Sunday Special: China lands a reusable rocket for the first time

Welcome back, Superhuman. China has America’s top space companies looking over their shoulder. The country shocked the world on Friday by successfully landing a reusable rocket booster for the first time, marking a critical leap toward cheaper, more frequent launches, and closing the gap with SpaceX and Blue Origin.

1. China has just landed a reusable rocket for the first time: China has successfully recovered a Long March 10B rocket booster for the first time, landing it vertically on a floating platform six minutes after stage separation — a milestone that puts China in the same league as SpaceX and Blue Origin. The Long March 10B can carry at least 16 metric tons to low-Earth orbit, comparable to SpaceX's Falcon 9, which now launches around 150 times a year using reusable boosters. Watch the breakthrough unfold here.

2. New research suggests Earth could survive the Sun's death after all: New research from KU Leuven suggests Earth has a better chance of escaping the sun's eventual red giant expansion than previously thought. Updated models of how aging stars interact with planets show weaker tidal forces than older calculations predicted, giving Earth more time to drift outward as the dying sun sheds mass, though scientists say better stellar observations are still needed before anything is certain.

3. Teenager builds AI system that reportedly screens for ADHD and autism: Seventeen-year-old Edward Kang has developed RetinaMind, an AI tool that reportedly uses retinal scans to distinguish between autism, ADHD, and neurotypical patients with 89% accuracy. Kang trained multiple image-analysis models to show which retinal regions influenced each prediction, while also exploring genes linked to retinal differences. The project could potentially help children receive faster diagnoses and earlier support.

4. Scientists capture the creation of a new ocean floor in world first: In 2024, a swarm of earthquakes in the Indian Ocean caused tectonic plates to abruptly separate, adding more than three feet of new seafloor in a single event. For the first time ever, scientists had instruments in place to observe the process as it happened, deployed just two months before the earthquakes struck. The findings, published earlier this week, offer the most detailed look yet at how Earth recycles its own crust.

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1. Google Home Speaker: A $99 smart speaker designed around Google's Gemini AI assistant, combining speaker functionality with AI-powered assistance to control connected devices, answer questions, and manage routines.

2. Epomaker RT98: A retro-inspired mechanical keyboard with a customizable layout and a detachable numpad that can be positioned on either side. It also features a built-in display and support for customizable typing setups.

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🚗 Stop-and-Go: Ever been stuck in traffic for no apparent reason? A simple experiment in Japan demonstrated that even perfect roads can grind to a halt without a single obstacle.

🥤 Number Fever: What's the worst that can happen because of a typo? In 1992, a computer error convinced 800,000 people in the Philippines that they'd won the lottery. What followed was utter chaos.

⚽ Best Seat in the House: You don't always need a ticket to feel like you're at the game. This innovative bar used a massive screen to recreate the sights and atmosphere of watching football from inside the stadium, sending social media users into a frenzy. Check it out here.

🌊 Dry Spell: It looks like a magic trick, but it's just materials science. Engineers have developed concrete that actively repels water, creating an oddly mesmerizing effect as droplets refuse to stick to the surface.

🖐️ Body Hack: A resurfaced video shows MIT’s viral AI system that can move your fingers for you. By sending electrical signals to your muscles, it can guide your hands through complex movements even if you've never learned them.

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Poker Face: The World Series of Poker is returning to ESPN for the first time since 2021, and this time it has a new analyst: an AI system that analyzes posture, blink rate, and body language to identify when players may be bluffing. The system will be used cautiously (only on eliminated players for now), but for fans, it could make watching poker on TV more revealing than ever.

Smart Scan: Scientists have developed a new MRI antenna built from metamaterials (engineered structures that manipulate electromagnetic waves). In testing on a 7.0 Tesla scanner, it produced clearer images of the eye and deep brain structures in less time, without requiring new MRI machines. The antenna is compatible with existing scanners and could also reduce unwanted heating around medical implants during scans.

Blood Works: Scientists have found that immature immune cells in the bloodstream, detectable through a standard blood count, strongly predict 30-day mortality risk in heart attack patients. The more immature cells, the more severe the condition. The marker outperformed established biomarkers in predicting short-term death risk and could help doctors identify the highest-risk patients the moment they arrive at the hospital.

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Until next time,

Zain, Faiq, and the Superhuman AI team