Good Morning! 🌞

One of the articles below has one of those mind-bending optical illusions in it. I think I figured out a trick that I could use to get it right most of the time.

Let us know if you think you figured out a way to tell as well!

Science

Liver Rejuvenation

A new study in mice and human cell samples suggests it may be possible to reverse some aging damage and partially restore liver health. Researchers identified genes that cause ferroptosis, an iron-dependent type of cell death, in aging liver cells from both mice and humans. This cell death process also affects the heart, kidneys, and pancreatic islets.

The study focused on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), also known as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), which can cause liver scarring and lead to organ failure. Researchers found the same aging-related genetic signatures in liver cells from humans with obesity and NAFLD/MASLD, pointing to a potential target for drug therapy.

To test their hypothesis, they induced NAFLD/MASLD in young and old mice through diet, and some older mice received Ferrostatin-1 injections. The drug-treated older mice had liver cells that appeared young and healthy by the study’s end.

Published in Nature Aging, the study's authors hope their findings will lead to therapies for NAFLD/MASLD and other age-related diseases. They discovered that genes related to aging and disease are similarly upregulated in various human tissues, indicating a common molecular basis for tissue degeneration.

Anna Mae Diehl, MD, the study’s senior author, emphasized that aging can be at least partially reversible, noting that reducing ferroptosis-related stress can reverse liver damage. Muhammad Nadeem Aslam, MBBS, not involved in the study, highlighted the therapeutic potential of targeting iron metabolism, lipid metabolism, and the antioxidant defense system to combat ferroptosis.

Diehl optimistically compared the results to rejuvenating old mice’s livers despite an unhealthy diet, but Aslam cautioned that while inhibiting ferroptosis can mitigate conditions like fatty liver disease, inducing it may help treat liver cancer by killing harmful cells.

Entertainment

Mind-Bending Optical Illusion

A video of a black horse walking in white snowy field recently went viral. The reason why is because it is almost impossible to tell which direction the horse is walking.

If you don’t believe me, watch the video. You might be surprised.

Assuming that you have just watched it, could you tell which direction the horse was walking?

@rudniktheroan

There were a couple of times I genuinely didn’t know…

Culture

Meteor Shower Tonight… and More to Come

Watching a meteor shower is one of the most awe-inspiring ways to engage with the night sky. Meteor showers, often called “shooting stars,” occur when Earth’s orbit intersects with debris left by a comet or asteroid.

If you missed earlier meteor showers this year, don’t worry—there are still several major ones to come. In fact, the best meteor showers are yet to happen.

Meteor showers are best viewed with the naked eye because individual meteoroids move so quickly. Stargazing binoculars or a backyard telescope won’t help, though they are great for viewing planets, comets, and upcoming supermoons. The darker your sky, the more meteors you’ll see, so consider traveling to a less light-polluted area for the best experience. Here are the next two meteor showers, with tonight being the first peak viewing time.

Southern Delta Aquariids

The Delta Aquariid meteor shower lasts from July 18 to August 21, with the peak viewing on the night of July 29-30. The moon will be a waning crescent (23% full) and will rise around 1 a.m. EDT on the 30th, so moonlight won’t interfere much. Expect to see 15 to 20 meteors per hour.

Meteor showers are named after the constellation from which they appear to originate. To see the Delta Aquariids, look for the star Skat (Delta Aquarii) in the constellation Aquarius, which will be highest around 2 a.m. in any time zone.

The Perseids

Don’t miss the Perseid meteor shower, one of the most spectacular of the year. The Perseids run from July 14 to September 1, peaking on the night of August 11-12 with about 100 meteors per hour. The moon will be a waxing crescent (41% full) but will set before midnight EDT, so moonlight won’t be an issue. The Perseids’ radiant is in the constellation Perseus, which will reach its highest point around dawn. However, you don’t need to find the radiant to enjoy the show; the meteors will be visible across the entire sky.

If you are wondering how to find starts like Delta Aquarii, you can download a stargazing app like SkyView Lite and use that to locate the star or constellation.

Mind Stretchers 

⁉️ 

The answer to yesterday’s Mind Stretcher was:

Gerry Moore got the answer first!

Be the first to send us the correct answer for today’s mind stretcher for a shout-out with the answer tomorrow. Just send us the answer and your name to [email protected] or reply to this email.

If you have any uplifting stories and experience you might want to share, send those over to [email protected] for the chance to be featured.