WEIRD STUFF

Musk wants to put man on Mars

Rocket launches could be scrapped in a bid to find aliens.

Elon Musk has asked US President Donald Trump to use his SpaceX rockets to put a man on Mars, meaning NASA could then use its resources to hunt for the extraterrestrial creatures.

Dr Thomas Zurbuchen, a member of NASA's science mission directorate, said it is "prepared" to use the "powerful tools of scientific discovery" to help its quest.

He said: "We will explore the unknown.

"We have the tools and teams who can help us improve our understanding of the unknown, and we are prepared to use these powerful tools of scientific discovery.

"Part of our task is not only to do fundamental research, but to find life elsewhere."

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Nude art warning sparks outrage

The University of Roehampton has been slammed for slapping a trigger warning on one of history's most famous masterpieces -- Sandro Botticelli's The Birth of Venus.

Students at the London university were cautioned that the 15th-century painting might expose them to "some images of nudity", sparking a storm of criticism from art experts, who say the move borders on "artistic illiteracy".

The renowned work, which portrays the naked goddess Venus gracefully arriving at the shore, is now at the centre of a heated debate.

Michael Daley, director of Artwatch UK, didn't hold back, calling the decision "preposterous and pernicious". He fumed, "What kind of young adult university student might not be expecting to encounter nude figures in Western classical art?"

Frank Furedi, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent, went even further, ridiculing the warning: "If you imagine that the nudity in Middle Age and Renaissance art requires a content warning, then no doubt you will find the sight of a can of beans triggering."

He also warned of a deeper problem, adding, "One of the downsides of this exercise in artistic illiteracy is that it may distract students from fully engaging with the unique aesthetic experience of Renaissance art."

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Bilinguals may resist dementia longer

Learning a second language can help reduce the risk of getting dementia.

Natalie Phillips, from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, told New Scientist that being bilingual makes the size of the brain bigger.

She also highlighted that being able to speak a foreign language can make people's brains more efficient and adaptable.

If the brain reduces in size due to the degenerative condition -- which causes a decline in thinking, memory, and reasoning skills -- it can find different ways to gain the same information.

The MRI Imaging research showed if someone has a bigger brain reserve, it can cause more damage before reaching the point at which dementia is triggered.

Researchers believe the change between the native and learned languages can improve the strength of the brain's executive functions, which cause people to make decisions, plan things and pay attention.

Ellen Bialystok, from York University in Toronto, is quoted by New Scientist as saying: "It doesn't prevent dementia, it holds back the flood.

"When bilingual people eventually show cognitive problems, they decline faster, but it starts later.

"Imagine what families could do with that extra time."