Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 11h

In Cold Blood, The Gay Panic Defense, and the Murder of John Walter Mooney
crimereads.com/in-cold-bloo...

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 12h

A Virus From 5 Million Years Ago Is Still Building Every Human Ever Born
www.popularmechanics.com/science/a688...

A Virus From 5 Million Years Ago Is Still Building Every Human Ever Born

It turns out that a gene called LTR5Hs activates a gene that affects the growth of an embryo and the proliferation of stem cells.

www.popularmechanics.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 12h

The End of the Common Cold?
slate.com/technology/2...

There’s No Vaccine for the Common Cold. This Scientist Says That Won’t Be True for Long.

Imagine a winter without Emergen-C and Kleenex.

slate.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 12h

Video: This Is Where We’re Gonna Bury The ISS [7:58]
www.youtube.com/watch?v=AevL...

This Is Where We’re Gonna Bury The ISS

YouTube video by SciShow

www.youtube.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 12h

Innovative ocean capture method turns CO2 into plastics
newatlas.com/environment/...

Ocean carbon in, biodegradable plastic out

Not-so-fun fact: our oceans hold 150 times more carbon dioxide than the Earth's atmosphere. Adding to that causes ocean acidification, which can disrupt marine food chains and reduce biodiversity.

newatlas.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 13h

The Earth Is Getting Darker, Which Could Mean Hotter Summers in the Future
www.discovermagazine.com/the-earth-is...

The Earth Is Getting Darker, Which Could Mean Hotter Summers in the Future

Learn the surprising reasons why Earth has grown darker over the last 20 years, which include volcanoes, clouds, and cleaner air.

www.discovermagazine.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 13h

Secrets of a Radical Duke
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...

Mirror: archive.is/2025.10.09/h...

Secrets of a Radical Duke

How a lost copy of the Declaration of Independence unlocked a historical mystery

www.theatlantic.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 14h

Video: The comic strip that won't die [12:20]
www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQi5...

The comic strip that won't die

YouTube video by Don McHoull

www.youtube.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 14h

The armed robber who went straight: John McAvoy was born into the criminal life. Here’s how he escaped it
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

The armed robber who went straight: John McAvoy was born into the criminal life. Here’s how he escaped it

His stepfather was a serious criminal. His uncle was one of the Brink’s-Mat heist gang. McAvoy followed them into crime – and into prison. Then one day in the gym he discovered the talent, drive, supp...

www.theguardian.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 15h

Coley’s Cancer-Killing Concoction

On October 1st 1890, William B. Coley, a young bone surgeon barely two years out of medical school, saw one of his first patients in private practice at

www.damninteresting.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 15h

How a hatter and railroad clerk kickstarted cancer research
www.popsci.com/science/how-...

How a hatter and railroad clerk kickstarted cancer research

100 years ago, this unlikely duo discovered the first cancer ‘germ.’

www.popsci.com

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Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 16h

On this day in 1446 the king of Korea dropped a new alphabet
www.damninteresting.com/the-kings-le...

The King's Letters

The 15th-century scholar who upset the Korean aristocracy by creating a native script for the Korean language, and thus wean it off Chinese characters.

www.damninteresting.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 17h

Video: Why the world is fighting over the Panama Canal [40:19]
www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRDG...

Why Trump Wants the Panama Canal

YouTube video by Johnny Harris

www.youtube.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 17h

A cartoonist's review of AI art
theoatmeal.com/comics/ai_ar...

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 17h

How American Tech Cartels Use Apps to Break the Law
lithub.com/how-american...

How American Tech Cartels Use Apps to Break the Law

The death of competition spells doom for regulation. Competition is an essential component of effective regulation, for two reasons: First, competition keeps the companies within a sector from all …

lithub.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 17h

How Easter Island’s giant statues “walked” to their final platforms
arstechnica.com/science/2025...

How Easter Island’s giant statues “walked” to their final platforms

Workers with ropes could make the moai “walk” in zig-zag motion along roads tailor-made for the purpose.

arstechnica.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 17h

Webb Telescope Captures the Final Moments of a Doomed Star Cloaked in Dust
scitechdaily.com/webb-telesco...

Webb Telescope Captures the Final Moments of a Doomed Star Cloaked in Dust

Astronomers have captured the most detailed view yet of a red supergiant star just before it exploded, hidden beneath layers of cosmic dust.

scitechdaily.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

Man gets drunk, wakes up with a medical mystery that nearly kills him
arstechnica.com/health/2025/...

Man gets drunk, wakes up with a medical mystery that nearly kills him

This one seems ready-made for a television medical drama.

arstechnica.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

Minecraft streamer completes 14-year journey walking to the Far Lands
www.polygon.com/minecraft-fa...

Minecraft streamer completes 14-year journey walking to the Far Lands

The legendary “Far Lands or Bust” hike has reached its conclusion

www.polygon.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

The moon's largest crater didn't form in the way we thought
www.newscientist.com/article/2499...

The moon's largest crater didn't form in the way we thought

The impact that carved out the South Pole-Aitken basin on the moon appears to have come from the north, not the south as previously thought – and NASA’s upcoming mission could investigate further

www.newscientist.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

Taking These 50 Objects Out of Orbit Would Cut Danger From Space Junk in Half
www.wired.com/story/taking...

Mirror: archive.is/2025.10.08/h...

Taking These 50 Objects Out of Orbit Would Cut Danger From Space Junk in Half

Old rocket parts and decommissioned satellites are whizzing around in low Earth orbit, where they risk colliding with the ever-growing constellations of modern satellites being launched.

www.wired.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

Video: ‘Impossible’ Precision-Carved Great Chaitya Cave of India [8:11]
www.youtube.com/watch?v=aL-C...

‘Impossible’ Precision-Carved Great Chaitya Cave of India

YouTube video by Ancient Architects

www.youtube.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

Video: 3I/ATLAS Just Got Stranger [25:50]
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwJg...

3I/ATLAS Just Got Stranger

YouTube video by Astrum

www.youtube.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

On this day in 1871, the town of Peshtigo, Wisconsin was consumed by one of the most severe fires in human history
www.damninteresting.com/the-forgotte...

The Forgotten Fire

On October 8th, 1871, the small Wisconsin logging town of Peshtigo was consumed by one of the most severe and woefully under-reported fires in human

www.damninteresting.com

Damn Interesting @damninteresting.bsky.social · 1d

Video: Camp 14: The Most Horrible Place in North Korea [22:31]
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Gm7...

Camp 14: The Most Horrible Place in North Korea

YouTube video by fern

www.youtube.com