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The disappearance of Gaia, ESA spacecraft will be turned off on 27 March 2025
Updates on the ESA Gaia mission
New
The latest blog posts to take off on Hacker News. 4,455 posts.
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Why is C the symbol for the speed of light? (2004)
"As for c , that is the speed of light in vacuum, and if you ask why c , the answer is that it is the initial letter of celeritas , the Latin word meaning speed." Isaac Asimov in "C for Celeritas (1959)" [1]
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Project Aardvark: reimagining AI weather prediction
From the Global South to the Arctic, can machine learning-enabled weather prediction better protect communities and economies?
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Total lunar eclipse over Teide crater, Tenerife – a project with many obstacles
Rarely have I thought so often about abandoning a photography project as during this lunar eclipse on Tenerife. Somehow, everything seemed to conspire against us this time. This is the story of an elaborately planned photo project where almost everything … Continue reading →
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Euclid opens data treasure trove, offers glimpse of deep fields
On 19 March 2025, the European Space Agency’s Euclid mission released its first batch of survey data, including a preview of its deep fields. Here, hundreds of thousands of galaxies in different shapes and sizes take centre stage and show a glimpse of their large-scale organisation in the cosmic web.
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Oxygen atoms discovered in most distant known galaxy
Two different teams of astronomers have detected oxygen in the most distant known galaxy, JADES-GS-z14-0. The discovery, reported in two separate studies, was made possible thanks to the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), in which the European Southern Observatory (ESO) is a partner. This…
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Understanding Solar Energy
The biggest energy story of the last fifteen years is the rise of solar photovoltaics, also known as solar PV or simply solar panels.
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Pierogi in Space
In a first for space cuisine, ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski will bring pierogi, the traditional Polish dumplings, to the International Space Station during the upcoming Axiom Mission 4.
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How fast the days are getting longer (2023)
Here in the northern hemisphere the vernal equinox just passed and the days arequickly getting longer. One of my col...
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Learning about Innovation from Half a Century of Conway's Game of Life
Stephen Wolfram investigates the discovery of structures since the Game of Life was invented--searching possibilities versus invention by explicit effort. A thorough look at oscillators, modularity, glider guns.
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Next generation LEDs are cheap and sustainable
Cost, technical performance and environmental impact – these are the three most important aspects for a new type of LED technology to have a broad commercial impact on society. This has been demonstrated by LiU-researchers in a new study.
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The PhD Metagame: Don't try to reform science – not yet
Don't try to reform science. Not yet. Not in your PhD. In grad school, you'll start complaining about the publishing...
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Did the Particle Go Through the Two Slits, or Did the Wave Function?
In the quantum double-slit experiment, did the particle go through the slits or did the wave function? 1920's quantum physics has a simple answer: "NO".
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Wyvern's Open Satellite Feed
Benchmarks & Tips for Big Data, Hadoop, AWS, Google Cloud, PostgreSQL, Spark, Python & More...
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It doesn't cost much to improve someone's life
Most countries spend less than 1% of their national income on foreign aid; even small increases could make a big difference.
707
Bending Spacetime in the Basement (1997)
Bending Spacetime in the Basement
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Magpies and crows are using “anti-bird spikes” to make nests (2023)
Birds often incorporate human-made materials while nest building, but a new study shows European corvids are taking the idea to the extreme.
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Chasing RFI Waves – Part Seven
Here is part seven (the final part) of my non-fiction work about the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Green Bank, West Virginia. You can also read parts one, two, three, four, five an…
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My stupid noise journey (2023)
A tale of bad choices
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Magnesium Self-Experiments
3 magnesium self-experiments on magnesium ʟ-threonate and magnesium citrate.
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My 16-month theanine self-experiment
randomized and blinded, N=1
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The Einstein AI Model
I shared a controversial take the other day at an event and I decided to write it down in a longer format: I’m afraid AI won't give us a compressed 21st century.
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Study: The ozone hole is healing, thanks to global reduction of CFCs
An MIT-led study confirms the Antarctic ozone layer is healing as a direct result of global efforts to reduce ozone-depleting substances.
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Richard Sutton and Andrew Barto Win 2024 Turing Award
Andrew Barto and Richard Sutton as the recipients of the 2024 ACM A.M. Turing Award for developing the conceptual and algorithmic foundations of reinforcement learning. In a series of papers beginning in the 1980s, Barto and Sutton introduced the main ideas, constructed the mathematical foundations, and developed…
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The Dead Planet Theory
No one does anything, the bar is lower than you think
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The inspection paradox is everywhere (2015)
I have updated this article with new data, better code, and friendlier data visualization. You can read the new version here . Th...
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Satellogic's Open Satellite Feed
Benchmarks & Tips for Big Data, Hadoop, AWS, Google Cloud, PostgreSQL, Spark, Python & More...
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Global sales of combustion engine cars have peaked
To decarbonize road transport, the world must move away from petrol and diesel cars towards electric vehicles and other forms of low-carbon transport.