Sunday Special: Mushrooms and "mini-earthquakes"

Welcome back, Superhuman. From creating "mini-earthquakes" that reduce the size of smartphones to using a common fungi to power the next generation of "living computers”, it’s been a promising week at the office for scientists and researchers. Meanwhile, a viral speed-reading challenge is driving social media users to the edge of their limits.

SCIENCE SUNDAY

The most interesting scientific discoveries and breakthroughs this week

1. A "phonon laser" that may shrink your next smartphone: Scientists have figured out how to create microscopic earthquakes on a chip, and your next phone might be a whole lot smaller because of it. Researchers built a "phonon laser" that produces surface acoustic waves at 1 gigahertz, with the potential to reach hundreds of gigahertz (far beyond today's 4 gigahertz ceiling). The half-millimeter device could potentially compress all your smartphone's radio components onto a single chip instead of multiple.

2. Scientists inch closer to using light to treat chronic pain in humans: After years of lab experiments, light-controlled neurons are finally approaching clinical reality. Boston-based Modulight Biotherapeutics is prepping human trials within two years, targeting the trigeminal nerve to treat facial pain. Human trials for early vision restoration are already underway, while scientists continue to explore applications for epilepsy and Parkinson's.

3. Scientists use mushrooms to power living computers: Scientists from Ohio State claim to have turned edible fungi into working RAM, using dehydrated shiitake mushrooms to function as organic memristors (components that retain memory of previous signals). Unlike traditional semiconductors that rely on rare earth minerals and energy-intensive production, fungal networks are cheap to grow and environmentally friendly. However, the technology needs major miniaturization before it’s ready for commercial use.

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NEW TECH

Our favorite new tech gadgets this week

1. INIU MagSafe Charger: This 10,000mAh power bank magnetically attaches to your iPhone, making it easier to use your phone while it charges.

2. Livall’s PikaBoost 2: This small gadget can convert any bike into an e-bike in seconds. It’s packed with a 500W motor, making it ideal for city commutes and long travels.

3. Huupe Mini: This is the world’s first smart basketball hoop, which tracks shots with built-in sensors and offers games like Battle Royale, daily challenges, and streaming.

4. Dreame X50 Ultra: Dreame just dropped the X50 Ultra, a robot vacuum that seamlessly navigates your home and can even climb up the stairs—all with a simple voice command.

SOCIAL SIGNALS

What’s trending in tech on socials this week

📖 Reading Rodeo: Think you’re a fast reader? Put yourself to the test and see if you can keep up in this fun speed-reading challenge that’s pulling in millions of views on social media.

🎮️ No Pain, No Game: Talk about taking a game too seriously. Chinese engineer Li Jiaqi built a gaming rig that shoots "bullets" at him every time he gets shot in video games. The reason: he wants to "feel" the realism of war. Watch it in action here.

🐟️ Life Lapse: A 16-hour time-lapse showing a zebrafish embryo forming a spinal cord has got Reddit users stunned at the complexity and beauty of the whole mechanism.

📱 Ghost Screen: In 2009, Sony unveiled the Xperia Pureness, a flip phone with the world's first transparent LCD screen. Photos of the innovative technology have resurfaced and are generating some big numbers on social media.

☢️ Blast from the Past: Captured in 1952, an ultra-high-speed image has resurfaced on Reddit, showing a nuclear detonation less than a millisecond after ignition — the birth of a blast too fast for the human eye.

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ONLY GOOD NEWS

A healthy dose of optimism to kickstart your week

Hope Machine: Valley State Prison in Chowchilla, California, is deploying 100 Meta-donated Oculus headsets to help incarcerated people prepare for reentry through simulated job interviews, ATM transactions, and virtual travel. The program reported a 96% drop in disciplinary infractions over one year while giving participants exposure to everyday skills that feel foreign after long sentences. The initiative runs three times yearly across four California prisons.

Spray Stitch: Scientists claim to have developed a spray-on powder that gels instantly when it hits blood, sealing wounds in about one second. Unlike traditional patch-type hemostats that can't handle irregular wounds, the spray-on solution works on any injury shape and stays stable for about two years at room temperature. Developed in partnership with an active-duty Army official, the technology could potentially have major implications for combat zones and disaster sites.

Skin Swap: After a devastating New Year's fire at Crans-Montana ski resort left over 80 survivors with severe burns, doctors are deploying a unique solution called denovoSkin, using personalized skin grafts grown from patients' own cells. The bilayer grafts eliminate rejection risk and grow with patients, unlike traditional split-thickness grafts that cause tight scarring. Thirteen patients are receiving treatment while a Phase 3 trial across 20 European burn centers is inching towards regulatory approval.

SUNDAY SCIENCE TRIVIA

Don’t Cheat: You can read more about the device here.

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Zain, Faiq, and the Superhuman AI team