💡 We’re Bad at Understanding Our Political Opponents

The latest from Nautilus, the best things we learned today, and more. [View in Browser]( | [Join Nautilus]( Did a friend forward this? Sign up here Together with Hello there Nautilus readers, and thanks for popping in. Today we find out how bad we are at understanding our political opponents, and hear about what scientists can learn from a movie camera made to record the cosmos. Plus, some of the best things we learned today—YouTube’s most-viewed video, boys’ and girls’ aging brains, and more. Thank you for sending in your responses to our question about your recurring fantasy. For me, it’s the near misses that haunt me: I imagine the counterfactual realities I might inhabit if one outcome—like making a game-winning shot—had been different. Check out today’s question (can you truly get another person?) and free story (on a cave’s ancient art) below. Enjoy! — Brian Gallagher The latest from Nautilus We’re Bad at Understanding Our Political Opponents Even when we think we know them, we don’t. [Continue Reading→]( A Movie Camera for the Cosmos The Rubin observatory will allow scientists to see how the cosmos has evolved over time. [Continue Reading→]( Don’t limit your curiosity. Enjoy unlimited ad-free Nautilus stories every month for less than $5/month. [Join now]( How to Improve Your Brain Health in Just a Few Minutes a Day [Muse](, your personal brain training coach, helps you take control of your mental states, leading to better focus, reduced stress, and enhanced sleep quality. A study on healthcare practitioners showed that a regular neurofeedback practice with [Muse]( reduced burnout by 54% over average session lengths of just 6 minutes. With over 1 billion minutes of brain data and endorsements from Harvard and NASA, [Muse]( is trusted by over 500,000 users worldwide. Muse is giving Nautilus readers an exclusive 15% off their devices. Shop now and learn more about how Muse can improve your brain health. [Get 15% off]( *Any scientific claims made in advertising content are not researched, verified, or endorsed by Nautilus. Thank you for supporting our sponsors. The best things we learned today - The Rubin Observatory is projected to generate about 20 terabytes of data every night, for a total of about 60 petabytes over its upcoming 10-year survey—equivalent to 30 trillion printed pages. [Read on Nautilus→]( - The Polaris Dawn mission has taken astronauts more than 800 miles above the Earth—a distance humans haven’t traveled since 1972, the year of the last trip to the moon. [Read on The New York Times→]( - For many of us, even when we bother to think about the minds of our political, racial, or religious out-group, we can’t do it. [Read on Nautilus→]( - Adolescent girls who lived through COVID-19 lockdowns in Washington state experienced more rapid brain aging than boys in the same community. [Read on The Guardian→]( - A neon, animated version of the catchy K-pop style tune of “Baby Shark” is YouTube’s most viewed video, surpassing 14 billion views. [Read on Nautilus→]( WE ARE CURIOUS TO KNOW... What is your most memorable experience of feeling like you finally understood somebody? Send us your answer! Reply to this newsletter with a brief explanation of your response, and we’ll reveal the top answers in a future newsletter. This question was inspired by “We’re Bad at Understanding Our Political Opponents.” [Read on Nautilus→]( Top answers to our previous question: On a Fantasy You Enjoy Escaping Into When I was a kid, my father had the family sit around the radio every Friday for the President's Fireside Chats. Far from being bored, I was mesmerized. I kept hearing two words that I didn't know. When I asked my father what was a “Democrat” and a “Republican,” he explained that they were two clubs that wanted the same thing but had different ways to get it. Then I asked what club he belonged to. “Letha,” he said, “if I tell you, you will think that is the best club, and won’t think about what club you want to join when you grow up. They may be very different then. You will have to study them carefully before you decide.” That’s the fantasy I love: I realized in that moment that I had dominion. I’ve never had a better moment. – Letha W. My fantasy is living in the future with a body and mind assisted by a Neuralink-type interface with AI that helps us with everything. We live free of disease, with the ability to recreate ourselves into a fresh body when age or injury affects us. There’s no poverty, and one world-governing organization works for the people. No crime, partisanship, or hatred. Everyone cares about each other. Speedy space travel is routine. “Androids” aid us with work however we like. All types of healthy foods sustain us. I dream of the details of this life daily. – Dave B. My fantasy is living on a peaceful, Eden-like island with all the creatures and plants of the world. – Rachel C. Meet Muse, Your Personal Brain Training Coach [Muse]( is a brain-sensing EEG tool that helps you sharpen focus, reduce stress, and improve sleep. [Get 15% off]( Today’s unlocked free story ANTHROPOLOGY Early Humans Made Animated Art How Paleolithic artists used fire to set the world’s oldest art in motion. BY ZACH ZORICH Stone steps descended into the ground, and I walked down them slowly as if I were entering a dark movie theater, careful not to stumble and disrupt the silence. [Continue reading]( P.S. The Lascaux Cave was discovered by a boy and his dog in Dordogne, France, on this day in 1940. Along its walls are drawings and paintings of bison and horses that date back to 21,000 B.C. “I stood in silence as I tried to decode the work of the ancient people who had come here to express something of their world,” wrote Zach Zorich. Artists at Lascaux used fire to see inside caves, but the [glow and flicker of flames may also have been integral]( to the stories the paintings told. Archaeologist Jean-Michel Geneste, once Lascaux’s curator, told Zorich, “Today, when you light the whole cave, it is very stupid because you kill the staging. It is very important: the presence of the darkness, the spot of yellow light, and inside it one, two, three animals, no more. That’s a tool in a narrative structure.” Thanks for reading! What did you think of today's note? Inspire a friend to [sign up for the Nautilus newsletter](. Copyright © 2024 NautilusNext, All rights reserved. You were subscribed to the newsletter from [nautil.us](. 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