【推荐2】A team from Newcastle University and Northumbria Uaiversity in the UK has found that the thin, root -like threads produced by many fungi (真菌) can potentially be used as a biodegradable, wearable material that’s also able to repair itself.

In their tests, the researchers focused on the Ganoderma lucidum fungus, producing a skin from branching thin threads, which together weave into a structure called a mycelium (菌丝体). With a little more work, the fragile skins could serve as a substitute for leather, satisfying environmental and fashion tastes.

“The results suggest that mycelium materials can survive in dry and unfavourable environments, and self-repairing is possible with minimal intervention after a two -day recovery period, “write the researchers in their published paper. However, the process used to produce these materials tends to kill off the fungal spores (孢子) hat help the organism regenerate itself.

A new approach involving a mix of mycelia, proteins, and other nutrients in a liquid encouraged the growth of a skin. The results are currently too thin and delicate to be tuned into a jacket. However, the researchers are confident that it’s possible that future innovations could turn it into a tougher skin, possibly by combining layers or plasticizing in glycerol. Crucially, the production process didn’t kill off the fungal spores. Tests on the material showed that it was indeed able to replace holes made in it. The material was as strong as before, though it was still possible to see where the holes had been.

“Due to their functional properties, the ability of this regenerative mycelium material to heal micro and macro defects opens interesting future prospects for unique product applications in leather-goods replacements such as furniture, automotive seals, and fashion wear,” write there searchers.

There’s a long way to go here before you’ll be wearing clothes made out of fungus. The growing and healing processes take several days to happen at the moment for example, something which could be sped up over time.

【推荐1】The universe is incredibly vast. The diameter (直径) of the observable universe is estimated to be about 93 billion light years across. With just our eyes, we can generally only see a few thousand light years worth of distance though there are some objects we can see that are much further away. The farthest object we can see with our eyes is Andromeda Galaxy (仙女座星系) located 2.5 million light years away, and yet it is only visible if there is little light pollution. In order to see farther into space, we must rely on telescopes. How far can we see using the most powerful telescopes?

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) was the record holder for the farthest visible distance in space until the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in 2021. JWST is now the most powerful telescope ever built, and it is able to see the universe as it was only 200 million years after the Big Bang. That means that JWST is able to piece together an additional 300 million years of universal history compared to HST. JWST will be able to study some of the first galaxies to form after the Big Bang.

The farthest physical distance we can see is the Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation (CMBR). CMBR can be thought of as the echo (回声) of the Big Bang as it is the leftover radiation from the birth of the universe. The CMBR itself is the farthest possible distance humans can see as it represents the moment that the universe became transparent to light. Although light did exist before CMBR, gas and dust were simply too dense for light to cross space. CMBR formed only 380,000 years after the Big Bang, and so we are seeing the universe prior to the formation of even the first stars.

【推荐2】As humanity sets their sights on deep space exploration, the moon becomes a stepping stone, with countries hoping to build lunar bases to support such missions. To solve the “lunch” problem, scientists have been exploring the possibility of growing plants on the moon. A new study by Chinese scientists has found that bacteria in soil from Earth could offer a solution.

Researchers from China Agricultural University tested five species of bacteria on a material that simulated (模拟) lunar soil. Within a period of 10 to 21 days, three of the bacteria species had doubled their amount of phosphorus (磷) content, a key element for plant growth.

They then grew model plants in the lunar soil containing these three bacteria species. They observed that the plants had longer stems and roots after six days of growth compared with those grown without the bacteria. The plants also had heavier and wider leaves after 24 days of growth. Besides, levels of chlorophyll (叶绿素) — responsible for harvesting energy from light — in the model plants were about double that of those grown without bacteria.

“The study results have important implications for future long-term stays on the moon,” the study’s lead researcher, Sun Zhencai, told Xinhua. Earth bacteria may help astronauts make better use of lunar resources, such as creating lunar greenhouses. In their follow-up research, they hope to experiment with real lunar soil samples and grow crops like rice, com and potatoes.

Since the duration of space missions is increasing, carrying all food supplies to space becomes unsustainable. Hence, “space farmers” becomes critical.

During the Shenzhou XI mission, astronauts managed to grow lettuce, from sowing to harvest. In the later missions, the “space farmers” have successfully grown wheat, rice and thale cress (拟南芥), according to CCTV News.

The most recent visitors to China’s space station, the Shenzhou XVII astronauts, are now growing lettuce, scallion and cherry tomato. These “space farmers” not only provide astronauts with food but also more oxygen and water.

【推荐3】After decades of exploring the moon, a dramatic vision is finally becoming reality. The Guardian recently reported that a project called Lunar Codex is planning to send and store over 30,000 works on the moon from artists, writers, filmmakers, and musicians from over 150 countries and regions. The goods to be stored range from novels and paintings to music, films，and even soil from Earth.

According to Artnet, the only rule for acceptance for these works is that they must have been pre-curated (预先策划) by a professional known to Samuel Peralta, the leader of the project.

Speaking with The New York Times, Peralta said that the aim of the project is to create “a message in the bottle for the fixture”，showing that “during this time of war, pandemic and economic crisis, people still found time to create beauty.”

In fact, this is not the first time that people have tried sending human legacies (遗产) to outer space. In 1969, the Apollo 12 mission carried a ceramic piece with drawings. In 1971, the Apollo 15 staff left a sculpture to honor those who had died in space exploration. What’s more famous is the Golden Record carried by spacecraft Voyager 1 and 2 from NASA in 1977, which contains human language, music and images. For example, a piece of Chinese guqin music, called Flowing Streams was included in it.

Although we don’t know who determines which symbols of human legacy get sent out to space in most projects, it’s obvious that the criteria keep changing. In the past，space heritage products only focused on space-related works; but gradually, more human-related contemporary goods which held great importance in their respective eras have been added to the list. In the Lunar Codex, films, diverse art and literary works produced by women, disabled artists, and even AI have been collected for the first time to be sent to the moon.

These changing criteria also leave space for ordinary people to imagine and think. Many people are now trying to store their DNA information digitally. Will people be able to find even more surprising and inventive ways to preserve their legacy in the future? Only time can tell.