Friday Futures: a squid can edit its genome, COVID-19 solutions

a squid can edit its genome
Image credit | Unknown

Welcome to Friday Futures, our weekly guide to the latest visions of The Future from around the web. This week: a squid can edit its genome; shorter days; cameras that can see round corners; COVID-19 solutions – a drone to walk your dog; the supercomputer and COVID-19 and how to make your own hand sanitiser.

Squid can edit its genome on the fly

The next generation of genetic medicine may be inspired by a bizarre genetic trick that a small squid species uses to edit its own genome on the fly. The longfin inshore squid can edit the RNA inside its nerve cells, Wired reports, meaning that it can drastically alter the behavior of its biological machinery as needed — perhaps to help the animal rapidly adapt to new environments. Read more…

The days were shorter in the (distant) past

Earth turned faster at the end of the time of the dinosaurs than it does today, rotating 372 times a year, compared to the current 365, according to a new study of fossil mollusk shells from the late Cretaceous. Read more…

The camera that can see round corners

COVID-19 solution – let your drone walk your dog

Just to be safe, a man in Cyprus decided to use his drone to make sure his pet dog still got its exercise without venturing out himself, according to the New York Daily News. By tethering the dog’s leash to his drone — not near the blades so they wouldn’t tangle — the man was able to lead his dog around from afar. Though, to be fair, a brief video shows the dog doing most of the leading. Read more…

‘Tattooine’ planetary disks have very strange orbits

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have found striking orbital geometries in protoplanetary disks around binary stars. While disks orbiting the most compact binary star systems share very nearly the same plane, disks encircling wide binaries have orbital planes that are severely tilted. These systems can teach us about planet formation in complex environments. Read more…

Here is how Intel makes microchips

Mars Lander fixed by hitting itself with a shovel

NASA’s InSight lander, which is currently on the surface of Mars, has faced some unexpected problems during its mission to explore and study the planet. Namely, a digging probe that was built to burrow beneath the surface like a jackhammer got stuck because Mars’ soil is clumpier than scientists expected. Read more…

Supercomputer has found 77 possible remedies for COVID-19

Scientists recently tasked the world’s fastest supercomputer with running thousands of simulations to find drug compounds that could fight the coronavirus. Now, CNN reports, the IBM supercomputer — called “Summit” and housed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee — has identified 77 treatments that may be able to stop COVID-19 dead in its tracks. Read more…

And here is how to create your own hand sanitiser

Related: Thousands more galaxies, the end of the world

Related: COVID-19 – the biggest digital disruptor in a decade

(Compiled by Alex Leslie and edited by Tony Poulos)

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