Spacesuits with ‘take me home’ buttons!

In science fiction movies, we frequently see accidents that cause astronauts to float away into space. Though this has yet to happen in the real world, it is a risk every astronaut is well-aware of when embarking on a spacewalk or Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA).

To prevent the nightmare scenario, space explorers are not only tethered to the spacecraft but also fitted with a backup safety kit; dubbed Simplified Aid For EVA Rescue (SAFER), the “life jacket,” which is worn like a backpack, contains a bottle of pressurised nitrogen and tiny thrusters.

In the unlikely event that an astronaut gets untethered, he/she can use the joy-stick-like controller attached to the front of the spacesuit to return to the spacecraft. The only drawback is that SAFER is manually operated, so of no use if the astronaut becomes unconscious, gets injured, or is simply too panicked to navigate back.

To solve the problem, the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, is working with Nasa to create an application to automate SAFER.

The world’s hairiest person

A man whose body and face is almost completely covered in hair now proudly boasts the accolade of being the ‘world’s hairiest man’, after years of ridicule and bullying .

Born with the incredibly rare disorder, hypertrichosis, Larry Gomez, of San Bernardino, California, has been nicknamed the ‘Wolf Man’, thanks to 98 percent of his body — including his face — being coated by thick, dark hair.

The disorder affects less than 100 people worldwide, and ‘Wolf Man’ Larry – whose real name is Victor — has finally learned to embrace his difference, as he now proudly boasts his status as the world’s hairiest man.

Urging others to look beyond appearances and get to know the person beneath, Larry is hoping to use his story to inspire others to be confident in their own skin.

‘First Brit’ had ‘dark to black skin’!

Britain’s oldest complete skeleton known as Cheddar Man, was unearthed more than a century ago in Gough’s Cave in Somerset.

But an unprecedented examination of his DNA, along with a facial reconstruction of the fossil, shows that the young man would have had a darker complexion than previously thought, along with blue eyes and dark, curly hair and the features as well make him not the same as people we see in Britain today.

Cheddar Man, thought to have died in his twenties and had a relatively good diet, lived in Britain when it was almost completely depopulated. Although previous populations had settled in Britain long before his arrival, they were wiped out before him and he marked the start of continuous habitation on the island. Genetically, he belonged to a group of people known as the ‘Western Hunter-Gatherers’, Mesolithic-era individuals from Spain, Hungary and Luxembourg.

His ancestors migrated to Europe from the Middle East after the Ice Age and today, 10 percent of white British people are descended from the group.

Camping on water

If you love camping and water, then you are definitely going to love the recently-unveiled Shoal tent, which, the manufacturer boasts, will allow outdoor aficionados to “sleep under the stars, on the water.” The world’s first floating tent is the brainchild of Ohio-based SmithFly, makers of high-quality and innovative camping gear.

The temporary abode can be set up on any calm stretch of water, including lakes, farm ponds, saltwater flats, spring creeks, and even river eddies. Measuring eight feet long by eight feet wide, it can comfortably sleep two campers and withstand heavy winds and rain.

The Shoal tent is not pitched, but inflated using a foot pump. When deflated, it fits inside an easy-to-carry “burrito roll” style storage bag.

Published in Dawn, Young World, March 3rd, 2018