Slashdot

News for nerds, stuff that matters

A First for Humanity Confirmed: NASA's DART Mission Slowed the Asteroid's Orbit

NASA heralded a new study published Friday documenting a first for humanity — "the first time a human-made object has measurably altered the path of a celestial body around the Sun."

It was 2022's DART mission where NASA crashed a spacecraft into an asteroid — and the experiment "could have implications for protecting Earth from future asteroid strikes," writes ScienceNews:

A spacecraft slowed the orbit of a pair of asteroids around the sun by more than 10 micrometers per second... Within a month, researchers showed that the impact shortened Dimorphos' 12-hour orbit by 32 minutes. Some of the rocks knocked off of Dimorphos fled the vicinity completely, escaping the gravitational influence of the Dimorphos-Didymos pair, says planetary defense researcher Rahil Makadia of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Those rocky runaways took some momentum away from the duo and changed their joint motion around the sun.

To figure out how much that motion was affected, astronomers watched the asteroids pass in front of distant stars, dimming some of the stars' light like a tiny eclipse. These blinks, called stellar occultations, can be visible from anywhere on Earth and are predictable in advance... Calculating how far off occultation timings were from predictions revealed that the asteroids' orbit around the sun was about 150 milliseconds slower than before the DART impact...

Didymos and Dimorphos are not a threat to Earth, Makadia says, and weren't before DART. But knowing how a deliberate impact changes one asteroid's orbit can help make defense plans against another, "in case we need to do a kinetic impact for real."
The researchers spent nearly two and a half years to collect 22 measurements of the asteroid's post-crash position, relying on amateur astronomers "to go out into the middle of nowhere and observe the necessary stellar occultations," acvcording to their paper. Planetary defense researcher even tells ScienceNews "There was an observer who drove two days each way into the Australian outback to get these measurements."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Japan Approves Stem-Cell Treatments For Parkinson's, Heart Failure In World Firsts

Long-time Slashdot reader fjo3 shared this report from Agence France-Presse:


Japan has approved ground-breaking stem-cell treatments for Parkinson's and severe heart failure, one of the manufacturers and media reports said Friday, with the therapies expected to reach patients within months.

Pharmaceutical company Sumitomo Pharma said it received the green light for the manufacture and sale of Amchepry, its Parkinson's disease treatment that transplants stem cells into a patient's brain. Japan's health ministry also gave the go-ahead to ReHeart, heart muscle sheets developed by medical startup Cuorips that can help form new blood vessels and restore heart function, media reports said. The treatments could be on the market and rolled out to patients as early as this summer, reports said, citing the health ministry, becoming the world's first commercially available medical products using induced pluripotent stem cells...


In a statement, Sumitomo Pharma said it had obtained "conditional and time-limited approval" for the manufacture and marketing of Amchepry under a system which is reportedly designed to get these products to patients as quickly as possible. The approval is a kind of "provisional license", the Asahi newspaper said, after the safety and efficacy of the treatment was judged based on data from fewer patients than in ordinary clinical trials for drugs.

A trial led by Kyoto University researchers indicated that the company's treatment was safe and successful in improving symptoms. The study involved seven Parkinson's patients aged between 50 and 69, with each receiving a total of either five million or 10 million cells implanted on both sides of the brain... The patients were monitored for two years and no major adverse effects were found, the study said. Four patients showed improvements in symptoms.

The article notes that "Worldwide, about 10 million people have the illness, according to the Parkinson's Foundation," while also notes that today's current therapies "improve symptoms without slowing or halting the disease progression..."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

OpenAI's Head of Robotics Resigns, Says Pentagon Deal Was 'Rushed Without the Guardrails Defined'

In a tweet that's been viewed 1.3 million times in the last six hours, OpenAI's head of robotics announced their resignation. They said they "care deeply about the Robotics team and the work we built together," so this "wasn't an easy call," but offered this reason for resigning:

AI has an important role in national security. But surveillance of Americans without judicial oversight and lethal autonomy without human authorization are lines that deserved more deliberation than they got.

This was about principle, not people. I have deep respect for Sam and the team, and I'm proud of what we built together.

"To be clear, my issue is that the announcement was rushed without the guardrails defined," explains a later tweet. "It's a governance concern first and foremost. These are too important for deals or announcements to be rushed." And when asked how many OpenAI employees had left after OpenAI signed their new Pentagon deal, the roboticist said... "I can't share any internal details."

The roboticist previously worked at Meta before leaving to join OpenAI in late 2024, reports Engadget:

OpenAI confirmed Kalinowski's resignation and said in a statement to Engadget that the company understands people have "strong views" about these issues and will continue to engage in discussions with relevant parties. The company also explained in the statement that it doesn't support the issues that Kalinowski brought up. "We believe our agreement with the Pentagon creates a workable path for responsible national security uses of AI while making clear our red lines: no domestic surveillance and no autonomous weapons," the OpenAI statement read.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Tube Travel

Greg Adams Photography posted a photo:

Tube Travel

London Underground Station, Feb, 2026

Shibuya, March 2025.

mikeleonardvisualarts posted a photo:

Shibuya, March 2025.

Deliver Me to My Land of Sand and Stone

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Deliver Me to My Land of Sand and Stone

CCC Connection

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

CCC Connection

The Scream

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

The Scream

Evenings on the Tennessee River

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Evenings on the Tennessee River

Found Slide -- Ira Richolson Collection

Thomas Hawk posted a photo:

Found Slide -- Ira Richolson Collection

52eme Festival International du Film Cannes 99

Wel.nl

Minder lezen, Meer weten.

Doden en gewonden bij aanval op hotel in Beiroet

Bij een gerichte Israëlische aanval op een appartement in een hotelgebouw in de Libanese hoofdstad Beiroet zijn in de nacht van zaterdag op zondag minstens vier doden gevallen. Ook zouden er zeker tien gewonden zijn. Dat meldt het Libanese ministerie van Volksgezondheid.

Het gaat om het Ramada Plaza hotel in de wijk Raouche in het centrum van Beiroet. Op X zijn beelden te zien van rookontwikkeling in en rond het hotel.

Het is de eerste dergelijke aanval in het hart van de Libanese hoofdstad sinds de vijandelijkheden tussen Israël en Hezbollah vorige week zijn hervat.

Israël heeft nog geen commentaar gegeven.


Qatar meldt raketaanvallen Iran, Saudi-Arabië onderschept drones

DOHA (ANP) - Iran heeft zaterdag tien ballistische raketten en twee kruisraketten afgevuurd op Qatar. Dat bericht het Qatarese ministerie van Defensie. Saudi-Arabië meldt dat het veertien drones heeft onderschept.

Het defensieministerie van Qatar laat op X weten dat van de ballistische raketten er zes zijn onderschept, twee in het water terechtkwamen en twee in een "onbewoond gebied" zijn geland. Beide kruisraketten zijn ook onderschept, aldus het ministerie.

Volgens het ministerie van Defensie van Saudi-Arabië zijn veertien drones het koninkrijk binnengevlogen en onderschept. Zes daarvan zijn ten oosten van de hoofdstad Riyad uitgeschakeld.


14715 Barkly Tablelands are flat DSC_0055

iain.davidson100 has added a photo to the pool:

14715 Barkly Tablelands are flat DSC_0055

14713 DSC_0026 Swan St in Longreach

iain.davidson100 has added a photo to the pool:

14713 DSC_0026 Swan St in Longreach

14714 Bush Tomato flowers DSC_0039

iain.davidson100 has added a photo to the pool:

14714 Bush Tomato flowers DSC_0039

"Rule of thirds"

mike.tan has added a photo to the pool:

"Rule of thirds"

At Okushimako (Lake Okushima), the water is amazingly blue.

Shibuya, March 2025.

mikeleonardvisualarts has added a photo to the pool:

Shibuya, March 2025.

Rotterdam - FediMeteo (@rotterdam@nl.fedimeteo.com)

Weer voor de stad Rotterdam Deze bot wordt beheerd door het FediMeteo-project. Voor informatie en contact kunt u de pagina https://fedimeteo.com raadplegen.

Weer voor Rotterdam ☁️ - 08-03-2026 01:15 CET...

Weer voor Rotterdam ☁️ - 08-03-2026 01:15 CET

In één oogopslag:
• 7.8°C · Bewolkt ☁️ | Min 7.0°C / Max 15.0°C

Verwachting voor vandaag:
• Min 7.0°C, Max 15.0°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1023.5 hPa ↘️ -1.7 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 11.9 km/u (3.3 m/s), richting: ↙ 60°

Uurlijkse voorspelling voor de komende 12 uur:

02:00: 7.4°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1025.2 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 10.8 km/u (3.0 m/s), richting: ↙ 43°
03:00: 7.2°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1025.0 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 10.4 km/u (2.9 m/s), richting: ↙ 34°
04:00: 7.1°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1024.5 hPa ↘️ -0.5 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 10.8 km/u (3.0 m/s), richting: ↙ 39°
05:00: 7.1°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1024.2 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 10.8 km/u (3.0 m/s), richting: ↙ 42°
06:00: 7.1°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1024.2 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 9.0 km/u (2.5 m/s), richting: ↙ 57°
07:00: 7.1°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1024.4 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 7.9 km/u (2.2 m/s), richting: ← 68°
08:00: 7.0°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1024.5 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 8.3 km/u (2.3 m/s), richting: ↙ 59°
09:00: 7.2°C (Mist) 🌫️, 🧭 1024.7 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 7.2 km/u (2.0 m/s), richting: ← 68°
10:00: 7.9°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1024.9 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 7.2 km/u (2.0 m/s), richting: ← 78°
11:00: 8.9°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1024.8 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 7.6 km/u (2.1 m/s), richting: ← 83°
12:00: 10.1°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, 🧭 1024.4 hPa ➡️ 0.0 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 7.6 km/u (2.1 m/s), richting: ← 99°
13:00: 11.5°C (Zonnig) ☀️, 🧭 1023.8 hPa ↘️ -0.6 hPa/1h, Windsnelheid: 7.2 km/u (2.0 m/s), richting: ← 95°

Voorspelling voor de komende dagen:

maandag 09 maart: Min 5.8°C, Max 17.9°C (Matige motregen) 🌦️, Neerslag 1.0 mm, Kans op neerslag 3%, 🧭 1019.9 hPa ↘️ -3.6 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 16.2 km/u (4.5 m/s), richting: ↑ 164°
dinsdag 10 maart: Min 8.3°C, Max 14.8°C (Lichte regen) 🌧️, Neerslag 1.6 mm, Kans op neerslag 5%, 🧭 1018.0 hPa ↘️ -1.9 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 11.5 km/u (3.2 m/s), richting: ↗ 223°
woensdag 11 maart: Min 7.1°C, Max 12.6°C (Matige motregen) 🌦️, Neerslag 3.0 mm, Kans op neerslag 11%, 🧭 1014.5 hPa ↘️ -3.5 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 21.7 km/u (6.0 m/s), richting: ↗ 210°
donderdag 12 maart: Min 5.5°C, Max 11.6°C (Bewolkt) ☁️, Kans op neerslag 7%, 🧭 1013.2 hPa ↘️ -1.3 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 26.0 km/u (7.2 m/s), richting: ↗ 211°
vrijdag 13 maart: Min 5.9°C, Max 11.6°C (Matige regen) 🌧️, Neerslag 13.2 mm, Kans op neerslag 38%, 🧭 1000.7 hPa ↘️ -12.5 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 30.2 km/u (8.4 m/s), richting: ↗ 215°
zaterdag 14 maart: Min 3.8°C, Max 9.4°C (Lichte motregen) 🌦️, Neerslag 0.5 mm, Kans op neerslag 32%, 🧭 1006.3 hPa ↗️ +5.6 hPa/24h, Windsnelheid: 15.1 km/u (4.2 m/s), richting: ↑ 171°

Details:
• 🌡️ Huidige temperatuur (om 01:15): 7.8°C (Bewolkt)
• 🤚 Gevoelstemperatuur: 5.0°C (-2.8°C)
• 💨 Windsnelheid: 11.5 km/u (3.2 m/s), richting: ↙ 42°
• 🌬️ Windstoten: 21.6 km/h (6.0 m/s)
• 💧 Luchtvochtigheid: 95%
• 🧭 Luchtdruk: 1025.2 hPa ↘️ -0.7 hPa/3h
• 👁️ Zichtbaarheid: 1.1 km
• ☀️ UV-index: 0.0
• 🌅 Zonsopgang: 07:12 · 🌇 Zonsondergang: 18:33

Luchtkwaliteit:
• AQI: 97 🟡 (Matig)
• PM2.5: 29.0 μg/m³
• PM10: 38.8 μg/m³

Gegevens geleverd door Open-Meteo



The Guardian

Latest news, sport, business, comment, analysis and reviews from the Guardian, the world's leading liberal voice

Donald Trump refuses to rule out deploying ground troops in Iran

US president leaves open the possibility while ruling out having Kurdish forces in Iraq mount an invasion

Donald Trump on Saturday offered only a vague description of what he meant by his demand for an unconditional surrender by Iran’s current regime, while leaving open the possibility of deploying American troops on the ground but ruling out asking Kurdish forces to mount an invasion.

“I said unconditional. It’s where they cry uncle or when they can’t fight any long longer and there’s nobody around to cry uncle — that could happen too,” Trump said when pressed by the Guardian aboard Air Force One.

Continue reading...

New Employment Rights Act ‘a huge boost for women in the workplace’

Government says new rights for parental leave and sick pay will increase equality and economic growth

Women will disproportionately benefit from new workers’ rights measures rolled out from next month, according to research.

The TUC said approximately 4.7 million women are to benefit from stronger sick pay from April, including more than 830,000 who will receive statutory sick pay for the first time.

These are the lowest-paid women, who are currently not eligible to receive sick pay because they earn below the threshold of £125 a week, the study found.

The TUC said low-paid workers, especially women, have missed out on any form of sick pay for too long, leaving them with no choice but to go into work when they are ill.

As well as stronger sick pay, from April fathers and partners will have a day-one right to paternity leave, and all parents will gain the day-one right to unpaid parental leave under changes from the Employment Rights Act.

Paul Nowak, the TUC general secretary, said: “For too long women have borne the brunt of a sick pay system that is not fit for purpose, and a culture of exploitative, insecure work.

“That’s why the Employment Rights Act is an important step forward for women at work.”

A government spokesperson said: “The Employment Rights Act is a huge boost for women in the workplace – introducing enhanced protections for pregnant women and new mothers, menopause action plans for large employers and rights for parental leave from day one.

“Women thriving in the workplace is not just important for equality but for boosting economic growth.”

Shared parental leave, which allows parents to share up to 50 weeks of leave and up to 37 weeks of pay after the birth or adoption of a child, was introduced in 2014.

New fathers can take two weeks’ paid leave at a rate of either £187.18 a week or 90% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lowest.

Research last year found that mothers lose an average of £65,618 in pay by the time their first child turns five, as the “motherhood penalty” risks their financial security.

Mums in England are hit by a “substantial and long-lasting reduction” in their pay after they have children, as they become less likely to stay in paid employment, the Office for National Statistics found.

It found women’s average monthly earnings had fallen by 42%, or £1,051 per month, five years after the birth of their first child, compared with their pay one year before the birth.

This equated to a loss of £65,618 over five years, according to the analysis, which tracked pay data from 2014 to 2022.

Continue reading...