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Listening to starlight: Our ongoing search for alien intelligence

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National Radio Astronomy Observatory – Image: Education Images/UIG via Getty Images Between April and July of 1960, Drake recorded some 150 hours of tape speckled with radio noise. While no meaningful encoded signals or patterns emerged from those readings, Drake still earned himself a place in history for performing what would become the first scientific search for extraterrestrial intelligence in the modern era. Since then, research organizations around the world have performed nearly 100 SETI (search for extraterrestrial intelligence) experiments. Even NASA got in on the hunt, working with the SETI Institute between 1988 and 1993, when Sen. Richard Bryan (D – Nevada) introduced an amendment that cut the program’s government funding. “Senators kind of looked at this line item and said, ‘Hey wait a minute. Are we are we paying to search for little green men?'” explained Steve Croft, an assistant project astronomer at the UC Berkeley SETI Research Center and researcher with the...
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Nike’s SNKRS app uses AR to help you buy limited-edition shoes

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Once you do that, a 3D model of the Dunks will pop up and you’ll have the chance to buy a pair for yourself. There are also posters, like the one above, outside of Momofuku restaurants in NYC which can trigger the app’s AR feature — in case you’re looking for a more adventurous experience. This seems to be yet another effort by Nike to combat bots, a powerful tool for resellers that’s become a major problem in sneaker culture . Last month, the company introduce Stash, a way for people to unlock exclusive products in the SNRKS app based on their location. The SNKRS AR functionality only works for iOS users at the moment, though Nike says Android support is coming soon.
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MIT fires a rocket motor made using 3D-printed plastic

This wasn’t just a because-we-can experiment. Metal 3D printing is expensive (the printers alone cost hundreds of thousands of dollars). MIT’s printer, a Markforged Mark Two, costs “just” $13,499. That’s not exactly an impulse purchase, but it could give small teams a chance at building rockets that would otherwise be impossible with a relatively modest budget. And while it’s not stated, it’s easy to see larger space agencies using this to keep costs down, especially for rockets that are unlikely to be used more than once or for long durations. There’s a lot to accomplish before that happens. The scientists are researching larger, more resilient motors. Eventually, they’re aiming for plastic-hulled rockets powerful enough for flight. Don’t be surprised if you one day see lighter, cheaper rockets that only use metal sparingly. [embedded content]
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