A surgeon in Shanghai, China, successfully removed a lung tumor from a patient located 5,000 km away in Kashgar using a remotely operated surgical robot.

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❗️Quantum sensors could expose tunnels hidden underground

In 2022, a British team working under a UK Ministry of Defence contract used a quantum gravity sensor to detect a tunnel buried about 2 metres underground.

The technology measures tiny changes in gravity caused by underground structures. By comparing two clouds of ultracold rubidium atoms, it can help filter out vibrations that traditionally make gravity sensing difficult.

Hamas’s tunnels in Gaza reportedly reach depths of 20–70 metres, far beyond the publicly demonstrated capability.

Now, British startup Delta.g is developing portable quantum gravity sensors, while the Pentagon’s Farseer programme is targeting sensors that operate from vehicles, ships and aircraft.

The goal is to detect underground infrastructure without sending people below ground. The technology is advancing, but detecting deep tunnels from the surface remains an unsolved challenge.

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NASA's team captured the closest shot of earth from the international space station 🚀

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⚠️A spinal cord injury patient can now stand independently after experimental stem cell treatment

Researchers at Japan’s Keio University have reported encouraging early results from a trial using stem cells to treat spinal cord injuries.

The team transplanted neural precursor cells derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) into four patients. One reportedly regained the ability to stand independently, while another showed improvements in movement.

The approach aims to repair damaged nerve tissue and restore communication between the brain and body.

However, the treatment remains experimental. The results do not establish that patients can walk independently, and larger trials are needed to assess safety and effectiveness.

It’s an early step, but one that could eventually expand treatment options for people living with paralysis.

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‼️ AI could be making the internet less creative

AI-generated content is flooding the internet, and researchers warn that it could gradually push human creativity into the background.

Algorithms increasingly promote AI-made images, text and music, making online content more repetitive and less diverse. Researchers also found that when generative AI systems repeatedly recycle their own outputs, they can collapse into generic, predictable patterns, a phenomenon described as “visual elevator music.”

The concern goes beyond art. Heavy reliance on AI tools could also affect how people think, solve problems and develop original ideas. As synthetic content feeds back into future models, distinctive styles and creative variety risk getting lost.

The researchers argue that AI should remain a tool for augmenting human imagination, not replacing it. Without fresh human input, the internet could become an endless loop of machines producing increasingly similar work.

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Spotted in a shopping mall in China: a man casually walking hand-in-hand with a child-sized humanoid robot.

A glimpse of how robots may become part of everyday life.

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Aru, developed by Nio Robotics, is an all-terrain robot that can crawl, roll, and walk.

It moves like a snake, drives like a rover, and walks on four legs. Cameras, sensors, and robotic arms help it inspect machines and detect faults in difficult industrial environments.

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👽 Peter Thiel thinks aliens with warp drives must be demons or angels

Peter Thiel has a provocative theory about why an alien civilization with faster-than-light travel would have to be radically different from humanity.

With warp drives, weapons could travel between stars so quickly that their targets might be destroyed before they even detect an incoming attack. If there’s no effective defense, a single decision could be catastrophic.

Thiel believes this creates a dilemma. Either the civilization has totalitarian control so extreme that nobody can act independently, or its inhabitants are perfectly altruistic and would never use the technology to harm others.

In his words, they must be either “demons” or “angels.”

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⚠️Scientists target a cellular aging pathway to improve human skin

What if we could tackle some of the biological processes behind aging rather than just treating its visible signs?

A new clinical study is exploring that possibility with RLX-201, a topical formulation designed to inhibit mTORC1, a cellular signaling pathway involved in growth, metabolism and cellular maintenance.

The randomized, double-blind study included 47 women who applied the formulation twice daily for 12 weeks. Researchers reported a 21% improvement in skin firmness and cheek wrinkles, a 40% improvement in skin texture and a 39% improvement in radiance.

In laboratory-grown human skin models, the researchers also reported a 91.7% reduction in pRPS6, a molecular marker associated with mTORC1 activity.

The findings are interesting because mTOR signaling is involved in several processes linked to aging. But improving skin appearance is not the same as reversing biological aging, and results from a small, short-term study need further validation.

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🦾 Four extra arms wrap around a person like Doc Ock

Engineer Mingxuan mounted four flexible robotic arms on a wearable frame. In the clip they bend and curl around someone standing beside a Spider-Man scene. It is a homemade prototype, not a finished product.

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