Thursday, March 6th, 2025

Good Morning! 🌞 

Wow, I was blown away by this incredible instrument. We have all heard the sound of a guitar, but I doubt you have ever heard one like this.

Health Sciences

Phantom Limb

Phantom limb syndrome—a phenomenon in which individuals feel sensations in a limb that no longer exists—has long baffled the medical community. Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) have taken a major step forward by finding a way to trigger temperature sensations in amputees. By integrating sensors and temperature-altering devices (thermodes) into a prosthetic arm, they enabled a patient to perceive hot, cold, and room-temperature objects as if the sensations were coming from the missing limb itself.

“We’ve identified these temperature-sensitive spots in most amputees we’ve studied,” said Solaiman Shokur, senior neuroengineer at EPFL. In clinical tests, patient Fabrizio Fidati accurately recognized the temperature of a bottle 100% of the time with the modified prosthetic, compared to only one-third without it. “Warmth is the most beautiful sensation there is,” he noted, highlighting the potential to enhance not just prosthetics, but also daily human experiences.

Beyond accuracy, patients reported that the temperature sensations felt as though they originated in their missing hand rather than their residual limb. “Feeling temperature is different—it makes my phantom limb feel real,” said participant Francesca Rossi. “With temperature feedback, the phantom limb doesn’t feel phantom anymore. It feels like my limb is back.” This breakthrough holds promise for a future in which prosthetics more seamlessly integrate with the human body, restoring not only function but also the profound sensory connection once taken for granted.

Environment

Lost Pharaoh Unearthed

More than a century after Howard Carter unearthed the unlooted tomb of King Tutankhamun, archaeologists have identified a new royal burial site near the Valley of the Kings—this time belonging to the little-known Pharaoh Thutmose II. Despite its historical importance as the first newly uncovered pharaoh’s tomb in two generations, the site appears to have been deliberately emptied some 3,500 years ago. Researchers suspect that Thutmose II’s retainers removed his remains and belongings once they realized the chamber, located under a waterfall, was prone to flooding.

Archaeologist Piers Litherland, who spent a decade investigating the area, initially believed the tomb shaft belonged to a royal wife. His team later uncovered alabaster shards bearing Thutmose II’s name and a ceiling decorated with a “night sky” motif—golden stars against a dark background—confirming the tomb’s royal status. According to Litherland, “The tomb was not robbed—it was deliberately emptied,” likely to protect the burial items from water damage. Further confirmation came from fragments referencing the Amduat, a funerary text reserved exclusively for kings.

Thutmose II ruled from 1493 to 1479 B.C. and was both husband and half-brother to the influential female pharaoh Hatshepsut, as well as father to Thutmose III, a key figure in expanding Egypt’s empire. While the newly identified tomb contained few artifacts, Mohsen Kamel, assistant field director of the excavation, hinted that a second, potentially intact burial site for Thutmose II may lie undiscovered. If confirmed, this hidden chamber could rival the significance of Carter’s discovery of Tutankhamun’s final resting place, offering a rare glimpse into the rites and riches of a pharaoh largely overshadowed by his successors.

Here is a short video that gives some info on the whole discovery:

Environment

Reintroduction of Mountain Bongos

Kenya has taken a major step in conserving one of the world’s rarest antelope species with the arrival of 17 mountain bongos from a Florida conservation center.

The critically endangered subspecies, with fewer than 100 individuals remaining in the wild, was flown in for reintroduction to its native habitat on Mount Kenya. More mountain bongos now exist in captivity than in the wild. The animals will first stay in an acclimation center run by the Kenyan Wildlife Service to help them adjust before release. Another group from European breeding programs is expected within three months.

The last similar reintroduction effort in Kenya was in 2004, when 18 bongos were successfully integrated into the wild. While some died from tick-borne diseases, the effort showed that captive-bred animals can survive with proper preparation.

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Mind Stretchers

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Ice cube! — Debbie Ettinger got this correct first 🌞 

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