Is Sunscreen the New Margarine? “Vitamin D now looks like the tip of the solar iceberg. Sunlight triggers the release of a number of other important compounds in the body, not only nitric oxide but also serotonin and endorphins. It reduces the risk of prostate, breast, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers. It improves circadian rhythms. It reduces inflammation and dampens autoimmune responses. It improves virtually every mental condition you can think of. And it’s free.”
Two US electric utilities have promised to go 100% carbon-free—and admit it’s cheaper. As the costs of carbon-based fuels skyrocket, this is unsurprising, but interesting.
Facebook’s ’10 Year Challenge’ Is Just a Harmless Meme—Right? The author explores the potential impacts of assisting facial recognition software with our 10-year-old selfies. The best scenario could involve training software that will aid in finding missing kids. The creepier scenarios involve a repeat of the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Read the Scientific American article the government deemed too dangerous to publish: “In April 1950, the US federal government raided the offices of Scientific American Magazine to destroy every printed issue. ‘Three thousand copies already run off were burned, type was melted down, and every galley proof and script impounded.’ Three years later, Fahrenheit 451 was published without knowledge of this incident.” The banned article was about the moral meaning of the hydrogen bomb and its foreign relations implications.