The Daily Populous

Friday January 12nd, 2018 day edition

image for The fastest object ever launched was a manhole cover — here’s the story from the guy who shot it into space

How could an iron manhole cover be the fastest human-made object ever launched?

I honestly pictured something akin to the exploding manhole covers that terrify NYC residents: It wasn't like that.

Robert Brownlee, an astrophysicist who designed the nuclear test in question, told Tech Insider the unbelievable story.

He refutes his critics and asserts that yes, it likely was the fastest object that mankind ever launched.

By the 1950s, the US government and the public were concerned with the radiation that nuclear bombs could release into the atmosphere.

The very first underground tests were a bit of an experiment — nobody knew exactly what might happen.

At the time, Brownlee said, he expected the manhole cover to fall back to Earth, but they never found it. »

Scientists Discover Clean Water Ice Just Below Mars' Surface

Authored by wired.com

Locked away beneath the surface of Mars are vast quantities of water ice.

"And the spectrometer readings support that this is water ice and not ice-cemented soil, which would be much harder to convert into water as a resource.".

Fortunately, scientists still have some time to pinpoint Mars' reservoirs of water ice. »

Trump derides protections for immigrants from ‘shithole’ countries

Authored by washingtonpost.com

The Fix’s Eugene Scott explains how Trump’s “shithole countries” comment is the latest example of his history of demeaning statements on nonwhite immigrants.

President Trump grew frustrated with lawmakers Thursday in the Oval Office when they discussed protecting immigrants from Haiti, El Salvador and African countries as part of a bipartisan immigration deal, according to several people briefed on the meeting.

President Trump referred to African nations and Haiti as "shithole" countries on Jan. 11, when discussing restoring protections for certain immigrant groups. »

Anonymous donor gives $100M to Canada's largest mental health hospital

Authored by ctvnews.ca
image for

TORONTO -- Canada's largest mental health hospital has been given $100 million from an anonymous donor, with the goal of developing cures for psychiatric conditions that affect almost seven million Canadians.

The gift to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto will create the Discovery Fund to support next-generation scientists conducting research aimed at directly transforming care.

Darrell Louise Gregersen, head of the CAMH Foundation, says such philanthropy is helping to change the future of mental illness. »