We've talked here before about the Office of Planetary Protection and efforts to make sure that we Earthlings don't contaminate the rest of the galaxy with our bacteria, viruses, and other assorted detritus. Now, some scientists are arguing that we've done this job too well, effectively barring ourselves from exploring the parts of Mars that are most likely to be hospitable to life precisely because they could also be hospitable to tagalong life from Earth.
Planetary overprotection: Have we made ourselves Mars' helicopter parents?
Rising CO2 may already be showing up in human blood — a "potentially toxic atmosphere in 50 years"
For most of human evolution, the air held about 300 parts per million of carbon dioxide. It has now surpassed 420 and is climbing by more than 2 ppm per… READ THE REST
What is the cause of mystery booms heard around the world?
In the 19th century, people living near the Barisal region of Bangladesh kept hearing what sounded like distant cannon fire booming out of a clear sky. The Barisal guns became… READ THE REST
Some people initiate sex in their sleep and remember none of it
Sexsomnia is a parasomnia — in the same family as sleepwalking — in which a person engages in sexual acts during non-REM sleep. People in an episode often appear fully… READ THE REST
Microsoft Office is just $28, but only through July 26
Disclosure: Boing Boing earns a commission on purchases made through links in this post. TL;DR: Get Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows for $27.97 instead of $219.99. The one-time purchase includes eight familiar… READ THE REST
This $430 MacBook Pro once cost nearly $2,000
Disclosure: Boing Boing earns a commission on purchases made through links in this post. TL;DR: This Grade A refurbished 2020 MacBook Pro has 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and a 13.3-inch Retina… READ THE REST
Free up computer space with 2TB of cloud storage for $59 — for life
Disclosure: Boing Boing earns a commission on purchases made through links in this post. TL;DR: FileJump is offering 2TB of cloud storage in an easy-to-use package for only $59 (MSRP $467) for… READ THE REST
