by claiming I’m afraid of shark bites. Press release here, paper here.

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