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25 out of 43 proteins

DeepMind, the Google artificial intelligence outfit that built superhuman programs for playing chess and Go, is now folding proteins. Better understanding of the structure of proteins — building blocks of life — could have dramatic effects on the future of health care. AlphaFold, as the Google system is called, was entered into a “protein-folding olympics that attracts research groups from around the world.” It predicted the most accurate structure for 25 out of 43 proteins. The second-place team predicted three. [The Guardian]

80 times as massive as the Sun

Scientists recently announced the largest and most distant collision of black holes ever observed. It happened 5 billion light years from Earth, and the crash created a single black hole 80 times as massive as the Sun. We can identify these crashes thanks to the so-called gravitational waves they create, which were captured in this case by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) in the U.S. and Virgo in Europe. [The Verge]

125 herpetologists

As we all know, there’s but one question on the mind of the nation: Who would win in a fight, an anaconda or a Komodo dragon? My colleague Maggie Koerth-Baker turned to 125 herpetologists — that is, amphibian and reptile scientists — for an answer. Spoiler alert: nearly two-thirds picked the anaconda. [FiveThirtyEight]

$2 million in debt

According to documents collected by his former tour promoters, Milo Yiannopoulos, the far-right activist, was more than $2 million in debt in 2018. He reportedly owed money at times to employees, a former collaborator, other right-wing writers, former lawyers, a wedding venue, a billionaire family and the jewelry company Cartier. “I’m doing fine and bringing in $40,000 a month,” Yiannopoulos told The Guardian. [The Guardian]

46 seconds into its favorite song

There’s an AI robot aboard the International Space Station, and it’s not happy. CIMON, as it’s called, was meant to be a friend to the space-bound astronauts. But 46 seconds after CIMON played astronaut Alexander Gerst a song — “The Man-Machine” by Kraftwerk, natch — Gerst asked the robot to “please stop playing music.” “Be nice please,” the robot continued. “Don’t you like it here with me?” Umm, well, about that … [Quartz]

$10 billion government contract

Members of President Trump’s inner circle at Mar-a-Lago, including a lawyer, a doctor and the chairman of Marvel Entertainment, reviewed a confidential draft of a $10 billion government contract for the overhaul of electronic health records of veterans — “even though they lack any relevant expertise” — not to mention their involvement in other Veterans Affairs matters. [ProPublica]

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