By This article is an installment of Future Explored, a weekly guide to world-changing technology. You can get stories like this one straight to your inbox every Thursday morning by .Humans might not be able to regenerate entire limbs, like , but we can regrow our livers — surgeons can up to two-thirds of the organ, and the healthy tissue left behind will back to nearly full size within a few months.But that is assuming there is healthy tissue left behind.If too much of a person’s liver is , their only treatment option may be a liver transplant. There aren’t enough donor livers to meet...…By This article is an installment of Future Explored, a weekly guide to world-changing technology. You can get stories like this one straight to your inbox every Thursday morning by .Humans might not be able to regenerate entire limbs, like , but we can regrow our livers — surgeons can up to two-thirds of the organ, and the healthy tissue left behind will back to nearly full size within a few months.But that is assuming there is healthy tissue left behind.If too much of a person’s liver is , their only treatment option may be a liver transplant. There aren’t enough donor livers to meet...WW…

By The immortal jellyfish is, true to its name, biologically immortal, capable of to perpetually begin again. When the jellies’ adult forms — called medusa — are stressed, injured, or otherwise in an unideal situation, they revert back to an earlier stage of their life cycle, becoming a film of cells that looks for a place to anchor and develop into a polyp.From there, new medusae bud off of it, allowing the immortal jellyfish to reproduce asexually and be reborn. And unlike most other jellies that have reset abilities limited to before becoming sexually mature, the immortal jellyfish...…By The immortal jellyfish is, true to its name, biologically immortal, capable of to perpetually begin again. When the jellies’ adult forms — called medusa — are stressed, injured, or otherwise in an unideal situation, they revert back to an earlier stage of their life cycle, becoming a film of cells that looks for a place to anchor and develop into a polyp.From there, new medusae bud off of it, allowing the immortal jellyfish to reproduce asexually and be reborn. And unlike most other jellies that have reset abilities limited to before becoming sexually mature, the immortal jellyfish...WW…

By On Saturday, September 3, NASA plans to its for the first time — putting us one step closer to returning humans to the surface of the moon and eventually putting boots on Mars.NASA had to scrub its due to issues with an engine, but if this mission, Artemis 1, goes according to plan, an Orion capsule atop the SLS will be sent on a 42-day journey around the moon before returning to Earth. The capsule will be uncrewed, but it won’t be empty. Here are three crucial science experiments about to embark on a lunar odyssey.After Artemis 1, NASA plans to send two crewed Orion capsules to the...…By On Saturday, September 3, NASA plans to its for the first time — putting us one step closer to returning humans to the surface of the moon and eventually putting boots on Mars.NASA had to scrub its due to issues with an engine, but if this mission, Artemis 1, goes according to plan, an Orion capsule atop the SLS will be sent on a 42-day journey around the moon before returning to Earth. The capsule will be uncrewed, but it won’t be empty. Here are three crucial science experiments about to embark on a lunar odyssey.After Artemis 1, NASA plans to send two crewed Orion capsules to the...WW…

Jeremy, 47, is a political writer in Washington, DC who spends his spare time writing screenplays and producing what he calls “nerd punk rap” music. Jeremy also has autism and has suffered from lifelong side effects including crippling anxiety, social avoidance, and physical pain. But he has found a unique – and natural – way to treat his autism: marijuana.“Especially for those in the Asperger’s range, anxiety can be crippling,” Jeremy says. “It’s why autistic kids act out and can become loud and violent; they’re usually dealing with an anxiety they can’t control.”For Jeremy, using...…Jeremy, 47, is a political writer in Washington, DC who spends his spare time writing screenplays and producing what he calls “nerd punk rap” music. Jeremy also has autism and has suffered from lifelong side effects including crippling anxiety, social avoidance, and physical pain. But he has found a unique – and natural – way to treat his autism: marijuana.“Especially for those in the Asperger’s range, anxiety can be crippling,” Jeremy says. “It’s why autistic kids act out and can become loud and violent; they’re usually dealing with an anxiety they can’t control.”For Jeremy, using...WW…

It was when he became a father that Michael Briggs resolved to somehow bring his ulcerative colitis under control. He was determined to avoid what many people with the disease end up needing – having part or all of their large intestine removed. A trained scientist, manager of a physics lab at the University of New Hampshire, he began reading medical research papers, looking for anything that might help him.He knew there wouldn’t be just one single cure, just as he knew there was not one single cause behind this inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which causes gut pain, bleeding and...…It was when he became a father that Michael Briggs resolved to somehow bring his ulcerative colitis under control. He was determined to avoid what many people with the disease end up needing – having part or all of their large intestine removed. A trained scientist, manager of a physics lab at the University of New Hampshire, he began reading medical research papers, looking for anything that might help him.He knew there wouldn’t be just one single cure, just as he knew there was not one single cause behind this inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which causes gut pain, bleeding and...WW…

Big machines with giant fans suck in atmospheric air, scrub the CO2 from it, and bury the CO2 forever. It may sound futuristic, but the technology is real. Called “direct air capture,” it would function as an air filter for planet Earth, removing the most common greenhouse gas from the atmosphere. But as good as it sounds, it probably won’t solve our CO2 problem yet. The energy costs, and therefore dollar costs, are still too high, and the amount of CO2 removed is still too small. A new startup in Germany has a solution: Instead of sucking atmospheric CO2 from a grounded station, why not...…Big machines with giant fans suck in atmospheric air, scrub the CO2 from it, and bury the CO2 forever. It may sound futuristic, but the technology is real. Called “direct air capture,” it would function as an air filter for planet Earth, removing the most common greenhouse gas from the atmosphere. But as good as it sounds, it probably won’t solve our CO2 problem yet. The energy costs, and therefore dollar costs, are still too high, and the amount of CO2 removed is still too small. A new startup in Germany has a solution: Instead of sucking atmospheric CO2 from a grounded station, why not...WW…

Alright!Listen up, you Silicon Valley unicorn wranglers, you cobra-hearted capitalists, you old boarding school, blue-blooded, Mayflower-money types, because Scott Gaudi has a deal for you. The return on investment may take a few decades, granted, but it will be historical, your hagiography sealed amongst the stars: give the and exoplanet hunter a few billion dollars, and he’ll find you signs of extraterrestrial life.Across the world of exoplanet discovery and the search for ET, a consensus is building: finding a definitive sign of alien life is not a pipe dream. The technology has mostly...…Alright!Listen up, you Silicon Valley unicorn wranglers, you cobra-hearted capitalists, you old boarding school, blue-blooded, Mayflower-money types, because Scott Gaudi has a deal for you. The return on investment may take a few decades, granted, but it will be historical, your hagiography sealed amongst the stars: give the and exoplanet hunter a few billion dollars, and he’ll find you signs of extraterrestrial life.Across the world of exoplanet discovery and the search for ET, a consensus is building: finding a definitive sign of alien life is not a pipe dream. The technology has mostly...WW…

The first great love of Judith Grisel’s life came to her in many forms: there were joints, spliffs, bowls, bongs — an entire emerald parade of ways to get high.Addiction and the brain are star-crossed bedfellows. Marijuana offered a glimmering sheen to life: a sparkling Snapchat filter for the ordinary. On an adolescent trip to the mall, dull retail shops became bazaars full of wonder, and the food court pizza she and her friend devoured was, bar none, the finest pizza she had eaten in her life.That same insatiable drive to use was turned to figuring out why Judith wanted to use. Could a...…The first great love of Judith Grisel’s life came to her in many forms: there were joints, spliffs, bowls, bongs — an entire emerald parade of ways to get high.Addiction and the brain are star-crossed bedfellows. Marijuana offered a glimmering sheen to life: a sparkling Snapchat filter for the ordinary. On an adolescent trip to the mall, dull retail shops became bazaars full of wonder, and the food court pizza she and her friend devoured was, bar none, the finest pizza she had eaten in her life.That same insatiable drive to use was turned to figuring out why Judith wanted to use. Could a...WW…

By A that measures a key indicator of COVID-19 immunity could help you determine your risk of contracting the coronavirus and whether to get a booster shot.The challenge: Since the start of the pandemic, individuals have had to constantly weigh the against the benefits of doing, well, practically anything: , , going to the , flying on an …Getting lowers the risk (at least temporarily), as does and recovering. But determining just how protected you are at any given time is still largely a guessing game, as alone .Why it matters: This uncertainty can add stress to daily life, potentially...…By A that measures a key indicator of COVID-19 immunity could help you determine your risk of contracting the coronavirus and whether to get a booster shot.The challenge: Since the start of the pandemic, individuals have had to constantly weigh the against the benefits of doing, well, practically anything: , , going to the , flying on an …Getting lowers the risk (at least temporarily), as does and recovering. But determining just how protected you are at any given time is still largely a guessing game, as alone .Why it matters: This uncertainty can add stress to daily life, potentially...WW…

By Since reaching a low point in 2015, the number of people lacking regular access to nutritious food has been rising worldwide. The problem has been exacerbated by factors including the ongoing repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as – but underlying the threat to global food security is the looming transformation of Earth’s climate.Nowhere will these changes be more stark than in the tropics, where rising temperatures are already increasing the frequency and intensity of droughts, storms, floods, and fires. These mounting challenges mean that the areas suitable for growing many...…By Since reaching a low point in 2015, the number of people lacking regular access to nutritious food has been rising worldwide. The problem has been exacerbated by factors including the ongoing repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as – but underlying the threat to global food security is the looming transformation of Earth’s climate.Nowhere will these changes be more stark than in the tropics, where rising temperatures are already increasing the frequency and intensity of droughts, storms, floods, and fires. These mounting challenges mean that the areas suitable for growing many...WW…