Science in telegram

Money begets money, success begets success, and Nobels beget Nobels. Believe it or not, according to Nature, 95% of Nobel laureates (702 out of 736) belong to a single vast academic family tree, a network that I reflects their academic “lineage.” This isn’t just biological; it’s about mentorship—one scientist guiding another, usually as an advisor or mentor. Only a rare few, just 32 laureates, somehow achieved the Nobel without being part of this formidable academic network (you can see them on the left side of the network diagram). Inside this colossal network lie 33 generations of laureates, all tracing their academic roots back to one progenitor—Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466–1536). He pioneered a system of mentorship that laid the foundation for today’s structured guidance, where knowledge, skills, connections, and experience are passed from one scientist to another, often leading to the highest accolades in science, such as the Nobel. Opinion: Success in a scientific career is not so much a matter of talent and hard work, but of connections and prestige. 1. Mentorship is the key driver behind the rise of superstars. 2. Elite mentorship propels scientists to the highest echelons of success. 3. The most critical factor in elite career trajectories isn’t just talent, and it’s not mere luck. It’s specific luck: the luck of having the right mentor. Thus, superstars are born through mentorship. Now, after Nature’s publication, the “Mentor Effect” in the “science of success” has earned experimental validation. Take note, parents and grandparents: where—and with whom—your children and grandchildren learn can shape their paths in ways you might never expect. Here are some relevant hashtags for your post: #Science #NobelPrize

Money begets money, success begets success, and Nobels beget Nobels. Believe it or not, according to Nature, 95% of Nobel laureates (702 out of 736) belong to a single vast academic family tree, a network that I reflects their academic “lineage.” This isn’t just biological; it’s about mentorship—one scientist guiding another, usually as an advisor or mentor. Only a rare few, just 32 laureates, somehow achieved the Nobel without being part of this formidable academic network (you can see them on the left side of the network diagram). Inside this colossal network lie 33 generations of laureates, all tracing their academic roots back to one progenitor—Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466–1536). He pioneered a system of mentorship that laid the foundation for today’s structured guidance, where knowledge, skills, connections, and experience are passed from one scientist to another, often leading to the highest accolades in science, such as the Nobel. Opinion: Success in a scientific career is not so much a matter of talent and hard work, but of connections and prestige. 1. Mentorship is the key driver behind the rise of superstars. 2. Elite mentorship propels scientists to the highest echelons of success. 3. The most critical factor in elite career trajectories isn’t just talent, and it’s not mere luck. It’s specific luck: the luck of having the right mentor. Thus, superstars are born through mentorship. Now, after Nature’s publication, the “Mentor Effect” in the “science of success” has earned experimental validation. Take note, parents and grandparents: where—and with whom—your children and grandchildren learn can shape their paths in ways you might never expect. Here are some relevant hashtags for your post: #Science #NobelPrize

🚀 SpaceX to Attempt First-Ever Starship-to-Starship Refueling in March 2025 NASA has announced that SpaceX will conduct a groundbreaking test of orbital fuel transfer between two Starship spacecraft as early as March next year. This in-orbit refueling demonstration is crucial, as it could enable larger payload deliveries beyond Earth’s orbit and support future unmanned missions. Should the test succeed, SpaceX is set to land astronauts on the Moon in September 2026. #SpaceX #Starship #NASA #SpaceExploration #OrbitalRefueling #MoonMission #FutureOfSpace #TechNews #Science

🚀 China Successfully Tests Supersonic Passenger Jet The Chinese company Space Transportation has completed successful tests on a passenger jet that can reach speeds of up to Mach 4—twice as fast as the iconic Concorde, which retired in 2003. According to the company, this revolutionary jet could take passengers from Beijing to New York in just two hours. The first commercial flight is expected as early as 2027, promising a new era in high-speed travel. #Aviation #SupersonicFlight #science

An ‘ice tsunami’ is often triggered by a sudden rise in temperature. As the ice begins to melt, it becomes more susceptible to movement, especially under the influence of strong winds. These images capture the Amur River embankment in Khabarovsk / Russia 2021. #IceTsunami #ClimateChange #ScienceNews #Khabarovsk #NaturePhenomena #AmurRiver #Meteorology #science

An ‘ice tsunami’ is often triggered by a sudden rise in temperature. As the ice begins to melt, it becomes more susceptible to movement, especially under the influence of strong winds. These images capture the Amur River embankment in Khabarovsk / Russia 2021. #IceTsunami #ClimateChange #ScienceNews #Khabarovsk #NaturePhenomena #AmurRiver #Meteorology #science

🚀 Boston Dynamics Unveils Impressive New Demo of Atlas Robot Boston Dynamics recently released a fascinating video showcasing its humanoid robot, Atlas. In the demo, Atlas autonomously moves engine covers from one container to another—no remote control, no cheats, just pure automation. This subtle dig at other robotics initiatives, like Elon Musk’s Optimus, underscores Boston Dynamics’ commitment to genuine autonomy. The demo is impressive: Atlas maintains stable mobility, performs complex tasks with minimal errors, and shows a clear capacity for “intelligent” actions. If this isn’t cherry-picking but a real demonstration of Atlas’s consistent capabilities, it might just be the most advanced humanoid robot in the world right now. #BostonDynamics #AtlasRobot #HumanoidRobots #Robotics #ArtificialIntelligence #Automation #AI #science

A Strong Contender for the Next Nobel Prize The startup Iambic has made a breakthrough that surpasses Google DeepMind’s AlphaFold. While AlphaFold, the AI system developed by Google DeepMind, recently earned a Nobel Prize in Chemistry for predicting the 3D structure of how molecules bind to target proteins, this is just the beginning. It’s impressive but not enough to drastically reduce the time (10-15 years) and costs ($1-2.6 billion per drug) required to bring new medicines to market. Iambic has taken it a step further by developing an AI model that predicts, with remarkable accuracy, how well a human body will absorb a specific drug candidate. The predictions are validated against real-world data, making it a promising tool for pharmaceutical development. The success of a drug candidate depends on several key properties—pharmacokinetics, efficacy, and toxicity. These are exactly the factors predicted by Iambic’s AI-powered drug discovery platform called Enchant, which boasts a predictive accuracy of 0.74, compared to just 0.58 achieved by previous models. The Enchant model could potentially cut the costs of drug development in half, allowing pharmaceutical companies to assess a drug’s potential success at the earliest stages of research. To understand the significance of Iambic’s breakthrough, consider the vast competition in the “AI in Biomedicine” sector, where more than 8,600 companies are racing to unlock the next major innovation (as shown in the chart above). In the sub-segment of “AI-based Analytics Platforms for Drug Development” alone, the number of companies has grown fourfold in the last three years, now standing at 950 competitors (see the chart below). #AI #DeepPharma #DrugDiscovery #Biotech #Pharmacology #AlphaFold #science

Water in Zero Gravity! 🚀 Astronaut Don Pettit demonstrates the wonders of microgravity by injecting dye into a floating water sphere aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Without gravity, the water takes on a perfect spherical shape, revealing the fascinating behavior of fluids in space. 🌌💧 #Science #Microgravity #FluidDynamics #ISS #Astronomy #Physics #DonPettit #ScienceIsCool #STEM #SpaceExploration

A Jurassic-period colony of sea lilies, spanning nearly 100 square meters, has been uncovered! These ancient echinoderms were meticulously excavated by German paleontologists over 18 years. Now, you can marvel at this incredible fossil at the Urweltmuseum Hauff in Holzmaden. #Paleontology #Fossils #SeaLilies #Jurassic #Echinoderms #ScienceNews #NaturalHistory #MuseumExhibit #science

🇺🇸 Texas: A single hailstorm destroyed thousands of acres of solar panels, turning the land into a toxic waste site within minutes. @science __ #Texas #Hailstorm #SolarPanels #EnvironmentalDisaster #ToxicWaste #ClimateImpact #RenewableEnergy #ExtremeWeather #Sustainability #ClimateChange #SolarEnergy #DisasterRecovery #GreenEnergy

The United States receives more Nobel Prizes in science than the rest of the world combined. However, 43% of PhD holders in the U.S. were born abroad. 🌍🎓 #NobelPrize #Science #Education #Innovation #GlobalScience #Immigration #STEM @science

A Strange Spider Within a Spider: Cyclosa’s Astonishing Decoy Something large and bizarre, seemingly assembled from whatever was available – web threads, debris, and remnants – isn’t a creature of nightmares. It’s a decoy. The real spider, much smaller (only about 5 mm), hides beneath the “abdomen” of its intimidating counterpart. These clever decoys are crafted by spiders of the Cyclosa genus from the orb-weaver family (Araneidae). Typically, the real spider positions itself on the edge of the web, subtly pulling on the silk threads. This causes the fake spider to move, creating the illusion of a living, menacing predator from afar. The decoy itself is a masterpiece of recycling. Cyclosa spiders construct it from leaf fragments, leftover egg sacs, and the desiccated bodies of previous victims. These creations serve as a diversion, tricking predators like paper wasps, birds, or lizards into attacking the decoy instead of the spider. This distraction gives the real spider precious time to escape. There’s also a hypothesis that these web decorations attract more prey. Organic debris on the web hosts yeast-like fungi, which release chemicals that lure insects into the trap, increasing Cyclosa’s hunting success. #Science #Biology #Arachnology #Spiders #Nature #Evolution #Insects #Survival #Decoy

EngineAI Unveils SE01 Humanoid Robot with Natural Gait The young Shenzhen-based startup EngineAI has announced a full-sized humanoid robot, SE01. What sets SE01 apart is its unique biomechanics, offering smooth, natural movements with 12 degrees of freedom. The development team consists of experts from UC Berkeley, Tsinghua University, and the Beijing Institute of Technology. A friendly shoutout to everyone who used to laugh at awkwardly moving robots — the engineers in China have made their point loud and clear! 🤖 The real fear begins when these machines become indistinguishable from humans. Now imagine if it had the cognitive capabilities of Anthropic’s AI or a 1TB model within the next decade. There might be no place left for humans — not in manufacturing, services, or even daily life. #EngineAI #SE01 #robotics #China

Hydra Under the Microscope The hydra preys on invertebrates, most often small crustaceans. It extends its tentacles, waiting patiently for its target. When the prey touches the tentacles, it is struck by the hydra’s stinging cells. #Hydra #Microscopy #MarineBiology #Invertebrates #Zoology #Science

Tyrannosaurus Rex vs. Emu Foot: Spot the Difference In 2008, American scientists studied the fossilized remains of a Tyrannosaurus Rex and concluded that the closest living relatives of the mighty T-Rex are none other than ostriches and chickens. Evolution certainly knows how to surprise! #ScienceFacts #TyrannosaurusRex #Paleontology #Evolution #Ostrich #Chickens #Dinosaurs #Emu #ScienceChannel #InterestingFacts #Science

Malayan Leaf Frog 👀 #nature #science

🚀 The Largest Prime Number Ever Discovered! The GIMPS project has identified the 52nd Mersenne prime, which is now the largest known prime number. This mathematical giant has the form and spans more than 40 million digits! The discovery was made possible through distributed computing, with thousands of volunteers worldwide contributing their computing power. Think you can find the next record-breaking prime? Join the hunt and become a part of mathematical history! 🔗 Learn more at Mersenne.org