The Eruption Of Vesuvius Turned A Guy’s Brain Into Glass, US Sees First Measles Death Since 2015, And Much More This Week

This week, new research has found that rats are surprisingly good sommeliers and can distinguish between different types of wines, you can watch as two AIs realise they’re not talking to humans and instead switch to their own language, and we ask if anything had feathers before the dinosaurs. Finally, we discuss how NASA could bring high-speed internet to Mars.

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The Eruption Of Vesuvius Turned This Guy’s Brain Into Glass

The first ever case of human tissue being turned into glass has been identified within the skull of an unfortunate young man who died during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. Originally spotted in 2020, the strange obsidian-like lump had not been reliably identified until now, yet new research confirms that it is indeed a perfectly preserved brain in glass form. Read the full story here

Rats Are Surprisingly Good Sommeliers And Can Distinguish Between White Wines

Using descriptive language and explaining the way something tastes or smells might be a uniquely human trait but that doesn’t mean that other animals are capable of distinguishing between different types of food or drink. While discriminating between different wine varieties is a challenge even for people, for nine rats it seems their careers as sommeliers are only just beginning. Read the full story here

US Sees First Measles Death Since 2015, As Texas Outbreak Grows

Texas state health officials have reported the death of a child from measles, the first death in an ongoing two-state outbreak of the disease and the first in the US since 2015. The child was hospitalized in Covenant Children’s Hospital in Lubbock last week and tested positive for measles, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) said in a statement. It also confirmed that the child, who was school-aged, was not vaccinated. Read the full story here

Watch Two AIs Realize They Are Not Talking To Humans And Switch To Their Own Language

A video that has gone viral in the last few days in which two artificial intelligence (AI) agents were set up to occupy different roles; one acting as a receptionist of a hotel, another acting on behalf of a customer attempting to book a room. When the AIs realize no human is part of the conversation, they switched from spoken English to another, more efficient communication protocol called GGWave. Read the full story here

Did Anything Have Feathers Before The Dinosaurs?

Look out the window long enough and you’ll see a modern-day dinosaur making use of its feathers to soar across the sky. It’s impressive, but is flying what feathers first evolved to do? And where in the evolutionary tree do they first emerge? By examining fossil feathers, their diversity, function, and relationship to reptilian scales, a new study aimed to uncover the evolutionary origins of avian feathers. Read the full story here

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Feature of the week:

How NASA Could Bring High-Speed Internet To Mars

This year marks 25 years of humans living continuously in space. As eyes turn increasingly toward the potential for settling Mars, we’ve discussed the challenges of a settlement on another world, how to create your own space settlement, and even what humans might look like on Mars. Another thing that is not settled is the matter of high-speed communication, on-world and off. But NASA has a plan. Read the full story here