People Are Wearing Masks Again
but for a different reason
Hey everyone! Welcome back to TodaysWorld. Happy Tuesday! We’re easing into the week with more insights and updates for you. Ready for today’s stories?
Before we dive in, let’s focus on a quick task for today:
📌 Take a 10-minute break to do some deep breathing or meditation
Deep breathing activates your body’s relaxation response, lowering stress hormones and calming your nervous system. Controlled breathing can also lower your heart rate, reduce blood pressure, and improve your overall health.
Moreover, meditation can help clear mental clutter, improving your concentration and mental clarity when you return to work.
Let’s get started…
How Much Drunk Are You?
Researchers at Caltech, led by Professor Wei Gao, have come up with something pretty innovative—a "smart mask" called EBCare that could change the way we track our health. This mask isn’t your typical face covering; it actually analyzes chemicals in your breath to detect potential health issues, like asthma, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), respiratory infections, and even post-COVID complications.
Here’s how it works: when you exhale, the mask cools your breath, converting it into a liquid. That liquid is then transported to sensors that analyze it for specific biomarkers—essentially chemical clues that indicate whether something’s off with your health. It’s designed to give continuous, real-time feedback, all while you’re going about your day, making it a non-invasive way to monitor your health.
Caltech’s new "smart mask," EBCare, isn’t just about monitoring respiratory health—it also has a surprising additional feature: it can accurately measure blood alcohol levels.
This ability to track alcohol in real-time could be particularly useful in situations where constant monitoring is necessary, like for people in recovery programs or individuals needing to monitor their alcohol consumption for medical reasons. It offers an effortless, hands-off approach to something that usually requires more intrusive methods.
BTW, Organ Selling is Legal Here
The global trade in human organs is a dark, underground market driven by desperation and exploitation. Except for Iran, where organ trade is legally regulated, buying and selling organs is illegal everywhere else. Yet, despite the laws, a staggering 10% of organs used in transplants come from illegal sources. And given how many cases fly under the radar, the real number could be even higher.
In countries like Pakistan, Egypt, Bangladesh, India, Turkey, the Philippines, and China, organ trafficking is particularly prevalent. But this isn't just a local issue; it's a transnational operation. The 2018 Global Report for Trafficking in Persons by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime highlighted over 700 cases of organ trafficking, with the majority in the Middle East and North Africa. And in 2021, Interpol pointed out that North and West Africa were hotspots for this illegal trade, especially among vulnerable communities.
The problem is exacerbated by a massive shortfall in organ donations. Only about 10% of global transplant needs are met annually. This shortage, particularly for kidneys, has driven people to rely on criminal networks. These networks prey on the impoverished and desperate, offering them a grim choice: sell an organ or face further destitution.
There’s a Mountain Taller Than The Everest
In the summer of 2015, Samantha Hansen and her team of researchers from the University of Arizona and the University of Alabama embarked on a groundbreaking expedition to Antarctica. Equipped with spades and shovels, they ventured into the icy wilderness to set up seismology stations with an ambitious goal: to uncover the mysteries lying beneath Earth's surface.
What they discovered was nothing short of astonishing. Their seismology stations revealed a hidden range of colossal underground mountains situated between Earth's mantle and core. These mountains, some reaching up to five times the height of Mount Everest, were completely unknown until now. The team's findings, which were published in Science Advances, have set the scientific community abuzz.
Dr. Edward Garnero, a co-author of the study, described the method of high-definition imaging that led to this discovery.
Joining Hansen and Garnero in this groundbreaking research were Mingming Li and Sang-Heon Shim from Arizona State University and Dr. Sebastian Rost from the University of Leeds. Together, they mapped these gigantic mountains using global seismic imaging, revealing a previously hidden geological wonder.
Deep within the Earth's interior, around 2,000 miles beneath our feet, temperatures rise dramatically, and materials shift from solid rock in the mantle to a molten "iron sludge" in the core. Seismologists like Hansen study seismic waves—basically vibrations from earthquakes that travel through the planet—to understand what’s going on beneath the surface. Although seismic data might seem like just a series of wiggly lines to the untrained eye, Hansen notes, "These lines contain an incredible amount of information about our planet's inner workings."
Their study also uncovered a layer of ancient ocean floor wedged between the core and mantle, a region scientists call the ultra-low velocity zone (ULVZ). This layer, which was subducted long ago as tectonic plates shifted, is denser than the surrounding mantle. By analyzing seismic waves reverberating through this zone, Hansen and her team could identify its unique properties and structure.
So next time you think of Antarctica, remember it’s not just about ice and penguins—there’s an entire world of geological wonders hidden beneath its snowy surface!
Ever Wondered How Space Smells Like?
When astronauts return from space walks and remove their helmets, they encounter a unique and peculiar smell, often described in meaty-metallic terms. Astronauts like Tony Antonelli and Thomas Jones have noted that space has a distinctive odor resembling "seared steak," "hot metal," and "welding fumes," with a faint, acrid scent similar to gunpowder and sulfur.
Recent discoveries, such as ethyl formate—an ester found in a vast dust cloud in our galaxy—add a new dimension to this scent profile. Ethyl formate, which smells like rum and is also responsible for the flavor of raspberries, suggests that space might have a slightly fruity component mixed with its metallic and sulfurous notes.
The scent astronauts perceive is attributed to the high-energy particles from space that interact with the air when they return to the station. NASA even explored recreating this space stench for training purposes, but the project did not advance. Scent chemist Steve Pearce once attempted to replicate the space smell, describing it as a blend of sweaty feet, stale body odor, nail polish remover, and gasoline.
BTW, here’s something productive that you can do this week. Check this out 👇
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So, that’s it for today. Let’s meet again tomorrow 👋 Till then, stay curious!
