Space & Science

On May 8, 2022, NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems’ Program Manager Shawn Quinn captured this crop of a full frame image of the Hadley–Apennine region of Earth’s Moon including the Apollo 15 landing site (very near the edge of the shadow of one of the lunar mountains in the area). Building upon the pioneers from the Apollo Program, Artemis crews will plan to verify capabilities for humans to explore deep space and pave the way for long-term exploration and science on the lunar surface.
Read the Artemis blog for the latest mission updates.
Image credit: NASA/Shawn Quinn

Key Takeaways: 1. Researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute have developed a groundbreaking method to recycle lithium-ion batteries into high-performing components. 2. Traditional battery recycling methods are energy-intensive and often fail to recover materials in usable form, leading to environmental harm. 3. The new recycling technique by WPI uses hydrometallurgy to extract and upcycle critical metals,

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I read a geeky article that I think you’ll also find amazing. Google quietly used its Android operating system to turn billions of phones into the largest earthquake detection network in human history.Your Android phone can warn you about an earthquake before the shaking even starts. It’s built right in. You can do the same with your iPhone, too.FOLDABLE PHONES ARE IMPRESSIVE TECHNOLOGICAL MARVELS BUT COME WITH SERIOUS COMPROMISESWe’re giving away a new iPhone 16 Pro (a $999 value). No purchase required. Enter to win now. iPhones don’t come with built-in earthquake warnings, but there are apps you can use, like MyShake, that send them from official networks. (J Pat Carter/Getty Images)How it works Earthquakes begin with fast, subtle P-waves. Those are the early rumbles most people don’t feel at all. But your phone’s accelerometer (yep, the same sensor that knows when you turn your phone sideways) can detect those waves. When enough Android phones in the same area sense the same motion, Google’s system kicks in and sends early alerts to people who are about to get hit by the stronger, slower S-waves. Those are the ones that cause damage.This gives you 15 to 60 seconds of warning. Not much time, but enough to move away from windows, duck under a desk or stop that ladder climb. Seconds matter when the ground starts rolling.IF YOU DON’T KNOW ABOUT THESE VIDEO TOOLS, YOU’RE ALREADY BEHIND Google has single-handedly transformed Android phones into the world’s largest earthquake detection system. (Photo Illustration by Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)This isn’t just theoreticalAccording to a study in Science, the Android-based earthquake detection network caught over 11,000 real earthquakes between 2021 and 2024. It covers 98 countries and pushes out around 18 million alerts a month. In some cases, people had over a minute’s notice before the shaking started. And false alarms? Just three total across more than 1,300 confirmed events. Try getting those odds from your weather app. That’s incredible for a free feature hiding in your phone.MASSIVE SCAM SPREADING DESIGNED TO TRICK YOU AND STEAL YOUR MONEYEven if you don’t live on the San Andreas Fault, make sure the setting is on in case you travel to an area where you need it:Open Settings, tap Safety & emergency.Tap Earthquake Alerts. Make sure it’s turned on.Tap Test Alert to preview what it sounds like.Got a Wear OS smartwatch? It’ll buzz your wrist, too, even if your phone’s in another room. Regardless of what smartphone you use, there are ways to use your device to detect earthquakes before they happen. (iStock)What about iPhones?Apple hasn’t enrolled in Quake University (yet). Though iPhones have accelerometers, too, Apple doesn’t use them for earthquake detection. If you’re on Team iPhone, use the free MyShake to get alerts from official seismic networks.CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPGet tech-smarter on your scheduleAward-winning host Kim Komando is your secret weapon for navigating tech.National radio: Airing on 500+ stations across the US – Find yours or get the free podcast.Daily newsletter: Join 650,000 people who read the Current (free!)Watch: On Kim’s YouTube channelPodcast: “Kim Komando Today” – Listen wherever you get podcastsCopyright 2025, WestStar Multimedia Entertainment. All rights reserved.

It derives from a 2007 Supreme Court ruling that named greenhouse gases as “air pollutants,” giving the EPA the mandate to regulate them under the Clean Air Act.
Critics of the rule say that the Clean Air Act was fashioned to manage localized emissions, not those responsible for global climate change.
A rollback would automatically weaken the greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars and heavy-duty vehicles. Manufacturers such as Daimler and Volvo Cars have previously opposed the EPA’s efforts to tighten emission standards, while organized labour groups such as the American Trucking Association said they “put the trucking industry on a path to economic ruin.”
However, Katherine García, director of Sierra Club’s Clean Transportation for All Campaign, said that the ruling would be “disastrous for curbing toxic truck pollution, especially in frontline communities disproportionately burdened by diesel exhaust.”
Energy experts said the move could also stall progress on developing clean energy sources such as nuclear power.
“Bipartisan support for nuclear largely rests on the fact that it doesn’t have carbon emissions,” said Ken Irvin, a partner in Sidley Austin’s global energy and infrastructure practice. “If carbon stops being considered to endanger human welfare, that might take away momentum from nuclear.”
The proposed rule from the EPA will go through a public comment period and inter-agency review. It is likely to face legal challenges from environmental activists.
© 2025 The Financial Times Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be redistributed, copied, or modified in any way.

“Obviously with a meme, they’re not the size of a city block,” she continued. “So it occurred to me that they are infinite, but almost like you’re peeling sheets off a pad and the pad just has an endless number of sheets. You can just keep redoing it, redo, redo, redo. That’s memes. They get revised and repurposed and re-imagined and redone and recirculated over and over and over again. The template gets used inexhaustibly, which is what makes them fun, what makes them go viral.”

Credit:

Jennifer Ouellette via imgflp

Just what makes a good meme image? Abate has some thoughts about that, too. “It has to be not just the image, but the ability for the image to be paired with a caption, a text,” she said. “It has to lend itself to some kind of verbal element as well. And it also has to have some elasticity of being specific enough that it’s recognizable, but also being malleable enough that it can be adapted to different forms.”
In other words, a really good meme must be generalizable if it is to last longer than a few weeks. The recent kiss-cam incident at a Coldplay concert is a case in point. When a married tech CEO was caught embracing his company’s “chief people officer,” they quickly realized they were on the Jumbotron, panicked, and hid their faces—which only made it worse. The moment went viral and spawned myriad memes. Even the Phillies mascots got into the spirit, re-enacting the moment at a recent baseball game. But that particular meme might not have long-term staying power.
“It became a meme very quickly and went viral very fast,” said Abate. “I may be proved wrong, but I don’t think the Coldplay moment will be a meme that will be around a year from now. It’s commenting on a particular incident in the culture, and then the clock will tick, and folks will move on. Whereas something like ‘Distracted Boyfriend’ or ‘This is Fine’ has more staying power because it’s not tied to a particular incident or a particular scandal but can be applied to all kinds of political topics, pop culture events, and cultural experiences.”

Credit:

Sean Carroll via imgflp

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Forget the mouse. Forget the keyboard. Meta’s new gesture control wristband might just be the most seamless way to control a computer yet. And no, it doesn’t require surgery, a camera, or even a touchscreen. All it needs is your wrist. This futuristic device uses electrical signals from your muscles to understand what your hand wants to do, even if it never actually moves. Think of it as a translator between your nervous system and your favorite device.Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy ReportGet my best tech tips, urgent security alerts, and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide – free when you join my CYBERGUY.COM/NEWSLETTER. A man wearing a Meta wristband that translates hand gestures into commands. (Meta)Meta’s wristband improves accessibility and mobilityThis wristband was developed by researchers at Meta’s Reality Labs, where scientists have been working on non-invasive, wearable tech that helps people interact with computers naturally. Unlike typical gesture systems that need a camera or special lighting, this device picks up on muscle activity alone. That’s huge. Especially for people with reduced mobility, muscle weakness, or even limb loss, this opens up new ways to engage with technology. A research prototype of Meta’s previous wearable gesture control device. (Meta)How Meta’s gesture control wristband worksAt the heart of this innovation is a technology called surface electromyography or sEMG. The wristband captures tiny electrical signals that fire in your wrist muscles when you intend to move. Meta’s team trained AI models on thousands of participants to recognize these signals without needing to calibrate for each person. Thanks to deep learning, the system can now:Detect finger pinches and swipesTranslate air handwriting into textMove cursors and select itemsNavigate digital interfaces in real timeYou can even write in the air at 20.9 words per minute, nearly as fast as typing on your phone. A man wearing a Meta wristband that converts his hand gestures into commands. (Meta)Why Meta’s wearable could change human-computer interfacesMeta’s wearable is a new kind of human-computer interface, one that doesn’t need a screen, controller, or touch. That makes it ideal for on-the-go use with smart glasses, phones, or even future AR devices. And because it doesn’t require calibration for each user, it’s ready out of the box. This could enable wide adoption, especially in public settings or for people who switch devices frequently.Meta’s sEMG wristband moves from research to realityMeta’s sEMG research device, also called sEMG-RD, was described in Nature. The study highlights both the technical breakthrough and its practical applications. The team achieved over 90% accuracy in recognizing gestures, even across different users, with no tuning required.To encourage further research, Meta is releasing a public dataset of sEMG recordings from 300 participants. This could help accelerate progress in areas like prosthetics, gaming, and accessibility tech.This isn’t Meta’s first foray into gesture tech. But this wristband represents something bigger: a move toward frictionless, brain-to-device communication, without implants. It builds on years of research in AR, neuromotor interfaces, and AI model scaling. Illustration of Meta’s sEMG-RD wearable being used to capture data during research. (Meta)What this means for youMeta’s wristband could change how you interact with your devices, whether you have a disability or just want a faster way to get things done. Instead of tapping or typing, your wrist muscles can now act as the controller. This means less strain, more freedom, and a whole new way to stay connected on the go. If you’ve ever wished for a simpler way to text, scroll, or select items without touching a screen, this tech makes it possible. And because it works without a custom setup, you can start using it almost instantly. Now, while Meta’s wristband shows real promise, it’s still in the research phase and not yet available to consumers. However, it offers a glimpse of where everyday tech may be headed.Kurt’s key takeawaysMeta’s gesture control wristband offers a fresh way to interact with technology. By reading your wrist muscles, it replaces screens and buttons with simple, intuitive gestures. This kind of wearable reimagines how we access digital tools, making everyday tasks quicker, easier, and more inclusive. Whether you’re exploring new AR interfaces or just want a more flexible way to control your devices, this technology brings that vision closer to reality.What if your wrist could replace your keyboard, mouse, and touchscreen all at once? Would you buy and wear Meta’s wristband, or do you prefer the current state of things?  Let us know by writing us at Cyberguy.com/Contact.Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy ReportGet my best tech tips, urgent security alerts, and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox. Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide – free when you join my CYBERGUY.COM/NEWSLETTER.Copyright 2025 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.