Sunday Special: A safety system for air crashes

Welcome back, Superhuman. Airplane crashes are rare. But when they happen, they have one of the deadliest outcomes in transportation. Now, scientists think they might have a solution that could tilt the odds in our favor. Meanwhile, researchers at Colossal Biosciences report a major milestone in their bid to bring back the dodo bird.

SCIENCE SUNDAY

The most interesting scientific discoveries and breakthroughs this week

1. Scientists claim to have created an airplane crash survival system: The AI-powered system reportedly uses sensors to detect crashes below 3,000 feet, deploying Kevlar-reinforced airbags from the aircraft’s nose, belly, and tail in under two seconds. The scientists claim that the concept could slash crash impact by over 60%, though aviation experts worry about the added weight for such events. If successful, this could potentially reduce the loss of life in the event of a plane crash.

2. Attempts to bring back the dodo bird may have just hit a major milestone: The phrase "dead as a dodo" might soon need a rewrite. Biotech firm Colossal claims it has successfully grown pigeon primordial cells for the first time. Their plan involves gene-editing chickens to act as surrogate mothers, injecting them with special cells from Nicobar pigeons — the dodo's closest living relatives. The company estimates we could see dodo-like birds waddling around again in 5-7 years.

3. Physicists just figured out how to create "something from nothing": Scientists claim to have found a way to mimic the legendary Schwinger effect (where particles spontaneously appear from a vacuum) using superfluid helium instead of impossibly powerful electric fields. By flowing ultra-thin helium films at near-absolute zero temperatures, they can watch vortex pairs spin into existence out of nowhere, essentially creating a laboratory for studying phenomena like black holes and the early universe.

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NEW TECH

Our favorite new tech gadgets this week

1. Somnee 2.0: A sleep headband that uses neurostimulation that claims to help you fall asleep 50% faster and slash mid-night wake-ups by a third.

2. Rokid AR Spatial: AR glasses that turn any space into a private 300-inch screen. Runs on Android, supports voice commands, and floats up to three apps in view.

3. LifeStraw Personal Water Filter: A handy way to keep your water safe to drink. You can either use it at home or take it with you while traveling.

4. Pixboom Spark: A high-speed cinema camera that shoots 4K slow motion at 1,000 FPS with only a quarter of the usual lighting.

SOCIAL SIGNALS

What’s trending in tech on socials this week

🤖 Bot Block: Ever wonder why robots can’t pass CAPTCHA tests? A short video explaining why is doing the rounds on Reddit.

⚔️ Electric Edge: A video of an electric-charged samurai sword is circulating on social media, and the results look impressive.

🚗 Brick Speed: A life-size Technic Bugatti Chiron made from LEGO and powered by LEGO Power Functions Motors is racking up thousands of likes on Reddit.

🦠 Cancer Crusher: X user Chubby shared research by the University of Florida, claiming that “cancer might soon become a thing of the past."

📸 Booze Bribe: An interesting piece of trivia about the last ever picture taken of Einstein’s office after his death: the photographer used a bottle of scotch as a bribe to sneak into the room.

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ONLY GOOD NEWS

A healthy dose of optimism to kickstart your week

On the Frontlines: A new study reports how certain bacteria survive virus attacks by creating internal "quarantine zones" that wall off invading phages. With superbugs on track to kill 10M people annually by 2050, researchers hope to weaponize these bacteria-eating viruses by understanding bacterial defense mechanisms. This breakthrough offers fresh hope that we might finally have a powerful backup plan when the current arsenal of drugs stops working against increasingly resistant infections.

Stroke Stop: Researchers at the University of Zurich claim to have reversed the effects of a stroke by transplanting human neural stem cells into the brains of stroke-damaged mice. This allowed new neurons to form, blood vessels to regenerate, and motor functions to return to normal within 5 weeks. With strokes affecting one in four adults and leaving half with permanent disabilities, this breakthrough offers the first real hope for potentially repairing what was previously considered irreversible damage.

Life Lab: Australian researchers claim they’ve 3D-printed miniature placentas that accurately mimic early pregnancy tissue. These lab-grown models successfully replicated responses to preeclampsia — a condition affecting 5-8% of pregnancies. With pregnancy complications causing over 260,000 maternal deaths annually, these printable organs could finally help doctors predict, prevent, and treat dangerous conditions before they threaten mothers and babies, potentially saving thousands of lives every year.

SUNDAY SCIENCE TRIVIA

It’s raining fish

Don’t Cheat: You can read more on the strange phenomenon here.

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Until next time,

Zain and the Superhuman AI team