Galactic space laser 5 billion light-years away

Plus: OpenAI’s new AI system DALL-E 2 Apr 11, 2022 [View in browser]( An immensely powerful radio-wavelength laser light has been detected, a whopping five billion light-years from Earth, and it’s the most distant of its kind ever seen. It’s tempting, I know, to think that an ancient alien civilization is flashing a massive laser pointer at us from the far reaches of the cosmos, but this is likely the result of two galaxies merging violently. Which, if you ask me, is still fairly impressive. But before we explore the world of “‘megamasers,” today’s video will answer just how efficient residential wind turbines are. Good morning. Brew yourself a pot of your hot beverage of choice and settle in with me, Derya Özdemir, for a new day full of perfectly edifying stories. This is The Blueprint. Let’s dive in. [Video]VIDEO OF THE DAY [The challenges of residential wind turbines: how efficient are they?]( Are smaller wind turbines viable? [The challenges of residential wind turbines: how efficient are they?]( SCIENCE [Astronomers detect a powerful space laser that is 5 billion light-years away]( [Artist’s impression of a hydroxyl maser.]( An international team of astronomers led by Dr. Marcin Glowacki [has made an impressive discovery]( from 5 billion light-years away. - Using the MeerKAT telescope in South Africa, the researchers discovered a powerful radio-wave laser, called a “megamaser”, which is the most distant megamaser of its kind ever detected. Its light has traveled 58 thousand billion billion kilometers (58 followed by 21 zeros) to Earth. When galaxies collide. Megamasers occur when two galaxies violently clash in the universe. The researchers named the object “Nkalakatha”— an isiZulu word meaning “big boss”, further emphasizing how impressive it was to find the record-breaking object within just one night of observations. This is the first hydroxyl megamaser of its kind to be [observed by MeerKAT]( and the most distant object ever seen by any telescope. The team’s work still continues as the celestial object still has many mysteries to unravel. [Read More]( INNOVATION [OpenAI’s new AI system DALL-E 2 can create mesmerizing images from text]( [An astronaut riding a horse in a photorealistic style.]( Back in January of 2021, OpenAI [introduced DALL-E]( a neural network the company said can "take any text and make an image out of it”. This included concepts that it may never have chanced upon during training. - Now, the firm [is back with an even more impressive version](. According to OpenAI's website, "DALL-E 2 is a new A.I. system that can create realistic images and art from a description in natural language." How? For example, the words "an astronaut", "riding a horse", and "in a photorealistic style" produced the image we feature above. The DALL-E 2 uses a process called "diffusion," which starts with a pattern of random dots and gradually moves them toward an image when it recognizes specific aspects of the image. Even better, OpenAI's content policy does not allow users to generate violent, adult, or political content, among other categories, making the program safe for everyone. [Read More]( SCIENCE [A colossal ancient impact may have led to the differences between the moon's near and far sides]( [Two sides of the moon.]( One of the moon's longest-standing mysteries is why its near and far sides appear so different. The nearside is known for its lunar mare, while the far side is almost completely without large-scale mare features. - But [a new study reveals that]( these differences may have emerged from a colossal impact billions of years ago. Finding the answers. The researchers stipulate that the impact that created the moon’s giant South Pole–Aitken basin would have released a massive amount of heat that traveled through the lunar interior, carrying rare-Earth and heat-producing elements to the moon’s near side. It is this transfer of elements that would have resulted in the volcanism that created the nearside volcanic plains. Another exciting moon feature was also revealed. Today, the nearside contains a compositional anomaly known as the Procellarum KREEP Terrane (PKT). The researchers' new work explores the origins of PKT, [bringing those two things together](. [Read More]( MAIL & MUSINGS Imagine you had the power to learn everything about one object in our solar system. Which planet would you pick? Be sure you check back tomorrow for the results! [Earth. No need for travel.]( [Jupiter. There’s so much to learn.]( [Uranus. It’s so unlike our home.]( [Mars. Let’s accelerate the space race.]( Yesterday’s Results We asked if you thought Mark Zuckerberg's new initiative on digital tokens would be more successful than his previous one. Only eight percent responded in the affirmative. I’m not sure about the whole digital tokens thing. 43% Probably not. It doesn’t sound trustworthy. 39% Nope, it’s likely to go up for sale in a few years. 10% Yes, digital tokens are different from cryptocurrencies 8% QUOTE OF THE DAY “ Humanity’s special place in the cosmos is one of abandoned claims and moving goalposts. ” Frans de Waal in “Our Inner Ape: A Leading Primatologist Explains Why We Are Who We Are” AND ANOTHER THING... - A breakthrough in laser-plasma accelerators [could enhance dose delivery in animal tests](. - Inside the Bitcoin bust that took down the web’s biggest child abuse site: They thought their payments were untraceable. [They couldn’t have been more wrong](. (WIRED) - Dwarf planets: Here’s everything [about these controversial almost-planets](. - Color-changing squid [could help with the development of invisibility cloaks](. (CNN) - Researchers have discovered [more than 5,500 new RNA virus species]( in the ocean. - Indigenous peoples around the world tell myths that contain warning signs for natural disasters. [Scientists are now listening](. (Aeon) - Scientists create brain charts that show how the brain changes over a lifetime, and it looks like [our brains really do shrink]( as we age. Prepared by Derya Ozdemir and Brad Bergan Enjoy reading? Don't forget to forward to a friend! Was this email forwarded to you? [Subscribe]( [About Us]( | [Advertise]( | [Contact Us]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Youtube]( [Linkedin]( [Instagram]( You are receiving this email because you have subscribed to our newsletter. 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