Also in today’s links: stolen feces, sacred stones, LaserPup, and more. Anything up there you’re curious about? Public voting is open to decide what the Hubble Telescope should point at next.Don’t you hate it when people steal your shit? Especially your scientifically significant feces? (We can call this a minor trend in Britain once we get a third instance.)In what may be the ultimate synergy of lasers, puppies, and the Internet, a man has built a ceiling-mounted, laser-powered, Internet-controlled device to entertain his dog....

Scientists analyzed the topography and chemical composition of the rugged landscape, which includes domes almost the height of Mount Everest. They determined that the area experienced multiple periods of ice volcanic activity that occurred fairly recently. The findings indicate that Pluto’s interior might be warmer, or better at retaining heat, than previously assumed, the researchers reported on March 29 in Nature Communications. “One big takeaway is that Pluto and [its moon] Charon and all these bodies in the outer solar system are not these cold, dead things,” says Steven Desch, a planetary scientist and astrophysicist at Arizona State University in Tempe who wasn’t involved with the new research....

There’s just one problem with the bushy-haired painter’s catchphrase: The accident itself isn’t what’s making happiness. We’re the ones who embrace the error and make something splendid happen—be it by turning a clumsy brushstroke into a peaceful stream or, somewhat famously, finding penicillin in neglected petri dishes. That’s why, as an adult and an editor, I’ve instead adopted the (admittedly cringeworthy) phrase “problem-tunity” for such events. Of course, that thinking applies to almost every story we’ve published here at PopSci in our nearly 150 years of existence....

Swimming on the Hot Side An elite team of nuclear divers are risking their lives to help save a troubled industry by David Goodwillie Did Global Warming Destroy My Hometown? Last May, a massive tornado leveled Joplin, Missouri. Was it chance, or a warning of things to come? by Seth Fletcher The Boy Who Played With Fusion Taylor Wilson always dreamed of creating a star. Now he’s become one by Tom Clynes...

Across the globe, the coronavirus pandemic is affecting almost all aspects of daily life. Travel is down; jobless claims are up; and small businesses are struggling. But not all businesses are experiencing a downturn. The world’s largest pornography website, Pornhub, has reported large increases in traffic—for instance, seeing an 18 percent jump over normal numbers after making its premium content free for 30 days for people who agree to stay home and wash their hands frequently....

The first thing to know about clippers is that different blade attachments guard against your hair being clipped any shorter—not longer—than their number. You can still keep your hair longer than the attachment, and in fact long hair (and even bangs) can be trimmed with clippers, though your mileage will vary depending on skill level and goals. This classic model has a 10-foot cord for maneuvering and includes a blade guard and size #000 (....

There was no particularly unique flaw to the Tesla that Joshua Brown, of Canton Ohio, was driving on May 7th, 2016. Brown, who recorded multiple YouTube videos praising his Tesla Model S and its autopilot system, died on the scene from injuries, after his car collided with a tractor trailer crossing the highway west of Williston, Florida. The Office of Defects Evaluation’s task was to see if there was a unique failure—perhaps a production error or faulty part—responsible for the death, and if so, to find the changes needed to prevent such a failure in the future....

If you don’t think roadkill can take a bite out of hunters’ opportunity, just ask Bruce Sterling. Since 1985, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks biologist has counted bighorn sheep that have been killed near Thompson Falls, where US Highway 200 and railroad tracks run between cliffs and a river for about 10 miles. Sterling has counted nearly 500 bighorn killed in collisions, 84 percent by cars and trucks, the rest by train....

The rocket carrying the robotic probe, called Luna-Glob, will be the first set off from Russia’s new Far East launchpad, the Vostochny cosmodrome. Last year, President Vladimir Putin pledged to pour $1 billion into the new launch site, located near China. The new launch site will wean Russia off its dependence on Kazakhstan’s Baikonur launch facility. Luna-Glob, the first of four planned Russian moon missions, will carry scientific equipment to take soil samples and look for water, according to AP reports....

Of course drones or satellites can also accomplish those tasks. But satellites especially can be much pricier than a plane, and they are just eyes: they cannot jam enemy radars, for example. Meanwhile, an AWACS—that stands for “airborne warning and control system”—can do that, thanks to the host of electronic warfare equipment it carries. The newest AWACS is called the GlobalEye. The plane itself is a Bombardier Global business jet, but Swedish defense company Saab has equipped it with an Erieye ER radar....

The Samsung M8 monitor’s design The Samsung M8 looks like a cousin of Apple’s 24-inch iMac or its high-end 27-inch Studio Display. It comes in four colors—warm white, spring green, sunset pink, and daylight blue, with the latter three colors costing you an extra $30. The front of the 16:9 UHD display includes small bezels and a thin display that make it as compact as possible for a display with this much screen real estate....

More than 100 years have passed since Cochrane revolutionized kitchen cleanup and got people hand-cranking their dishes clean. Now, other than the brainpower and Tetris skill you need to load the machine, you’ve only got to put some detergent in the soap compartment and press “start.” Sure, Cochrane’s invention saves you time, but you still have to buy detergent. Make your own dishwasher tablets, though, and you’ll save some money....

Compared with the more intractable problem of overfishing, technological solutions to bycatch abound.Bycatch ensnares coral, sponges, starfish, sharks, whales, turtles and even birds. It is “one of the more immediate threats that marine diversity faces,” Werner says. It has led to the assumed extinction of the Yangtze River dolphin, has nearly wiped out the Gulf of California’s vaquita porpoise (fewer than 200 remain), and threatens the survival of the North American right whale (400 remain) and the short-tailed albatross....

In 2020, the number of diesel emissions was equal to approximately 26 percent of the US transportation sector’s carbon emissions or about 9 percent of the country’s total energy-related carbon emissions. Not only will this transition reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but it will also minimize health risks associated with diesel exhaust, such as eye and nasal irritation, headache, and fatigue. Several places nationwide have already begun shifting away from diesel-powered school buses....

Riedel, an entomologist at the Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe in Germany, unveiled a whopping 103 new weevils that live in tropical mountain forests on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi in a study published Thursday in ZooKeys. Before this work, we only knew about one weevil on the island, described way back in 1885. The finding is welcome news. Entomologists are racing to catalog as many insect species as possible before they go extinct, which is happening at an alarming rate thanks to human influence on the planet....

Later this summer, the University at Buffalo’s Center for GeoHazards Studies will start a series of experiments not only melting rocks down into lava, but also causing explosions. Volcanologist Ingo Sonder and colleagues will be melting hundreds of gallons of basalt over the course of the late summer through the fall. That would be awesome enough–their neighboring institution, Syracuse, has done some amazing work with their own lava project. But the plan at Buffalo is to take the lava experiments one step further — merely by adding water....

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The flip side is that if you’re working from home, you are responsible for creating a work environment that lets you do your job, without the equipment your employer usually provides. You might be tempted to splurge on a good ergonomic chair and call it a day, but while that’s helpful, there’s a lot more to it. The study of workspace ergonomics is a broad field, but getting to know the basics will help you build a place where you can be both comfortable and productive....