Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed a 3D printed, self-powered mechanoluminescent (ML) photonic skin designed for communication and safety monitoring in underwater environments. The stretchable device emits light in response to mechanical deformation, requires no external power source, and remains functional under conditions such as high salinity and extreme temperatures. The findings were published in Advanced Materials by Xiaolu Sun, Shaohua Ling, Zhihang Qin, Jinrun Zhou, Quangang Shi, Zhuangjian Liu, and Yu Jun Tan. The research was conducted at NUS and Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR). Schematic of the 3D printed mechanoluminescent photonic skin showing fabrication steps and light emission under deformation. Image via Sun et al., Advanced Materials. 3D printing stretchable light-emitting skins with auxetic geometry The photonic skin was produced using a 3D printing method called direct-ink-writing (DIW), which involves extruding a specially formulated ink through a fine nozzle to build up complex structures layer by layer. In this case, the ink was made by mixing tiny particles of zinc sulfide doped with copper (ZnS:Cu), a material that glows when stretched, with a flexible silicone rubber. These particles serve as the active ingredient that lights up when the material is deformed, while the silicone acts as a soft, stretchable support structure. To make the device more adaptable to movement and curved surfaces, like human skin or underwater equipment, the researchers printed it using auxetic designs. Auxetic structures have a rare mechanical property known as a negative Poisson’s ratio. Unlike most materials, which become thinner when stretched, auxetic designs expand laterally under tension. This makes them ideal for conforming to curved or irregular surfaces, such as joints, flexible robots, or underwater gear, without wrinkling or detaching. Encapsulating the printed skin in a clear silicone layer further improves performance by distributing mechanical stress evenly. This prevents localized tearing and ensures that the light emission remains bright and uniform, even after 10,000 cycles of stretching and relaxing. In previous stretchable light-emitting devices, uneven stress often led to dimming, flickering, or early material failure. Mechanical and optical performance of encapsulated photonic skin across 10,000 stretch cycles. Image via Sun et al., Advanced Materials. Underwater signaling, robotics, and gas leak detection The team demonstrated multiple applications for the photonic skin. When integrated into wearable gloves, the skin enabled light-based Morse code communication through simple finger gestures. Bending one or more fingers activated the mechanoluminescence, emitting visible flashes that corresponded to messages such as “UP,” “OK,” or “SOS.” The system remained fully functional when submerged in cold water (~7°C), simulating deep-sea conditions. In a separate test, the skin was applied to a gas tank mock-up to monitor for leaks. A pinhole defect was covered with the printed skin and sealed using stretchable tape. When pressurized air escaped through the leak, the localized mechanical force caused a bright cyan glow at the exact leak site, offering a passive, electronics-free alternative to conventional gas sensors. To test performance on soft and mobile platforms, the researchers also mounted the photonic skin onto a robotic fish. As the robot swam through water tanks at different temperatures (24°C, 50°C, and 7°C), the skin continued to light up reliably, demonstrating its resilience and utility for marine robotics. Comparison of printed photonic skin structures with different geometries and their conformability to complex surfaces. Image via Sun et al., Advanced Materials. Toward electronics-free underwater communication While LEDs and optical fibers are widely used in underwater lighting systems, their dependence on rigid form factors and external power makes them unsuitable for dynamic, flexible applications. In contrast, the stretchable ML photonic skin developed by NUS researchers provides a self-powered, adaptable alternative for diver signaling, robotic inspection, and leak detection, potentially transforming the toolkit for underwater communication and safety systems. Future directions include enhanced sensory integration and robotic applications, as the team continues exploring robust photonic systems for extreme environments. Photonic skin integrated into gloves for Morse code signaling and applied to robotic fish and gas tanks for underwater safety monitoring. Image via Sun et al., Advanced Materials. The rise of 3D printed multifunctional materials The development of the photonic skin reflects a broader trend in additive manufacturing toward multifunctional materials, structures that serve more than a structural role. Researchers are increasingly using multimaterial 3D printing to embed sensing, actuation, and signaling functions directly into devices. For example, recent work by SUSTech and City University of Hong Kong on thick-panel origami structures showed how multimaterial printing can enable large, foldable systems with high strength and motion control. These and other advances, including conductive FDM processes and Lithoz’s multimaterial ceramic tools, mark a shift toward printing entire systems. The NUS photonic skin fits squarely within this movement, combining mechanical adaptability, environmental durability, and real-time optical output into a single printable form. Read the full article in Advanced Materials Subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry newsletter to keep up with the latest 3D printing news. You can also follow us onLinkedIn and subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry YouTube channel to access more exclusive content. At 3DPI, our mission is to deliver high-quality journalism, technical insight, and industry intelligence to professionals across the AM ecosystem.Help us shape the future of 3D printing industry news with our2025 reader survey. Featured image shows a schematic of the 3D printed mechanoluminescent photonic skin showing fabrication steps and light emission under deformation. Image via Sun et al., Advanced Materials.

Browning Industrial Park / MULTIPLE Architecture & UrbanismSave this picture!© Bruno Dias Ventura Architects: MULTIPLE Architecture & Urbanism Area Area of this architecture project Area:  15562 m² Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2024 Photographs Photographs:Bruno Dias Ventura Manufacturers Brands with products used in this architecture project Manufacturers:  Joris Ide, Ozklux, VMZINC, ZumtobelMore SpecsLess Specs Save this picture! Text description provided by the architects. The Browning Park project emerged from a strong ambition: to transform a derelict industrial site - once home to Herstal's weapons industry - into a vibrant green lung at the heart of the city. Over time, the site had become a sealed and fragmented grey zone, disconnected from its surrounding neighborhoods. The project was driven by a desire to reverse this fragmentation by creating a continuous pedestrian path, reopening the site, and reconnecting it with its urban context. This central promenade became the backbone of the design, around which inclusive and fully accessible public spaces were thoughtfully arranged.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!One of the most significant challenges stemmed from the condition of the site itself. Decades of industrial activity had left behind polluted soils and substantial infrastructural remnants. A deep soil remediation process - reaching depths of up to 12 meters - was required before any development could begin. This necessary intervention also offered the opportunity to reshape the topography and increase permeable surfaces, thus improving rainwater infiltration and boosting the site's resilience to climate change. Another key challenge involved balancing heritage preservation with new uses. The former Browning factory, for instance, had to be partially dismantled, structurally reinforced, and reimagined, while retaining its historical identity.Save this picture!In terms of construction, the project focused on reusing existing structures wherever possible. The factory's original metal frame was preserved and strengthened, and a new timber roof was added to create a covered public hall. Adjacent to it, the garden integrates remnants of the steel framework, which now supports wild vegetation and forms a robust, weather-resistant landscape feature. These gestures embody the project's commitment to circularity and a low environmental footprint.Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!The spatial layout of the park was carefully designed to accommodate a wide variety of users and age groups. Along the main pedestrian spine, a sequence of diverse atmospheres and uses unfolds: a skatepark, a playground, picnic areas, outdoor fitness zones, a square with a fountain, a woodland area, and a flower garden. All these features are barrier-free and fully accessible.Save this picture!The project was developed in close dialogue with the people of Herstal and future park users. A series of public consultations and co-creation workshops were held throughout the design process, ensuring the park would reflect local needs and aspirations. The involvement of municipal services, which will oversee the long-term maintenance of the park, the hall, and the intergenerational house, was also crucial to ensuring the project's durability and success.Save this picture! Project gallerySee allShow less Project locationAddress:Herstal, BelgiumLocation to be used only as a reference. It could indicate city/country but not exact address.About this office MaterialSteelMaterials and TagsPublished on June 05, 2025Cite: "Browning Industrial Park / MULTIPLE Architecture & Urbanism" 05 Jun 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1030623/browning-industrial-park-multiple-architecture-and-urbanism&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save世界上最受欢迎的建筑网站现已推出你的母语版本!想浏览ArchDaily中国吗?是否 You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

How Will Transportation Work in the Future? A Look at the Rise of Electric Mobility in CitiesSave this picture!Boise, United States. Image via Wikipedia user: Fæ. License under CC0 1.0. Image Author: Alden SkeieFrom greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution to deforestation, one of the leading contributors to global warming today is emissions from the transportation sector. Exploring its origins and evolution, as well as the major challenges it faces, the development of electric mobility in urban environments represents a global transition that requires a coordinated mix of policies and actions to achieve cleaner and more sustainable transportation systems. Designing safe and comfortable infrastructure for walking and cycling, promoting public transit and shared mobility, and designing more efficient streets that include electric vehicles, among other actions, are part of a growing worldwide effort to reduce carbon emissions.Although electric vehicles were invented before gasoline and diesel cars in the first half of the 19th century, they have undergone significant technological advances over the past 20 years, reducing their costs and their environmental impact, and increasing their utility. Around 1834, Thomas Davenport developed the first battery-powered electric vehicle, building a small train on a circular track and inventing the first direct current (DC) electric motor. Although there were numerous innovations in the years that followed, battery limitations were a major obstacle. The zinc consumption of a battery was four times more expensive than the coal consumption of a steam engine, so at that time it competed with the electric motor. Save this picture!By 1898, the first commercially available electric vehicles were operating in London and New York. As Francisco Martín Moreno explains in "Vehículos eléctricos. Historia, estado actual y retos futuros", in the early 1900s, several electric car models emerged, primarily accessible to wealthy consumers and designed for short distances. In contrast, the early gasoline-powered cars introduced in the 1920s were noisy, emitted strong gasoline odors, and were hard to drive due to complex gear systems. However, large quantities of oil were discovered between 1920 and 1930, making gasoline-powered cars cheaper in Texas and other US states. Highways began to be built connecting cities, allowing gasoline-powered vehicles to travel from one city to another, something beyond the reach of electric vehicles due to their short range. Mass production techniques like Henry Ford's assembly line further reduced costs, making gas-powered cars affordable to the middle class. Related Article Gas Stations and Electric Cars: How Do They Change Cities Save this picture!By the late 1920s, gasoline vehicles had overtaken electric vehicles, and electric car production largely ceased in the 1930s. However, as a result of the oil crisis in the 1970s and the Gulf War in the 1990s, along with the emergence of climate change as a priority, there was a renewed interest in electric cars. This resurgence led to new models of electric vehicles—from small cars to buses and even trucks. The energy crisis led to an increase in gasoline prices, and society in advanced countries began to become aware of the effects of greenhouse gas emissions from oil combustion, the greenhouse effect, and climate change. Concern about greenhouse gas emissions and climate change increased as oil prices rose, and society began to recognize and become more aware of the impact of the current transportation model on cities and the urgency of finding more environmentally friendly transportation alternatives.Save this picture!Save this picture!In developed countries during the 20th century, the growth of cities was largely due to private car use, allowing citizens to travel miles and miles daily from home to work. Suburban expansion shifted the cost of commuting to individuals. Some residential areas are developing far from the city center and industrial zones, where a large proportion of the population relies on cars. In 2010, the global population was around 7 billion, and it's expected to reach 10 billion by 2050. The number of vehicles, meanwhile, is projected to grow from 75 million in 2010 to 2.5 billion by 2050. Will there be enough fossil fuels to power this massive fleet? What will be the future of gas stations?Save this picture!To meet the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement and reduce growing air pollution, low- and middle-income countries should join the global transition to zero-emission electric transport. According to data from the International Energy Agency and the European Alternative Fuels Observatory, China led the world in 2024 with over 7 million electric vehicles (including cars and buses) in operation—an increase of over 3 million in just one year. The U.S. ranked second, followed by Germany, which leads in Europe with about 1.3 million EVs. The UK and France round out the top five.Save this picture!To support this transition, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has launched a global initiative alongside private sector partners, academic institutions, and financial organizations, helping low- and middle-income countries shift to electric mobility. In Latin America, transportation accounts for around one-third of CO₂ emissions. In Africa, Asia, and parts of Latin America, motorcycles and three-wheelers are essential for daily mobility, often covering over 100 km per day. However, these vehicles usually rely on outdated technologies, making them highly polluting and inefficient. Electrifying two- and three-wheelers presents a significant opportunity to reduce both greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. UNEP is assisting 17 countries in creating national strategies and running pilot projects to introduce these electric vehicles in regions like Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.Save this picture!Given the rapid urbanization in many low- and middle-income countries, mass public transport remains a cornerstone of urban mobility. Cities across Africa, Asia, and Latin America are investing in better transportation systems, including high-capacity bus corridors and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems. Yet, with the average bus lifespan exceeding 12 years, it's essential to avoid locking cities into outdated technologies. Developing policies to support and incentivize the adoption of zero-emission vehicles is essential to achieving the electrification of public transport. The European Commission proposes promoting investment initiatives in charging infrastructure and emissions trading, to be implemented starting in 2026, by putting a carbon price on fossil-fuel vehicles. This measure seeks to boost the use of electric vehicles and the transformation of transport systems. Now, how could charging infrastructure be developed to support a potential massive growth in the electric vehicle fleet? What upgrades and innovations are needed to handle this future demand? What would happen if all transportation suddenly depended on the power grid?Save this picture!Save this picture!The UN emphasizes that using public transportation is critical to curbing climate change. Electrifying buses and trains could cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to two-thirds per passenger per kilometer compared to private vehicles. Still, private cars hold the greatest potential for emission reduction. In 2018, light-duty vehicles were responsible for nearly half of all transport emissions—including those from rail, sea, and air travel. Several major carmakers have announced ambitious plans to release new EV models in the next five years.Save this picture!According to a study by the McKinsey Center for Future Mobility (2019), roughly 60% of global car trips are under 8 kilometers, making them ideal for micromobility solutions. Electromicromobility refers to small, lightweight, and low-speed electric transportation options for short distances, such as electric skateboards, scooters, bikes, mopeds, and quadricycles. From a user perspective, electric vehicles still face hurdles like high costs, limited range, and long charging times. However, their broader societal benefits—particularly emissions reductions—are significant. Therefore, local and national governments are encouraged to implement supportive policies, such as vehicle purchase subsidies, tax breaks, free charging stations, parking benefits, access to city centers, and special electricity rates for nighttime charging, etc.Save this picture!Save this picture!Ultimately, we should ask: What lies ahead for modern transportation? How could new forms of natural, artificial, and collective intelligence be integrated into the design of today's transportation systems to improve resilience to environmental and growth challenges? What partnerships between countries, industries, and organizations are needed to ensure a sustainable and innovative supply of key materials? What will happen to used EV batteries and electronic components? Will be electric mobility in cities the only way to reduce carbon emissions?This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: What Is Future Intelligence?, proudly presented by Gendo, an AI co-pilot for Architects. Our mission at Gendo is to help architects produce concept images 100X faster by focusing on the core of the design process. We have built a cutting edge AI tool in collaboration with architects from some of the most renowned firms such as Zaha Hadid, KPF and David Chipperfield.Every month we explore a topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and architecture projects. We invite you to learn more about our ArchDaily Topics. And, as always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, contact us. Image gallerySee allShow less About this authorAgustina IñiguezAuthor••• Cite: Agustina Iñiguez. "How Will Transportation Work in the Future? A Look at the Rise of Electric Mobility in Cities" 03 Jun 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1030500/how-will-transportation-work-in-the-future-a-look-at-the-rise-of-electric-mobility-in-cities&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save世界上最受欢迎的建筑网站现已推出你的母语版本!想浏览ArchDaily中国吗?是否 You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

Thermalright is a Menace: Dozens of New Coolers, New Case, 17-Blade Fan, & Mini PCs, ft. CEOMay 30, 2025Last Updated: 2025-05-30We take a look at Thermalright’s crazy amount of air coolers, closed-loop liquid coolers, fans, and examine the company’s first caseThe HighlightsThermalright continues to overwhelm the CPU cooler market with a crazy amount of coolers at cheap pricesThermalright showed off its first case, the TR M10 MATXThermalright is experimenting with fans of all kinds, ranging from high-end all-LCP and metal fans to more modest PPT onesThe company also unveiled a number of new closed-loop liquid coolersTable of ContentsAutoTOCGrab a GN Soldering & Project Mat for a high-quality work surface with extreme heat resistance. These purchases directly fund our operation, including our build-out of the hemi-anechoic chamber for our acoustic testing! (or consider a direct donation or a Patreon contribution!)IntroWe visited Thermalright’s booth at Computex 2025 and the company handed us a big booklet showing everything the company was showing at the show. It’s impossible for us to remember the names of everything the company was showing at the event as there just too much of it, but we'll try to highlight the most interesting products.Editor's note: This was originally published on May 20, 2025 as a video. This content has been adapted to written format for this article and is unchanged from the original publication.CreditsHostSteve BurkeCamera, Video EditingMike GaglioneVitalii MakhnovetsWriting, Web EditingJimmy ThangThermalright Air CoolersThe biggest thing that Thermalright is doing when it comes to coolers is mostly in digital displays and screens. The company showed off many CPU air coolers at Computex and only a few don’t have them. Frost TowerThe company’s Frost Tower comes with a 140mm fan in the middle coupled with a 120mm front fan. The middle fan is 27mm thick and the front fan is a standard 25mm. Thermalright is targeting about $50 for the Frost Tower. The company is using LCP blades, which is very expensive, and a 30% fiberglass reinforced PBT for the frame, which is a balancing mechanism for cost. It uses a 6-pull fan and its fin-stack is soldered, which is higher quality than press-fit.Royal LordThe company’s Royal Lord cooler is supposed to be a $43 cooler and it uses 2 fans. Thermalright says it’s an extra $10 if you want to add an extra LCD to it. Like the Frost Tower, its fin stack is also soldered. It uses 7 heat pipes with a 30% fiberglass reinforced PBT for its fans, which are both 2x25mm. Thermalright FansR-Series Fans The company will release its R5 and R9 fans. The number denotes how many blades the fans will have. Thermalright says the R5 fans are designed to push air through radiators. The R9 fan has 9 blades and is a 28mm thick fan. The company is moving towards LCP on a lot of its fans. X12 FanThermalright showed off a fan with 17 blades that’s completely made out of metal. It’s got a zinc alloy frame and aluminum blade set. It’s just a prototype for now and costs the company $100 to make, which tells you a little about how much it might cost for the company to mass-produce it. The unit we saw was fully CNCed. 17 blade fans are very abnormal. The company says it would mostly be useful in mini PCs. The fan uses an all-metal design to get the blade-tip clearance to functionally be 0. The fan also has an inner ring to it. Thermalright Stream Vision Liquid Cooler Grab a GN15 Large Anti-Static Modmat to celebrate our 15th Anniversary and for a high-quality PC building work surface. The Modmat features useful PC building diagrams and is anti-static conductive. Purchases directly fund our work! (or consider a direct donation or a Patreon contribution!)Thermalright showed off numerous liquid coolers, but we’re only going to focus on one. Thermalright’s Stream Vision is supposed to be $100. The liquid cooler comes with a screen on it and there’s also a fan that cools the memory and VRM. One of our suggestions to Thermalright is to angle the grill on the sides of this fan away from the mounting brackets. The company is trying to compete in the liquid market more. Rainbow Vision and Wonder VisionThe company is also competing with Tryx’s panoramic cooler. Thermalright has an interchangeable screen with one of the 2 options providing a full separate cold plate. They are 2400x1800 resolution from what the company told us and leverage a 60Hz panel. One of the options is a 6.67-inch OLED display. Thermalright says that both options should be about $200. TRM10 CasesThermalright also showed off a case that it’s been working on, the TRM10. The company hasn’t made computer cases before. It’s one of the few products that it’s not making in its factory. Thermalright’s plan for cases is to do what they’re doing in the cooler industry, which is to be extremely competitive when it comes to pricing. The cheapest version of the TRM10 will be $45 and the more expensive one will be $65. The more expensive model will come with an LCD display on the side and a digital display on the front to display numbers like the time. The cheaper one, on the other hand, will most likely just come with a steel plate instead.  The mATX case is mostly steel with a bunch of perforations on the top and glass for its sides. The top of the case also has plastic that is made to look like brushed aluminum. Inside the chassis, there’s a good amount of depth for the cable management and it has passthrough for the cables at a side angle with the exception of the EPS12V, which is on the top. Everything else about the case is pretty standard. Looking inside the case, there’s a lot of perforation, like at the top and bottom of the hard drive cages, which is a good thing to see. The top of the power supply shroud is also heavily perforated along with the bottom of the case. There’s about as many holes as you can get in the case.  The case is going for airflow with its panel design, with the exception of the front, but the side makes up for some airflow. The steel in the middle of this panel adds some rigidity and is also probably a play on Thermalright’s logo.   Thermalright Mini PCsWith its mini PCs, Thermalright is trying to compete with Minisforum and the company tells us that the mini PCs we saw will be liquid cooled. This theoretically means it should have better thermals and be a little quieter compared to competing systems if it’s done well. Pricing is still TBD but Thermalright says they will be cheaper or equal to competing mini PCs, which we take as Minisforum. The company started running a benchmark on one of its mini PCs with a 100% load and we saw the CPU, which is an AMD 395 SOC, temps being 61 degrees C, though that may ramp up as it hits steady state. Thermalright showed off 3 models.One of the mini PCs at Computex was just there for show. The unit in the image above is fully CNCed. It looks super nice with its red accents, but it’s not something the company is planning to sell unless there’s a lot of demand for it.  Thermalright Tank PCLeveraging its factory, Thermalright wanted to build something cool and took 3 months to make a computer that looked like a tank. The company told us it’s composed of around 450 pieces.Thermalright CEO Interview Visit our Patreon page to contribute a few dollars toward this website's operation (or consider a direct donation or buying something from our GN Store!) Additionally, when you purchase through links to retailers on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission.We also conducted a brief interview with Thermalright’s CEO. To check that out, make sure to watch that portion in our Computex video.

The Fearsome Megalodon Ate Basically Whatever It Wanted to Reach Its Daily 100,000-Calorie Need, Study Suggests Scientists previously assumed the giant, prehistoric sharks mostly feasted on whales, but it turns out they probably weren’t so picky An artistic reconstruction of the extinct megalodon. Scientists' ideas about how the megalodon looked are based on its fossilized teeth. Hugo Saláis via Wikimedia Commons under CC BY 4.0 Between 3 million and 20 million years ago, the largest predatory fish ever known hunted in Earth’s oceans. Called theOtodus megalodon), this giant shark grew up to 79 feet long, had teeth the size of human hands and could bite with the strength of an industrial hydraulic press. But what scientists know about the extinct creature has been almost entirely determined from fossil teeth—since paleontologists have yet to discover a complete megalodon, and the animals’ cartilaginous skeletons don’t preserve well. Now, new research on the mineral content of their teeth suggests megalodons ate pretty much whatever they wanted. Until recently, scientists assumed that megalodons satisfied their estimated 100,000-calorie daily needs by mostly eating whales. A study published Monday in the journal Earth and Planetary Science Letters, however, suggests the prehistoric shark had a much more diverse diet than previously thought—akin to the great white shark’s “if it moves, it’s food” hunting strategy of today, writes Vice’s Ashley Fike. Jeremy McCormack with a fossilized megalodon tooth. Uwe Dettmar for Goethe University An international team of researchers reached this conclusion after analyzing the ratio of different variants, called isotopes, of the mineral zinc in 18-million-year-old megalodon teeth. Animals absorb zinc only through food, so this could offer a hint to their diets. Muscles and organs absorb more of the isotope zinc-64 than zinc-66, meaning that the higher up the food chain an animal is—or the more meat and fish it eats—the less zinc-66 it absorbs, and its ratio of zinc-66 to zinc-64 is lower, in turn. “Since we don’t know how the ratio of the two zinc isotopes at the bottom of the food pyramid was at that time, we compared the teeth of various prehistoric and extant shark species with each other and with other animal species. This enabled us to gain an impression of predator-prey relationships 18 million years ago,” Jeremy McCormack, a scientist from Goethe University Frankfurt and lead author of the study, says in a statement. Unsurprisingly, the isotope ratios in the teeth put the megalodon at the top of the food chain, alongside close shark relatives such as Otodus chubutensis. At the same time, however, the scientists noticed there wasn’t a huge difference between the megalodon and the lower-tiered animals, suggesting the sharks feasted on creatures from all rungs of the ladder. “They were not concentrating on certain prey types, but they must have fed throughout the food web, on many different species,” McCormack tells CNN’s Jacopo Prisco. “While certainly this was a fierce apex predator, and no one else would probably prey on an adult megalodon, it’s clear that they themselves could potentially feed on almost everything else that swam around.” The results also indicate that megalodon populations living in different habitats had slightly contrasting diets, potentially because of differing prey availability. More broadly, the study invites comparisons between the megalodon and its iconic extant relative, the great white shark. These comparisons, however, may have previously led to some overreaching assumptions. “Previous studies simply assumed that megalodon must have looked like a gigantic version of the modern great white shark without any evidence,” Kenshu Shimada, a vertebrate paleontologist at DePaul University and co-author of the new study, told National Geographic’s Jason Bittel back in March. He and colleagues had just published a different paper that reassessed the prehistoric shark’s size, suggesting that it had a more slender body than its smaller, modern cousin. The new study thus joins a host of research challenging widely held ideas about megalodons and their relatives, says Alberto Collareta, a paleontologist at the University of Pisa in Italy who was not involved in the research, to CNN. “These have led us to abandon traditional reconstruction of the megatooth sharks as ‘inflated’ versions of the modern white shark. We now know that the megalodon was something else—in terms of size, shape and ancestry, and of biology, too,” he adds. In fact, with both species eating generalist diets, great white sharks might have outcompeted megalodons for food and ultimately played a role in their demise. “Even ‘supercarnivores’ are not immune to extinction,” Shimada says in the statement. Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.

The Obalende bus terminus is one of Lagos’s most important transport nodes and a ‘graveyard’ for old danfos, which in Yoruba means ‘hurry’. These yellow‑painted minibuses form the backbone of Lagos’s informal transport system and are mostly second‑hand imports from the global north. Located in the heart of Lagos Island, Obalende is one of the first areas to be developed east of the lagoon that splits Lagos into two main halves: the Island and the Mainland. It receives a large portion of urban commuters daily, especially those entering Lagos Island for work. Obalende plays a critical role in the cycle of material reuse across the city. The life of a danfo does not end at retirement; it continues through a vast network of informal markets and recyclers that sustain entire communities. Their metal parts are either repurposed to fix other buses or sold as scrap at markets such as Owode Onirin. Located about 25km away on the Lagos Mainland, Owode Onirin, which means ‘money iron market’ in Yoruba, is a major hub for recycled metals. Waste collectors scour the city’s demolition sites for brass and mild steel; they find copper, bronze and aluminium in discarded vehicles. These materials are then processed and sold to companies such as African Foundries and Nigerian Foundries, as well as to local smiths who transform them into building parts, moulds and decorative objects. Sorters, welders and artisans form the backbone of this circular micro‑economy. Their labour breathes new life into discarded matter.  Lagos has a State Waste Management Authority, but it is fraught with politicking and inefficient in managing the city’s complex waste cycle. In the absence of intelligent state strategies, it falls on people to engineer solutions. They add armatures, build networks and modulate the static thresholds and borders imposed by the state. Today, these techniques and intelligences, born out of scarcity, are collectively labelled ‘informality’, a term that flattens their ingenuity.  Across the streets of Obalende and around its central roundabout, kiosks and pop‑up shops dominate the landscape. Most are constructed from materials such as timber reclaimed from collapsed buildings or fallen fascias, along with salvaged tarpaulins. Stones and concrete blocks found at demolition sites are moulded into anchors using discarded plastic paint buckets, serving as bases for umbrellas offering relief from the scorching Lagos sun. To anticipate flash flooding, many structures are raised slightly above ground on short stilts. Space, which is in short supply, is creatively repurposed to serve different functions at various times of the day; a single location might host breakfast vendors in the morning, fruit sellers in the afternoon and medicine hawkers at night. Due to its proximity to the city centre, Obalende experiences constant population shifts. Most entering the city at this node have no means of livelihood and often become salvagers. Under the curling ends of the Third Mainland Bridge, for example, a community of migrants gathers, surviving by scavenging motor parts, sometimes from old danfos, zinc roofing sheets and other materials of meagre value. Discarded mattresses, bedding and mosquito nets are repurposed as shelter beneath the noisy overpass, which becomes both workplace and home. In the absence of supportive state frameworks, communities like those in Obalende create micro‑responses to urban precarity. Their fluid, multifunctional spaces are adaptive and resilient architectures resulting from necessity, survival and material intelligence.  ‘Informality as a way of life is inherently circular in its use of space and materials’ In Lagos, the most populous city in Nigeria and one of the most populated in Africa, two thirds of the population live on less than US$1 a day, according to Amnesty International. This speaks not only to income levels but to multidimensional poverty. Unlike global cities such as Mumbai, Cape Town and Rio de Janeiro, where poorer demographics are largely confined to specific neighbourhoods at the margins, informality in Lagos is not peripheral but integral to how the city functions, defying the rigid thresholds and boundaries of formal urban planning.  Across Lagos, self‑sustaining circular economies flourish. Orile, a metal market located on the mainland, is one of the sites where discarded metals from sites in Lagos can be sold as part of a recycling system. Further out in the suburbs of Lagos, also on the mainland, is the Katangua Market, which is the biggest second‑hand clothes market in the city. In Nigeria’s largest hardware technology hub, Computer Village, just south of Lagos in Ikeja, used electrical and electronic equipment (UEEE) is sold for parts. A TRT World report notes that about 18,300 tonnes of UEEE arrive in Nigeria annually – although the number varies in other studies to as much as 54,000 tonnes smuggled in – with the majority coming from Europe, closely followed by the US and China.  Computer Village evolved into a dense network of shops, stalls and kiosks between 1998 and 2000, just before Nigeria adopted early digital cellular network technology. The market sits just minutes from the local airport and the Ikeja High Court, but its edges are fluid, spilling out from the Ikeja Underbridge. Over time, formal plots have dissolved into an evolving mesh of trade; the streets are lined with kiosks and carts, built from repurposed plywood, corrugated metal and tarpaulin, that come and go. Space is not owned but claimed, temporarily held, sublet and reshuffled.  Today, Computer Village generates an estimated US$2 billion in annual revenue. Yet most of the shops lack permanence and are constantly at risk of demolition or displacement. In March this year, over 500 shops were demolished overnight at Owode Onirin; in 2023, shopping complexes at Computer Village were torn down in a similar way. The state has continuously announced plans to relocate Computer Village to Katangua Market, with demolition of parts of Katangua Market itself making way for the move in 2020. Urban development patterns in Lagos prioritise formal sectors while ignoring self‑organised makers and traders. This contributes to spatial exclusion, where such communities are often under threat of eviction and relocation.  Discarded devices eventually make their way to landfills. Olusosun, in the very heart of Lagos, is one of Africa’s largest landfills. Over 10,000 tonnes of waste are delivered daily, and more than 5,000 scavengers live and work here, sifting through an artificial mountain of refuse in search of value: aluminium, copper, plastic, cloth. The waste stream, enlarged by the influx of used hardware and fast fashion from the global north, creates both livelihood and hazard. Recent studies have shown that most of the residents in and around the site are exposed to harmful air conditions that affect their lungs. Additionally, the water conditions around the site show infiltration of toxic substances. Scavengers have lost their lives in the process of harvesting metals from discarded electronics.  More than a landfill, Olusosun is a stage for the politics of waste in the global south. Poor regulation enables the flow of unserviceable imports; widespread poverty creates demand for cheap, second‑hand goods. The result is a fragile, and at times dangerous, ecosystem where the absence of the state makes room for informal innovation, such as space reuse and temporary architecture, material upcycling and recycling. In Olusosun, metals are often extracted, crushed and smelted through dangerous processes like open burning. Copper and gold harvested from the ashes then make their way back into products and institutions, such as the insets of bronze or aluminium in a piece of furniture that might eventually travel back to the global north. In its usual fashion, the government has promised to decommission the Olusosun site, but little has been seen in terms of an effective plan to repurpose the site under the state’s so‑called ‘advanced waste treatment initiative’. Informality as a way of life is inherently circular in its use of space and materials. It embodies adaptability, resilience and an intuitive response to economic and environmental conditions. The self‑built infrastructures in Lagos reveal the creativity and resilience of communities navigating the challenges of urban life. Now is the time for designers, policymakers and community leaders to work together and rethink urban development in a way that is more sustainable and responsive to the needs of the people who make cities thrive. The question is not whether informal economies will continue to exist, but how they can be designed into wider city planning – making them part of the solution, not the problem. Featured in the May 2025 issue: Circularity Lead image: Olympia De Maismont / AFP / Getty 2025-05-30 Reuben J Brown Share

Comparison of a megalodon tooth and a great white shark tooth, not associated with the study. (Image Credit: Mark_Kostich/Shutterstock) NewsletterSign up for our email newsletter for the latest science newsMegalodon teeth have always been key to understanding the ancient marine predator. Fossilized teeth are all that remain to prove the existence of these massive sharks, and the name megalodon is from the Greek for “big tooth.”A new study, published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters, highlights the importance of the megalodon’s human-hand-sized teeth once again. Thanks to extracting and analyzing the traces of zinc left in the fossilized teeth, researchers now know that the megalodon’s diet was much broader than scientists once believed.“Megalodon was by all means flexible enough to feed on marine mammals and large fish, from the top of the food pyramid as well as lower levels – depending on availability,” said Jeremy McCormack from the Department of Geosciences at Goethe University, in a press release.What Did the Megalodon Eat?Clocking in at 78 feet in length and weighing about twice as much as a semi truck, the megalodon was a big fish with a big appetite. It is suggested that a member of the Otodus shark family would require about 100,000 kilocalories per day to survive. Due to this extreme number, scientists have often assumed that the megalodon’s main source of calories came from whales.This new study suggests that whales were not the only item on the megalodon’s daily menu and that these sharks were actually quite adaptable when it came to their food. The research team analyzed 18-million-year-old giant teeth that came from two fossil deposits in Sigmaringen and Passau. What they were looking for was the presence of zinc-66 and zinc-64, two isotopes commonly ingested with food. Typically, the higher up in a food pyramid an animal is, the lower the presence of zinc. As they are oftentimes at the top of the food chain, species such as Otodus megalodon and Otodus chubutensis have a low ratio of zinc-66 to zinc-64 compared to species lower on the food chain.“Sea bream, which fed on mussels, snails, and crustaceans, formed the lowest level of the food chain we studied,” said McCormack in the press release. “Smaller shark species such as requiem sharks and ancestors of today’s cetaceans, dolphins, and whales, were next. Larger sharks, such as sand tiger sharks, were further up the food pyramid, and at the top were giant sharks like Araloselachus cuspidatus and the Otodus sharks, which include megalodon.”Surprisingly, the zinc levels in the megalodon teeth weren’t always that different from the zinc levels in species lower down the food chain. This result means that the commonly held scientific belief that megalodons focused their attention on eating large marine mammals may be incorrect. Instead, McCormack refers to the megalodon as an “ecologically versatile generalist” that adapted to environmental and regional constraints that changed the availability and variety of their prey.A New Method in Teeth TestingUsing the zinc content of fossilized teeth is a relatively new method of analysis, and the research team working on the megalodon couldn’t be happier with their results. The methods used in this study have not only been used for prehistoric shark and whale species but also modern-day shark species, and have even been used on herbivorous prehistoric rhinoceroses.Overall, these new methods have begun to rewrite the history of megalodon’s eating habits and may help to explain more about why these giants of the food chain went extinct. “[Determining zinc isotope ratios] gives us important insights into how the marine communities have changed over geologic time, but more importantly the fact that even ‘supercarnivores’ are not immune to extinction,” said Kenshu Shimada, a paleobiologist at DePaul University and a coauthor of this study, in the press release.Article SourcesOur writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:Earth and Planetary Science Letters. Miocene marine vertebrate trophic ecology reveals megatooth sharks as opportunistic supercarnivoresAs the marketing coordinator at Discover Magazine, Stephanie Edwards interacts with readers across Discover's social media channels and writes digital content. Offline, she is a contract lecturer in English & Cultural Studies at Lakehead University, teaching courses on everything from professional communication to Taylor Swift, and received her graduate degrees in the same department from McMaster University. You can find more of her science writing in Lab Manager and her short fiction in anthologies and literary magazine across the horror genre.1 free article leftWant More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/monthSubscribeAlready a subscriber?Register or Log In1 free articleSubscribeWant more?Keep reading for as low as $1.99!SubscribeAlready a subscriber?Register or Log In

After faithfully serving Americans since 1787, the penny is on its way to retirement. The United States Treasury announced it won’t place any more orders for penny blanks. That means once current supplies run out, new pennies will not be introduced into circulation. The Washington Post reported that the Treasury placed its final order for blanks this month with expectations that it will run out by early 2026. You can keep spending pennies as normal after that. But at some point, businesses will have to start rounding up or down to the nearest 5 cents for cash transactions. Why is the penny getting the axe? Well, according to the U.S. Mint’s 2024 annual report, pennies cost nearly 4 cents to produce and distribute. Part of this is due to rising material costs. Pennies are primarily made of zinc, and its price per metric ton has more than doubled since 2000. Over the years, penny production has decreased anyway. In 2024, the Mint only made 3.2 billion pennies, compared to about 11 billion each year in the 1990s. But last fiscal year, the Mint still lost $85.3 million on the pennies it produced. Per the Post, the agency estimated that it will save $56 million a year from reduced material costs. “Given the cost savings to the taxpayer, this is just another example of our administration cutting waste for the American taxpayer and making the government more efficient for the American people,” a Treasury spokesperson told Axios in a statement. Talks about ditching the penny have been around for awhile. For example, former Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew recommended suspending its production in 2016. Americans have also grown more favorable to the idea, potentially because the penny’s use in our daily lives has decreased. Per YouGov, about a third of Americans never spend pennies, with adults under 30 using them the least. Back in January, DOGE took aim at the penny, and, a month later, Trump followed up with a Truth Social rant about “wasteful” pennies, writing, “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies. Let’s rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it’s a penny at a time.” To be fair to the penny, rising production costs have hit all coins. For example, a quarter cost 25% more to make in 2024 than the year before (compared to the penny’s 17% increase). And, like the penny, nickels are also more expensive to produce and distribute than they’re actually worth. Ditching one-cent pieces isn’t unheard of. New Zealand and Australia discontinued theirs in 1989 and 1992, respectively, and Canada stopped producing pennies in 2012. The U.S. has discontinued other coins before, with the most recent being the $20 golden Double Eagle coin.

Commonly available glow-in-the-dark materials are made from phosphors, which are chemicals like zinc sulfide or strontium aluminate, that manufacturers mix with paint or plastics. These phosphors absorb energy from sunlight or even artificial light, then give it off over time; that process, known as phosphorescence, is what causes them to glow. For some objects, it is not desirable to rely on phosphors, since they need to be "charged" (i.e. regularly exposed to light in order to produce their glowing powers). For example, there are gunsights and watch faces made with tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, which glows continuously. The radioactivity emitted by a tritium gunsight or watch face is so weak that it cannot penetrate human skin, thus is deemed to be safe; manufacturers are quick to point out that you encounter more radiation just walking around on our planet. TEC Accessories, an EDC gear company, sells this line of Isotope Tritium Fobs. These are glow-in-the-dark key fobs that, you guessed it, rely on tritium for that always-on glow. There is a bit of a catch: TEC Accessories can sell you the key fob--but they can't actually sell you the tritium. Tritium is illegal to sell in the U.S., where the company is based. Thus they've got an entire page on their website describing how to skirt U.S. laws to get your hands on the stuff. Once you've ordered and received your vial of tritium, you can pop it into their key fob, and off you go. You're probably wondering: Aren't radioactive materials dangerous? As with gunsights and watch faces, the answer is that it might be—if you ingested it or inhaled it. Contained within a vial that is inserted into a titanium key fob, you'd have to go to a lot of trouble to do either of those things.You'd also have to go to a lot of trouble to order tritium. But darn if these things don't look cool. The fobs run $14.50 to $80 a pop.

Tucked behind an old tree in the heart of Gurugram, India, the Maurpankhi residence is a seamless interplay of architecture and nature. Designed by House & Beyond, led by architect Pushpender Arora, the 3230-square-foot bungalow is a place for the family to unwind, reflect, and reconnect. Conceived as a sanctuary for a family immersed in the intensity of corporate life, Maurpankhi was envisioned from the beginning as an emotional refuge. Rather than relying on ornate details or ostentatious luxury, the home finds its essence in openness, warmth, and a quiet dialogue with the outdoors. From the moment one steps inside, it’s evident that natural elements are the guiding force. An age-old tree marks the entrance – not simply preserved but celebrated, embraced by a curved zinc wall that both protects and frames it. This weathering metal facade will mature over time, developing a patina that reflects the ever-evolving story of the home and the family there. ”We chose zinc for its robust nature, timeless aesthetic, and unique weathering process – it galvanizes beautifully, much like the memories this home will hold,” Arora shares. The design weaves courtyards into the overall layout, allowing daylight and breezes to fill the interiors. These open-air pockets bring greenery indoors and become an active part of the family’s life, ushering in calm and offering views that change with the seasons. The home’s ground level offers an organic flow between social and private spaces. The absence of rigid walls between living, dining, and kitchen areas fosters connectivity without sacrificing function. Strategically placed furniture shapes the spatial experience, allowing sightlines to remain unbroken and the energy of the space to feel cohesive yet distinct. A sunken seating area with a U-shaped sofa offers a prime location in the main living space to connect with family and visitors while enjoying the views ahead. Descending into the basement reveals one of the home’s most surprising elements – a column-free space filled with natural light from a sunken courtyard. This level houses a vibrant lounge, a bar, and a play zone, shifting the conventional notion of what a basement can be. The upper level rooms were designed for each inhabitant. The primary suite is a tranquil hideaway; the daughter’s room expresses soft curves and pastel hues; while the son’s space merges function and solitude with a study nook that opens to the terrace. “This is where the family finds their quietest, most personal moments,” says Arora. “Each space is a true reflection of who they are.” A meditation room offers a quiet escape, while the terrace becomes a gathering point under the open sky – a platform for reflection and shared moments. What distinguishes Maurpankhi further is its curated material palette. Walls finished with limewash exude a soft, tactile beauty, while the overall color scheme leans into neutral, earthy tones that soothe the senses. The use of natural and time-responsive materials is deliberate, reinforcing the idea that the house isn’t static – it transforms with the people inside. For more information on House & Beyond, visit houseandbeyond.co.in or on Instagram. Photography by TakeIn Studios.