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As the likes of Elon Musk continue to push their grandiose plans to one day send humans to Mars, new research suggests that how human organs respond to being in space could take a toll.
A team of researchers led by University College London (UCL) has found that both human and animal kidneys are remodeled by the conditions in space, with specific parts of the organs showing signs of shrinkage after less than a month off the planet.
Keith Siew, a senior researcher at UCL who was involved in the research, tells Tech & Science Daily how conditions in space affect the kidneys.
He explains how radiation is another risk factor for astronauts who spend long periods of time in space.
A survey suggests one in five UK children get their political news from TikTok – and more than 70% can’t name their local MP.
Opinium surveyed 2,000 eight to 17-year-olds in England and Wales in February and 39% said they did not understand what politicians do.
It found that just over half said their family was their source of political information, 41% said TV news and 25% said they got their information from Youtube.
The survey was conducted before children voted in the run-up to the general election.
Around 80,000 are registered to take part in the vote, which was created by a coalition of organizations including Save the Children, Girlguiding and Young Citizens, and the results are due to be announced on 28 June.
Scientists have discovered a brand new species of vegetarian piranha in a river in the Amazon and named it after Lord of the Rings villain Sauron because of the markings on its side.
The new species is a close relative of the piranha known as the Pacu and is only found in the Xingu River, a tributary of the Amazon River.
In this episode, Simon Loader, Senior Curator of Vertebrates at the Natural History Museum, describes this new species and reveals how many undiscovered animals exist in the Amazon.
Also in this episode:
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A man who lost four fingers was fitted with a British firm’s ‘Hero Gauntlet’
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An insect migration superhighway has been discovered in Europe
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Elon Musk confirms that X will start hiding likes on posts
Listen above, find us on Apple, Spotify or wherever you stream your podcasts.
Here is the automatic transcription:
Hi, I’m Jon Weeks and this is The Standard’s Tech and Science Daily podcast.
Here comes how Elon Musk turns likes into X.
But first, we all know about the plans to one day send humans to Mars. But new research suggests how human organs respond to being in space could hold the key.
So things like your reproductive tract, your intestines, your kidneys, other visceral organs, we haven’t really looked at those, and we’re particularly concerned about those organs that have regenerative capacity.
So your stomach lining is constantly being replaced, your skin is constantly being lost, the bone marrow or stem cells that make your blood, or those that don’t have regenerative capacity like the kidneys, heart and brain.
We are especially worried about them because you will be exposed to a significant amount of radiation when you go into deep space.
That’s Keith Siew, a senior researcher at University College London who is researching how the kidney will actually fare in space.
We’ve known for some time that astronauts get kidney stones. What has been a little less clear is exactly how and why they acquire them. This is mostly attributed to the bone loss you see in space. You lose about 1% of your bone mass per month. However, we found that the kidney itself can change structure and function, and that could be contributing. So this is one of the main findings of our article.
A team of UCL-led researchers found that both human and animal kidneys are remodeled by the conditions in space, with specific parts of the organs showing signs of shrinkage after less than a month off the planet.
And Keith said that another huge risk factor for the human body in space is the radiation that we are normally protected from here on Earth.
When you look at galactic cosmic rays, this is the exotic cosmic radiation you get. That 1% of that is iron-sized atoms traveling at the speed of light, coming from exploding stars in the galaxy passing through your body. And this damages the kidneys in particular. And in animals exposed to simulated galactic cosmic rays, we found that they showed signs of dysfunction and damage.
One surprising fact that emerged from the research is that women appear to be better suited for long-duration missions in deep space.
But Keith says we still don’t know exactly why.
Some of the psychological studies have actually found that the more interesting thing is that when you’re stuck in a rocket for about nine months on a one-way trip, an all-female crew is going to be much, much better than an all-male crew. , mentally they are better off.
In terms of biology, we know that there are, for example, things like estrogen somewhat protective against cardiovascular disease. And so the cardiovascular consequences may be smaller in women. The sight we see changes, the blood pressure shifts, that difference is there. So exactly why this happens is not clear, but it is.
A survey suggests that one in five UK children get their political news from TikTok and more than 70% can’t name their local MP.
2008 Children aged 17 to 17 were surveyed by Opinion in England and Wales in February. And 39% said they don’t understand what politicians do.
It found that more than half said their family was a source of political information. 41% said TV news and 25% said they get their information from YouTube.
The survey was conducted before children voted in the run-up to the general election.
80,000 are registered to take part in the vote, compiled by a coalition of organisations, including Save the Children, Girlguiding and Young Citizens.
And the results should be announced on June 28.
Scientists have discovered a brand new species of vegetarian piranha in a river in the Amazon and have given it a name inspired by the famous character of writer JRR.Tolkien.
It has this very distinct vertical stripe down the middle of the fish that runs down and basically looks like the Eye of Sauron in The Lord of the Rings.
Simon Loader is Senior Curator of Vertebrates at the Natural History Museum.
He said the new species is a close relative of the piranha known as the pacu and is only found in the Shingu River, a tributary of the Amazon River.
Simon told us how they know the fish have a vegetarian diet.
They have teeth that some people have described as more, shall we say, human-like, reflecting the kind of variation of teeth we have in our mouths.
So in these pacus they have teeth that are shaped to allow them to process plant matter.
An estimated 42% of fish in the Amazon are unknown to science. And Simon said it was a big part of the Natural History Museum’s work to find more undiscovered species.
There is an extraordinary number of species. So you can imagine that there are a large number of species waiting to be described. So whatever is there now, at least double it, if not much more. And specifically for things like piranhas, the work outlined in this study highlighted a lack of understanding and that there are many new species waiting to be described.
A man who lost four fingers is equipped with a hero glove, and Elon Musk confirms that X will start hiding likes on posts.
Welcome back.
Scientists at the University of Exeter have recorded evidence of what they call a superhighway for insect migration.
Using cameras and butterfly nets, they discovered that over 17 million insects migrate annually over one mountain pass on the border between France and Spain.
It is a 30-meter gap between two high peaks in the Pyrenees, and the team visited the pass every autumn for four years, observing the huge number and variety of diurnal flying insects heading south.
Migrating insects actually start these journeys further north in Europe, including the UK, but scientists have warned that they are predicted to be in decline due to the climate crisis and habitat loss.
A former truck driver who lost all four fingers on his right hand in a work accident was fitted with a new 3D printed bionic hand called the Hero Gauntlet by the British company Open Bionics.
52-year-old Michael Alfime is the first person in the world to receive a device beyond prototypes, which allows him to grasp and hold things.
The Hero Gauntlet has 3D printed fingers that attach to his palm and are controlled by Michael’s wrist movement.
He said he was able to hold a shopping cart with the Hero Gauntlet and use his other hand to load groceries. He also plans to use the device for fishing, bike rides and DIY.
Finally, Elon Musk has confirmed reports that his social platform X will start hiding likes on posts to help users protect their public image.
Reports suggest the social media giants would start rolling out the change immediately, with the billionaire posting a link to one such message confirming the change is coming.
Mr Musk said it was important to keep them private so people could like posts without being attacked for it.
You are current.
Come back at four o’clock to find The Standard Podcast for the latest news and analysis.
We’ll be back tomorrow afternoon at one o’clock.
See you later.