This week’s heat wave might become the new norm

Plus, how does water freeze? (Hint: Not during a heat wave.) Not working with the best OS? Let’s fix that »]( [StackSkills]( [Advertise]( | [Talk To Us](mailto:letschat@getthefuturist.com) | [Shop]( | [Unsubscribe]( [The Futurist is your daily tech, cosmic, and science (both weird or otherwise) newsletter with articles and content curated just for you.]( [Love The Futurist? Forward to a friend and have them sign up here!]( [/yikes] [Why this week’s heat wave could be next summer’s normal | The Hill]( [Why this week’s heat wave could be next summer’s normal]( “A broad swath of the Midwest and eastern U.S. were under a heat dome this week, caused by a high-pressure system in the Earth’s upper atmosphere that compresses the air beneath it, making it expand into a dome shape. Research published in March in the journal Science Advances found that since 1979, as climate change has intensified, heat waves have gotten hotter and more commonplace, and the physical area covered by heat domes has expanded as well. They’ve also slowed down by about 20%, leaving the people in their paths to contend with their effects longer.” [// The Hill »]( [/hustle] [StackSocial - Was this written by AI? | [Partner]]( [Was this written by AI?]( Maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t. But you wouldn’t be able to tell, would you? That’s the power that ultra-intelligent AI bots have on our world today. And if you’re not one of the people using them to your advantage, you’re simply wasting your time performing simple, menial tasks. Start automating your life — from the work you do to your everyday routine — with a crash course in all things AI and automation. [Ad] [// Learn AI »]( [/cosmos] [The asteroid that will get closer to Earth than any in human history | Forbes]( [The asteroid that will get closer to Earth than any in human history]( “Friday the 13th may be considered an unlucky day, but at 5:45 EDT (11:45 CEST) on Friday, April 13, 2029, it will prove the exact opposite when an asteroid of ‘dinosaur killer’ size passes safely past Earth. Everyone will be watching. Asteroid Apophis is, at about 1,230 feet across, larger than 90% of space rocks. It will pass just 19,635 miles from Earth’s surface, the closest approach of an asteroid of this size that humankind has ever experienced. It will pass between Earth’s geostationary satellites and the Atlantic Ocean, just a tenth of the distance between Earth and the Moon.” [// Forbes »]( [/biz] [Apple’s failures show the limits of its ambition | Macworld]( [Apple’s failures show the limits of its ambition]( “Apple is a colossus. Some of us might remember back when it was doomed and nearly bankrupt, but these days, it generates hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue every day and has a market capitalization of more than three trillion dollars. And yet even the most powerful companies are fallible. Often, they have a hubris that suggests that their success in one area means they can easily extend it to others — often with disastrous results. This week, Apple got another reminder that even its mighty power might not be able to make it succeed at all its ambitions. Don’t be embarrassed, Apple. Even the world’s most beautiful models still get pimples from time to time.” [// Macworld »]( [/discover] [StackSocial - Costco is more than hot dogs and cookies (but those are pretty good, too) | [Partner]]( [Costco is more than hot dogs and cookies (but those are pretty good, too)]( Imagine a magical shopping experience where you go to a single store and find everything you need in one go: all the groceries for your upcoming BBQ, new summer gear and home goods, electronics, you name it. As a Costco Gold Star Member, you can get it all under one roof — and you can get it at a great value, too. And when you’re done shopping, there’s that beloved food court waiting for you with their legendary $1.50 hot dogs and those new chocolate chunk cookies that you just can’t say no to. Join today and get a $20 Digital Costco Shop Card* that you can use online or in-store. [Ad] [// Become a Gold Star Member »]( [/curious] [The enduring mystery of how water freezes | Quanta Magazine]( [The enduring mystery of how water freezes]( “Freezing usually doesn’t happen right at zero degrees for much the same reason that backyard wood piles don’t spontaneously combust. To get started, fire needs a spark. And ice needs a nucleus — a seed of ice around which more and more water molecules arrange themselves into a crystal structure. The formation of these seeds is called ice nucleation. Nucleation is so slow for pure water at zero degrees that it might as well not happen at all. But in nature, impurities provide surfaces for nucleation, and these impurities can drastically change how quickly and at what temperature ice forms. For a process that’s anything but exotic, ice nucleation remains surprisingly mysterious.” [// Quanta Magazine »]( [/lifehack] [How to turn your smartphone into a wellness hub | StackSocial]( [How to turn your smartphone into a wellness hub]( The magical little glowing box that you’re probably reading this newsletter from is a source of both good and evil in the world. Too often, we’re told horror stories about how the notorious blue light rays are destroying our eyeballs or how younger generations are so digital they don’t know how to perform simple tasks anymore. And it’s true that we’ve become reliant on our phones — but it doesn’t have to be entirely a bad thing. Once you weed through the noise of weird TikTok dances and trends, you’ll find a lot of apps that can turn your phone from a doomscrolling machine to a hub for mindfulness. [// StackSocial »]( [/bites] Still reeling from this week’s heat wave? Stay cool with a 3-in-1 air cooler, humidifier, and fan. For less than $100, it’s a small investment your future sweaty self will thank you endlessly for »]( [// Being a karate green belt is cool. Being a Six Sigma green belt is even cooler. And way more practical and employable »]( $90 can turn your old wheels into — well, not a Tesla, but — an old set of wheels with a really cool touchscreen dash display like the ones you’d see in a Tesla »]( [/whoa] [@firstclassspace on Instagram]( [@firstclassspace]( Interested in having one of your social posts featured in The Futurist? [// Get in touch »](mailto:letschat@getthefuturist.com) Powered by StackCommerce 73 Market Street | Venice, CA 90291 Copyright © 2023 StackCommerce All rights reserved [Unsubscribe.]( [View this email in your browser.]( *To receive a Digital Costco Shop Card, you must provide a valid email address at the time of sign-up. If you elect not to provide a valid email address, a Digital Costco Shop Card will not be emailed. Valid only for nonmembers for their first year of membership. Limit one per household. Nontransferable and may not be combined with any other promotion. New members will receive their Digital Costco Shop Card by email within 2 weeks of sign-up. Costco Shop Cards are not redeemable for cash, except as required by law. Digital Costco Shop Cards are not accepted at Gas Stations, Car Washes, or Food Court Kiosks. A Costco membership is $60 a year. An Executive Membership is an additional $60 upgrade fee a year. Each membership includes one free Household Card. May be subject to sales tax. Costco accepts all Visa cards, as well as cash, checks, debit/ATM cards, EBT and Costco Shop Cards. Departments and product selection may vary.