Weekend Edition: Flying saucers, legal lobsters and nature's finest photography

Fancy flying head-first, face-down at 160 mph in your own personal flying saucer? Zeva is determined to make this possible, and Loz Blain caught up with CEO Stephen Tibbits this week to find out how. Elsewhere, Rich Haridy delves into the legal status of lobsters, Nick Lavars looks at the threat microplastics pose to mammal brains, and we feast our eyes on some wild wonders in the 2021 Nature inFocus Photography Contest. Enjoy the Weekend Edition! Noel McKeegan Editor-in-Chief Photography [On the hunt with the 2021 Nature InFocus Photo Contest winners]( [Special Mention - Animal Behaviour. Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya. The image shows a piglet running for its life as a lioness closes in.]( From a lioness racing after her prey, to a pack of wild dogs herding a bear, this year's Nature inFocus Photography Contest delivers a spectacular assortment of wonderful wildlife imagery celebrating the best of the nature photography in 2021. [Read more]( Special Promotion for New Atlas Readers [Manage your money better with help from this all-in-one finance app]( Truebill is the smart finance app that helps members manage their subscriptions, automate savings and more. Need to negotiate a bill? Truebill can help. Curious about your credit score? The app keeps an eye on that, too. [Read more]( Aircraft [Zeva's 160-mph electric UFO: An air taxi experience like no other]( [Zeva's one-person eVTOL aircraft: a tail-sitting flying saucer design with some interesting advantages]( Zeva is deadly serious about bringing this tail-sitting eVTOL flying saucer to market as a one-person air taxi, and if you can get over the idea of soaring above the city head-first, face-down and Superman-style, it's got some interesting advantages. [Read more]( Health & Wellbeing [Brief exposure to near-infrared light improves deteriorating vision]( [Dr Pardis Kaynezhad (UCL Institute of Ophthalmology) holds a deep red light over her eye, which helps stimulate the mitochondria in her retinal cells]( As we age, our eyesight naturally declines, but a new study has found just three minutes of exposure to 670-nanometer red light in the morning can help deteriorating vision, improving color contrast vision by nearly 20 percent. [Read more]( Biology [UK report concludes crabs, octopuses and lobsters are sentient beings]( [The review of more than 300 scientific studies concluded several types of invertebrates should be classified as sentient animals]( An animal welfare bill in the UK will now include crabs, octopus, and lobsters after a review concluded they should be considered sentient beings. The review found strong evidence these invertebrates are capable of feelings such as pain and distress. [Read more]( Environment [Mouse study shows microplastics infiltrate blood brain barrier]( [A new study has shown how microplastics can infiltrate the blood brain barrier of mice]( Scientists in Korea have turned their attention to the effects of microplastics on mammals by exploring the threat these particles pose to mouse brains and human cells, where they were found to act as toxic substances. [Read more]( Energy [KSTAR fusion reactor sets record with 30-second plasma confinement]( [KSTAR, the so-called "Korean artificial sun," has set a record for maintaining plasma at temperatures over 100 million °C]( A popular design in the pursuit of fusion power is the tokamak and an exciting example of these donut-shaped reactors can be found at the Korea Institute of Fusion Energy, where a new record for maintaining super-hot plasma has reportedly been set. [Read more]( Motorcycles [Weird and wonderful new motorcycles that grabbed us at EICMA 2021]( [Bimota seems to enjoy bringing a sense of avant-garde to the motorcycle industry. This is its new KB4 RC]( EICMA Milan: it's motorcyclese for Christmas, when the factory elves bring forth a bounty of gifts for the coming year – and we stand in cold, cynical judgement on their labors. Here are the bikes that have caught our attention thus far. [Read more]( Outdoors [Aerospace-grade squaredrop camper brings backcountry bathroom]( [Finding base camp with the Mammoth trailer]( Mammoth Overland launches an aerospace-inspired camping trailer that looks like it'd be as comfortable rolling over moon rock as hitched to a Tacoma. Here on Earth, its rugged build and full amenity suite combine into a cozy backcountry base camp. [Read more]( Marine [World's first electric autonomous cargo ship takes to the water]( [The Yara Birkeland en route to Norway]( A future-focused ship designed as the world's first all-electric, autonomous cargo vessel has debuted in Norway, where it is intended to replace 40,000 diesel-powered truck journeys every year and significantly reduce NOx and CO2 emissions. [Read more]( Environment [Living walls found to drastically reduce heat loss in older buildings]( [One section of a pre-1970s building, which was covered with a living wall, lost over 30 percent less heat than an adjacent non-covered section]( Along with benefits such as air purification, "living walls" are also said to help regulate the temperature within new buildings which they're built into. A study now indicates that they have the same effect when added to older, existing structures. [Read more]( Medical [New Alzheimer’s drug leads to brain swelling in one-third of patients]( [Aducanumab was controversially approved by the FDA in June despite an advisory panel recommending against its approval]( A new study is reporting more than one in three patients trialing the recently approved Alzheimer’s drug aducanumab experienced brain swelling side effects. The data is the first from the drug’s Phase 3 trials to be peer-reviewed and published. [Read more]( Biology [New sleep study suggests DNA repair protein tells us we're tired]( [A new study sheds new light on why almost all organisms need sleep]( Sleep is a crucial biological phase, but exactly why almost every organism needs it remains mysterious. Now a study has uncovered a new piece of the puzzle, finding that a protein involved in DNA repair signals the brain when it’s time to sleep. [Read more]( Medical [Experimental drugs clear zombie-like cells and apply brakes to diabetes]( [A new study has shown how insulin resistance in diabetes could be tackled through experimental senolytic drugs that target zombie-like cells]( A new study has explored how damaged, lingering cells called senescent cells can negatively influence the behavior of fat cells, and demonstrated how their removal can alleviate diabetes symptoms in obese mice. [Read more]( Medical [Ancient Australian plant promises to expand chemotherapy effectiveness]( [Eremophila galeata is a small shrub that grows in arid areas of Western Australia]( Researchers have isolated a compound from an Australian desert shrub with a long history of medicinal use by the Indigenous peoples of Australia that could help cancer patients better respond to chemotherapy. [Read more]( Aircraft [Rolls-Royce's electric plane hits 387 mph to lay claim as world's fastest]( [The Rolls-Royce Spirit of Innovation in action]( An aircraft developed by Rolls-Royce to smash the speed record for an all-electric plane reached a maximum speed of 623 km/h (387.4 mph) during its latest round of testing in the UK, which would make it the world's fastest electric vehicle of any kind. [Read more]( Space [Nuclear fusion startup test fires plastic waste-powered rocket]( [Pulsar Fusion successfully test fired its hybrid rocket at a UK Ministry of Defence military base in Salisbury last week]( A UK company with lofty aspirations around sustainable space travel has test-fired a rocket engine powered in part by plastic waste. Pulsar Fusion's ambitious plans also involve the development of nuclear fusion technology for high-speed propulsion. [Read more]( Medical [New cells discovered in the heart may regulate heart rate and rhythm]( [A zebrafish heart (red), with neurons (blue) and the newly discovered nexus glial cells (green)]( Scientists have discovered a new type of cell in the heart. The cells, now named nexus glia, seem to help regulate heart rate and rhythm, and the team says they may unlock new understandings of some heart defects and diseases. [Read more]( You are receiving this email because you signed up for our daily newsletter at [newatlas.com]( (or [gizmag.com]( before August 2016). [Update profile]( | [Unsubscribe]( Copyright New Atlas © 2021