NUGGET (25 JULY 2025)
Nuggets! (Bite size updates on the real important stuff related to Tech, Trends, Business and the Planet.)
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THIS PICTURE IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK.
There is a black fungus called Cladosporium sphaerospermum, apparently thriving in the radioactive environment of Chernobyl (a place on my bucket list to still visit).
It’s there chomping away on gamma radiation and potentially helping to heal the area we humans destroyed! This extremophile uses melanin to convert radiation into energy through a process called radiosynthesis, allowing it to survive and grow in highly radioactive conditions.
SOME NEWS ON CHIPS
Researchers from Boston University, UC Berkeley, and Northwestern University have developed the world’s very first silicon chip integrating electronic, photonic, and quantum components to create a scalable “quantum light factory.”
What is a quantum light factory? Excellent question. I think it’s just the nerdy phrase they have decided to give this innovation.
This new silicon chip is made using standard 45-nanometer CMOS technology, but the chip contains twelve active quantum light sources—microring resonators—that generate correlated photon pairs essential for quantum computing, communication, and sensing.
These sources are stabilized in real-time through integrated photodiodes, heaters, and control electronics, enabling the chip to maintain synchronization despite temperature fluctuations and fabrication variations.
What does this mean to you and me?
Well, their invention demonstrates a big step towards scalable, controllable quantum systems within commercial semiconductor platforms, paving the way for advanced quantum technologies. What will those mean for us? So much! The point is that we appear to have made another step in the right direction.
NOT YOUR FACE!
How bizarre is the notion that we don’t have protective legal rights over our image—face or body—or our voice?
Well, that’s the reality, as most nations just don’t have legislation in place for this. But… the winds of change are blowing, and Denmark is set to become the first European country to grant individuals copyright over such things!
This, you can imagine, could be extremely helpful in combating the rise of AI-generated deepfakes.
Denmark’s copyright laws will allow us mortals to claim legal ownership of our appearance and voice and challenge the unauthorized use of our likeness in deepfakes or synthetic media without our consent.
For the influencer marketing industry, this law could redefine digital rights, protecting creators from unauthorized use of their likeness. Very interestingly (for me anyway), tech platforms might face fines for non-compliance.
BOY OR GIRL?
That is the question.
A recent study I learned about this month revealed that families with multiple children of the same sex are more likely to continue having children of that sex, with a 61% chance the next child in a family with three boys is also male, and a 58% chance for families with three girls.
The research also shared that maternal age influences these patterns; women over 29 are slightly more likely to have children of the same sex, possibly due to changes in vaginal pH affecting sperm success.
Additionally, genetic analysis identified specific variants in genes on chromosomes 10 and 18 that are associated with having only girls or only boys, respectively.
Overall, both genetic and maternal factors appear to influence the sex of offspring more than previously thought.
You can learn more here: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-02244-z
DROPS OF AIR.
Can we make water from our solar panels?
Solar panels are known for generating electricity, but I have just learned of one that can apparently make water!
MIT has announced a simple, passive water-harvesting device resembling a black window panel that draws clean drinking water from dry desert air using natural processes, without electricity or complex infrastructure.
Their device features an origami-inspired hydrogel that absorbs moisture at night and releases it as vapor during sunlight, which then condenses into drinkable water, neutralizing salts in the process. It has been tested in extreme conditions like Death Valley and is reported to be able to produce over 160 milliliters (roughly two-thirds of a standard glass) of water daily per panel.
I wonder what it will cost to purchase…
BEFORE IT’S GONE!
I want to share a short video about Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS.
Pity that it’s traveling at 68 kilometres per second! Imagine what we could learn from this particular comet if we managed to get a sample!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awgQkVobjug
NOT FAT?
Ever hear the saying “I’m not fat, just big-boned”?
Well, it turns out bones are fatty, and our ancestors used bones (not ours) for their fat needs. Learn more here:
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-02104-w
A GLOWING DISCOVERY!
Some clever scientists from Algoma University in Ontario have discovered that the human brain emits ultra-weak photon emissions (UPEs), very faint traces of visible light, as it metabolizes energy. UPEs might enable non-invasive detection of brain tumors, lesions, and injuries, offering an alternative to PET and MRI scans. The discovery suggests that when you have a brilliant idea, your brain quite literally lights up. How cool is that!
SOMETHING GOOD!
Some great environmental news to share! Haarwegskloof, in the Overberg, has been designated as a provincial nature reserve! It will safeguard the last remaining connected area of renosterveld globally. Our future thinkers and champions come from the Overberg Renosterveld Trust and WWF South Africa, and I thank them!
This reserve covers 547 hectares and protects critically endangered Eastern Rûens Shale Renosterveld. It also hosts diverse endemic plants, threatened birds like the Black Harrier and Cape Vulture, and secretive mammals such as aardwolf and aardvark.
WHAT THE QUANTUM!
I keep talking about quantum, but what is it? Here are just a few quick cheat notes.
Quantum technologies have the potential to significantly impact various fields. In energy management, quantum tools could enhance renewable energy systems by optimizing power flows and improving grid monitoring and security.
In healthcare, quantum sensors may revolutionize diagnostics, medical imaging, drug discovery, and operational efficiency.
In civil engineering, quantum sensors like gravity gradient detectors could improve subsurface imaging, supporting construction efforts and overcoming limitations of traditional methods. The development of a quantum internet based on entanglement aims to enable ultra-secure communications, distributed computing, and sensing capabilities.
In computational mechanics, quantum algorithms—including gate-based and annealing methods—are being used in structural design, materials science, fluid dynamics, and optimization.
The quantum computing industry is making progress toward reliable, large-scale quantum computers, primarily through advanced error correction techniques.
What does this mean for you and me? Well, job creation, I hope. There are many future jobs waiting to be filled.
QUANTUM INTERNET?
Heard of it? Most haven’t. It’s next generation, and to be honest, many South Africans just want to get proper feedback from their ISP with our regular connection. However, we do need to start pondering this next-generation internet—a communication network that uses the principles of quantum mechanics to transmit information more securely than ever before! Unlike our current classical internet, which relies on bits (0s and 1s), the quantum internet is meant to use quantum bits, or qubits, which can exist in multiple states simultaneously due to superposition. Superposition is also a very cool concept to learn about, but what you need to know in the context of this ‘new internet’ is that superposition will enable ultra-secure communication through techniques like quantum key distribution, making it theoretically impossible for cyber scoundrels to intercept messages without detection. (I hope this tech does not come with quantum Bills)
DID YOU KNOW?
On average, scientists discover approximately 15,000 to 20,000 new species each year—animals, insects, microorganisms, fungi, and other life forms.
Recently, two new sea slug species, Phyllidia ovata and Phyllidia fontjei, have been scientifically ‘discovered’ and duly described. Phyllidia ovata is named for its egg-like appearance and has been photographed in Asia-Pacific waters for over 23 years but only now officially identified. Phyllidia fontjei honours late researcher Dr. Fontje Kaligis and is an elusive species found mainly in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Andaman Sea.
The End!
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Who is Jean-Pierre Murray-Kline?
Jean-Pierre is a South African serial e-entrepreneur, published author, and change champion who has worked in over 300 types of industries in some capacity or another. His own online businesses have generated millions of Rands and involved sectors such as law, web & app development, events & entertainment, property, technical services, media, and tourism.
He has traveled to over 180 cities worldwide and is extremely active as a business and environmental technologist. In addition to his own projects, he researches and consults on all things online: marketing, reputation, compliance, law, and e-security, and also offers strategy workshops and scenario sessions on future thinking with a key focus on technology, the environment, and global influences.
Jean-Pierre is often asked to be a guest speaker on a variety of subjects he continuously studies and writes about.
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