Understanding "longtermism": Why this suddenly influential philosophy is so toxic

Perhaps you've seen the word "longtermism" in your social media feed. Or you've stumbled upon the New Yorker profile of William MacAskill, the public face of longtermism. Or read MacAskill's recent opinion essay in the New York Times. Or seen the cover story in TIME magazine: "How to Do More Good." Or noticed that Elon Musk retweeted a link to MacAskill's new book, "What We Owe the Future," with the comment, "Worth reading. This is a close match for my philosophy."

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Astronauts could use plasma to make oxygen and fertiliser on Mars

A form of matter called plasma, which contains charged particles, could help break up the Martian atmosphere into more useful components

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UBC researchers say they've found 'weak spot' in all COVID-19 variants that could lead to better treatment | CBC News

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have discovered what they describe as a "weak spot" in all major variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 — a revelation they believe could open the door for treatments to fight current and future mutations.

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Myocarditis risk significantly higher after COVID-19 infection vs. after a COVID-19 vaccine

Among almost 43 million people in England who received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose, the risk of myocarditis was substantially higher in the four weeks after COVID-19 infection than after a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to new study in Circulation.

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How 2 astrophotographers teamed up to capture a stellar image of the moon

Two astrophotographers have teamed up to produce an out-of-this-world photo of the moon, capturing over 200,000 shots to create a single image. Andrew McCarthy and Connor Matherne collaborated last November to push their photography skills to the limit. Their finished product was posted online Saturday, and is currently gaining lots of attention on Reddit.

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Science opponents believe their knowledge ranks among the highest, but it is actually among the lowest

People with the greatest opposition to the scientific consensus tend to have the lowest levels of objective science knowledge but the highest levels of self-rated knowledge, according to new research published in Science Advances. The findings are in line with the Dunning-Kruger effect, a well-documented phenomenon in which people who are lacking in skills or knowledge tend to overestimate their abilities.

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Can you switch off and move on from your bad habits?

Possessing bad habits in our hectic daily life is not new in the modern world. In our stressful and competitive energy, we often tend to attach ourselves to certain activities which eventually overpower us, blooming into bad habits from which we find challenging to drift away. Imagine one day consulting a doctor regarding switching off your bad habit of smoking.

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