Inverse - 💫 The oldest stars ever?

T.G.I.F.

Sept 30 2022

The James Webb Space Telescope's first images were full of surprises for astronomers, but perhaps the richest was the SMACS 0723. This photo was the first of many Webb deep fields. But zoom way way in on the thousands of objects there and there are little Easter eggs. Astronomers just found another in there, a distant globular cluster.

That's some astronomy jargon, to be sure. But what it amounts to is a cluster of stars. Bright, shining, often newly borne stars, almost like a mini-galaxy. The particular globular cluster here is about 9 billion light years away, which is far but not the most distant thing ever observed. But the stars within, which can be sussed out by Webb, are important to astronomers because they may be 4 billion years old. The universe is 13.5 billion years old. That's just half a billion years after the Big Bang.

Objects like these fulfill a key Webb objective, which is piecing together how the universe came to be, as well as the first stars and galaxies. Given that this is from the first image released by Webb, and it has quite a few years ahead as a mission, it's safe to say that there's only more treasure to find out there.

What's New

KABOOM

Astronomers just found the remains of one of the universe's first stars

13.1 billion years ago, one of the universe’s first stars exploded.
When a massive star dies, the supernova typically blows the outer layers of the star into space, leaving the star’s collapsed core behind as either a neutron star or, for the most massive stars, a black hole. But this ancient first-generation star was so massive that its final explosion blasted every single atom of the star’s mass into space, leaving nothing behind — except the star’s chemical fingerprint, smeared across the center of its host galaxy.

Now a team of astronomers, analyzing data from the Gemini North radio telescope in Hawai’i, says they’ve identified that chemical fingerprint for the first time. They published their results in The Astrophysical Journal.

GAME THEORY

Now's the time for a new Deadpool game, and one studio is perfect for the job

On the heels of Deadpool 3’s announcement, the merc with the mouth is once again in the spotlight. Of course, the upcoming film — which is due out in 2024 — has generated excitement, but its reveal has fans longing for a new Deadpool video game. The anti-hero was actually featured in Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order in 2019, but hasn’t taken on the leading role since the titular Deadpool game in 2013. Now, nearly a decade later, a lot has changed in the world of gaming, but now’s the perfect time for Deadpool’s return, especially given the success of recent Marvel video games. But which developer should be in charge?

Recent Marvel games such as Insomniac’s Spider-Man series, and Square Enix’s Guardians of the Galaxy have captured an audience, drumming up excitement for future titles. These include Marvel’s Midnight Suns, Wolverine, and the recently revealed Iron Man game. Given the mainstream appeal of these superhero adventures, a new Deadpool game would likely garner a tremendous amount of success if handled by the right studio.

OOOH, SHINY!

Astronomers discover oldest known star clusters in Webb's first image

Astronomers just found a sparkly Easter egg in the James Webb Space Telescope’s very first image: several teeming star clusters that may contain some of the oldest stars in the universe.

A globular cluster is a densely-packed group of thousands or even millions of stars, held together by their mutual gravity in a sparkling sphere. And a team of astronomers studying Webb’s First Deep Field, a stunning image of the distant universe released on July 12, say they’ve found five of the oldest globular clusters ever discovered, dancing like fireflies around a far-away galaxy.

They published their results in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

WHAT'S SO FUNNY?

Horrifying: Robots may have just gained a creepy new skill

Most of us can tell the difference between a belly-busting laugh in reaction to a cat video and a weak chuckle following a coworker’s corny joke. But can robots?

In a recent study published in the journal Frontiers in Robotics and AI, researchers designed a new AI system to detect peoples’ laughs, decide whether to giggle in response, and choose the type of laugh that’s appropriate for the context.

This new design might help liven up chats between people and robots in an increasingly digital world.

“I hope we can foster the idea that laughter should be a fundamental part of any conversational robot,” says study author Divesh Lala, a researcher who studies conversational robots at Kyoto University in Japan. “We have proposed the idea of shared laughter as one way to attack this issue.”

Here’s the background — The past decade has brought freaky, ultra-realistic AI-powered robots that can gab relatively easily with people. And it seems like each new gadget dives even deeper into the uncanny valley.

PARTY TIME

Best Nintendo Switch party games: 'Mario Kart 8' and 5 more zany picks

The holiday season inevitably means parties. What better way to enjoy quality time with friends and family than something like a party game? The Nintendo Switch, arguably one of the most family-friendly platforms, supports a number of fighting, sports, and racing games for players of all ages to compete in the sacred art of video gaming. Better yet, several of these titles are likely to pop up over the holiday seasons at major discounts worth considering. Say hello to Mushroom Kingdom favorites Mario, Peach, and others in wacky gaming situations. Here are the six best party games for the Nintendo Switch that you can bag before the end of the year.

Meanwhile...

Researchers uncover how your brain knows something is food

This new Webb Telescope picture of the beloved Orion Nebula is glorious

'Daredevil: Born Again' won't be the Netflix follow-up fans wanted

'She-Hulk' Episode 5 finally solves its biggest Marvel mystery

Today in history: The USS Nautilus, the world's first nuclear-powered vessel, was commissioned by the U.S. Navy September 30, 1954.

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