The mineral assets of Ukraine was one Key factor in the negotiations With the United States, since the two countries carry out details for a ceasefire agreement in the Ukraine war with Russia.

After a rocky start for these negotiations from the USA and Ukraine terminated an agreement On March 11, 2025. with some conditionsAnd both agreed to work on a “comprehensive agreement on the development of the critical mineral resources of Ukraine to expand the economy of Ukraine and to ensure the long -term security of Ukraine”.

The first announcement of the Ukrainian government included that critical minerals also “compensate for the costs of American support”, but this line was removed from the joint announcement. The next step would be to get Russia to agree with an armistice.

There is no doubt that Ukraine has a wealth of critical minerals or that these resources will be essential for reconstruction after the war. But what exactly do these resources include and how plentiful and accessible are they?

The war has severely restricted access to data on the natural resources of Ukraine. However, as a Geoscientist With the experience in resource evaluation, I have read technical reports, many of which behind Paywalls to understand what is up to. We know the following.

Ukraine Minerals Fuel Industries and Militars

Ukraine’s mineral resources concentrate on Two geological provinces. The larger of these, known as the Ukrainian shield, is a large belt that leads through the center of the country from the northwest to southeast. It consists of very old, metamorphic and granite rocks.

A billion -year history of the fault movement and the volcanic activity led to a variety of minerals that focused on local locations and in some larger regions.

A second province near the Ukrainian border with Russia in the east comprises a Rift basin, which is known as a Dnipro donets depression. It is filled with sediment stones that contain coal, oil and natural gas.

Before Independence of Ukraine In 1991, both areas provided the Soviet Union with materials for their industrialization and military. In the southeast, a massive industrial area grew that focused on steel production, where iron, manganese and coal are particularly abundant.

In the 2000s the Ukraine A was significant producer and exporter of this and other minerals. It too Mines uraniumused for nuclear energy.

In addition, Soviet and Ukrainian geoscientists identified deposits of lithium and rare earth metals that remain undeveloped.

However, technical reports indicate that evaluations of this and some other critical minerals Outdated geological dataThe A significant number of mines is inactive Because of the war and so many people deal older, inefficient technology.

This indicates that critical mineral production could be increased from foreign investments through peace times and that these minerals could still offer a higher value than today, whoever controls them.

Why the United States is so interested

Critical minerals Are defined as resources that are essential for economic or national security and are subject to the supply risks. This includes minerals used in military devices, computers, batteries and many other products.

A List of 50 critical mineralsCreated with the US Geological Survey shows that there are more than a dozen of the USA in Ukraine.

Much of it is located in the Ukrainian sign, and around 20% of the total possible reserves of Ukraine are located in areas that are currently occupied by the Russian armed forces.

Critical minerals Ukraine currently mines

Three critical minerals that are particularly abundant in Ukraine are manganese, titanium and graphite. Between 80% and 100% of the US demand for each of these is currently comes from foreign imports..

Manganese is an essential element for steel production and the batteries. It is estimated that Ukraine has the largest total reserves in the world with 2.4 billion tons. However, the deposits are of a fairly low grade – only 11% to 35% of the mined rock are manganese. Therefore, it usually requires a lot of material and expensive workmanship, which increases the total costs.

This also applies to graphite that is used in battery electrodes and A variety of industrial applications. Graphite occurs in ore bodies in the southern center and northwestern part of the Ukrainian shield. At least six deposits were identified there, with a total of 343 million tons of ore identifying 18.6 million tons of actual graphite. It is the largest source in Europe and that Fifth largest worldwide.

Titanium, a key metal for aerospace, ship and rocket technology, is available at up to 28 locations in Ukraine, both in hard rock and sand or gravel deposits. The size of the total reserve is confidential, but are estimates often in hundreds of millions of tons.

However, a number of other critical minerals used in semiconductor and battery technologies are less present in Ukraine, but are also valuable. Zinc appears in deposits with other metals such as lead, gold, silver and copper. Gallium and Germanium are by -products from other ores – zinc for gallium, coal for Germanium. Nickel and cobalt can be found in Ultramafic Rock, whereby Nickel is rich.

At the beginning of 2025, no figures were available for the reserves of these elements of Ukraine, with the exception of zinc, the reserves of which were estimated at around 6.1 million tons, which brought Ukraine to the top 10 nations.

Critical minerals that are not yet dismantled –

Geologists have potentially identified significant volumes in Ukraine of three other types of critical minerals that are important for energy, military and other uses: lithium, rare -dated metals and scandium.

None of them had been dismantled there in early 2025, although a lithium deposit was licensed For commercial extraction.

The greatest potential lithium reserves exist at three locations in the southern centers and southeastern Ukrainian shield, where ore quality is considered moderate to good. How much lithium these reserves keep remains confidential, but technical reports indicate that it lies in the order of 160 million tons and 1.6 million to 3 million tons of lithium oxide. If most of it could be restored in a profitable way, Ukraine would bring this to the top 5 nations for lithium.

Smaller volumes of Tantal and NiobThese reserves were also identified in steel alloys and technology. Most of the Ukrainian lithium appear as a petalite, which, in contrast to the other main lithium -Mineral, requires more expensive processing.

It is known that rare elements exist in Ukraine At several locations of the volcanic origin and in connection with uranium in the southern central part of the Ukrainian shield. These have not been developed, although the sampling at some locations has reported commercial potential, while other locations appear less viable.

Rare earth elements that are available in different quantities in these areas according to superior magnets and electronics – neodymium, praseodym, terbium and dyprosium. Other critical minerals are associated with these deposits, especially zirconium, tantalum and niob, in indefinite, but potentially significant amounts.

Finally, Scandium, which is used in aluminum alloys for aerospace components, was identified as a by-product of the processing of titanism. The Scandium of Ukraine does not seem to have been examined in detail in order to evaluate its commercial potential. However, world production, about 30 to 40 tons per year, is Forecast to grow quickly.

Mineral future of Ukraine

It is clear that Ukraine is equipped with valuable resources. However, the extraction requires roads and railways for access, infrastructure such as electricity and mining and processing technology, investments, technical expertise, environmental considerations and, above all, the termination of military conflicts.

These are the real determinants of the future promotion of Ukraine.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., of whom is predicted Rapese oil and soybean oil are poisonous.

T-shirts which can be sold by its “Make America Healthy Novt” campaign now include the slogan.Make frying oil again” – An indication of the standard use of rendered beef fat for cooking.

Sana oils have turn into a predominant support of the American food plan saturated fats that increase levels of cholesterolSeed oils contain unsaturated fats that may lower levels of cholesterol. Theoretically, because of this it’s best to reduce the chance of heart disease.

However, studies show that different seed oils have different effects At risk of heart disease. In addition, seed oils were also shown Increase the chance of migraines. This might be as a consequence of their high omega-6 fatty acids. These fats can increase inflammationAn increased and potentially harmful activation of the immune system.

As a General practitioner with a Ph.D. in nutritionI translate the newest dietary science in dietary recommendations for my patients. When it involves seed oils, research shows that their health effects are more nuanced than headlines and social media contributions.

How seed oils have infiltrated the American food plan

Seed oils – often confused as a “vegetable oil” – are, because the name suggests, oils which can be extracted from the seeds of plants. This is different from olive oil and coconut oil, which come from fruits. People who decipher their widespread use often often consult with the “Hasser -filled eight “top -seed oil offender: Canola, corn, soybeans, cotton seeds, grapes, sunflowers, saflor and rice gear oil.

These oils entered after the invention of the Mechanical screw press In 1888 it made it possible to extract oil from seeds in quantities which have never been possible.

Between 1909 and 1999 the US consumption of soybean oil Increased 1,000 times. This shift Basically our biological make -up modified. Due to the increased seed oil absorption, up to now 50 years the concentration of omega-6 fatty acids that the Americans carry around of their adipose tissue has increased by 136%

Evaluation of the omega-6-zu-omega-3 fatty acid ratio

Omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are essential nutrients that control inflammation. While Omega-6s are likely to produce molecules that increase you increase omega-3 tendency to supply molecules that weaken you. Until recently, People generally ate the identical quantities From omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. However, this relationship modified up to now century. Today people eat 15 times more omega-6s than Omega-3S, partly to Increased consumption of seed oils.

Theoretically, seed oils could cause health problems because they contain a high absolute amount of omega-6 fatty acids and a high ratio of omega-6 to Omega-3. Studies have associated an increased ratio of omega-6 to Omega-3 with a wide selection of diseases, including Mood disordersPresent Knee painPresent Back painPresent Menstrual pain and evenly Premature birth. Omega-6 fatty acids were also involved within the Processes that drive colon cancer.

The absolute omega-6 level and the omega-6-to-omega-3 ratio in numerous seed oils Vary enormously. For example, Saflor oil and sunflower oil have a ratio of 125: 1 and 91: 1. The ratio of corn oil is 50: 1. In the meantime, soybean oil and rapeseed oil with 8: 1 and a pair of: 1 are lower conditions.

Have scientists Genetic modification used Have seed oils corresponding to high olive acid rapeseed oil with a lower ratio of omega-6 to three. The health advantages of those biogenered oils continues to be being studied.

The result on inflammatory and health risks

Part of the controversy around seed oils is that studies to look at their inflammatory effect led to mixed results. A meta -analysis synthesizes the consequences of seed oils on 11 inflammatory markers largely showed no effects -with the exception of an inflammatory signal that was significantly increased in humans with the best omega-6 recordings.

In order to make things harder, genetics also play a task within the potential for inflammation of seed oils. People of African, native And Latino border are likely to metabolize omega-6 fatty acids faster, which may increase Inflammatory effect Consume seed oils. Scientists still don’t fully understand how genetics and other aspects can influence the health effects of those oils.

The effect of various seed oils on the guts cycle risk

A review of seven randomized controlled studies showed that the effect of Seed oils at the chance of heart attacks Vary depending on the variety of seed oil.

This was confirmed by data that rose from tapes that rose within the basement of a researcher who carried out the biggest and strictly executed food plan within the Seventies, which examined the substitute of saturated fat by seed oils. In this work, the substitute of saturated fats corresponding to beef talg at all times lowers the cholesterol level through seed oils, but but It doesn’t at all times reduce the chance of death from heart disease.

Taken together, these studies show that when saturated fats corresponding to beef valley are replaced by seed oils, which have lower omega-6-to-omega-3 conditions corresponding to soybean oil, the chance of heart attacks and death causes heart diseases. However, if saturated fats are replaced by seed oils with the next omega-6-to-OMEGA-3 ratio of how corn oil, the chance of death causes heart disease.

Interestingly, probably the most ceaselessly bought seed oil within the United States is soybean oil that A has a cheaper omega-6-to-3 ratio From 8: 1 – and studies show that that is the case lower the chance of heart disease.

However, seed oils with less favorable conditions corresponding to corn oil and saflor oil might be present in countless processed foods, including potato chips, frozen dinner and packaged desserts. Nevertheless, other features of those foods make them unhealthy along with their seed oil content.

The case for migraines – and beyond

A strict randomized controlled study of the gold standard for clinical evidence that diets in omega-3 fatty acids and fatty acids of omega-6 fatty acids were low, due to this fact low and low in seed oils, which significantly reduced the seed oils Migraine risk

In the study, individuals who rose their consumption of omega-3 fatty acids through the food of fat fish corresponding to salmon had a mean of two migraines per 30 days than usual, even in the event that they didn’t change their omega-6 consumption. However, in the event that they reduced their omega-6 recording by switching off corn oil against olive oil and at the identical time their omega-3 Four less migraines per 30 days.

That is a remarkable difference in the event you consider that The latest migraines Reduce the frequency of migraine by about two days a month in comparison with a placebo. Therefore, For migraine cartridges -1 out of 6 Americans reduction of the seed oils along with increasing omega-3 recording might be even simpler than currently available medication.

Overall, the drastic way of how omega-6 fatty acids have entered food and has fundamentally modified our biological composition. But the query of whether seed oils are good or bad just isn’t black and white. There is not any basis to conclude that the Americans can be healthier if we began again in beef -talg -tallow, but there may be an argument for careful consideration of the nuance that surrounds this oil and its potential effects.

Roy's Redwoods Preserve within the San Geronimo Valley has a wealthy history. Originally a ranch, the 293-acre area became a hippie community within the Sixties before being designated a nature reserve because the valley was developed within the Seventies. Most interestingly for popular culture lovers, it served because the filming location for the bizarre Nineteen Eighties “Star Wars” spinoff “Caravan of Courage: An Ewok Adventure” and is just a couple of miles from George Lucas' ranch. Previously, the character reserve was only accessible via a network of small, unofficial paths. However, this yr a system of recent trails was opened, making it much easier to traverse this small but densely forested nature reserve.

I arrived hoping to hike the newly constructed Boardwalk Trail, but after I arrived it was closed because of storm damage. Luckily, the Roy's Redwood Loop Trail was still open. This is a straightforward and moderately short loop that winds through varied landscapes without much elevation change. Despite its name, Roy's Redwood Loop Trail doesn’t undergo the redwood grove, but somewhat splits into several smaller trails that provide access to the redwoods. Horses and leashed dogs are allowed on this trail, but bicycles are usually not.

• Summary of the hike: Roy's Redwood Loop Trail is a 2.4-mile trail that follows Nicasio Valley Road and Sir Francis Drake Boulevard before heading inland through grasslands and redwood forests, ending a couple of hundred feet above the road where the trail began .

• Directions: Take Sir Francis Drake Boulevard to Nicasio Valley Road and travel north on Nicasio Valley Road for 0.4 miles. The trailhead is on the correct with a really distinguished roadside providing parking. There is a porta potty near the trailhead.

• The hike: The trail winds south, closely following the shoulder of Nicasio Valley Road. This section of the trail is generally gravel and may be muddy after rainfall. The trail turns left and begins following Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, which offers views of the San Geronimo Valley. This area just isn’t forested, apart from a brief section that passes under an overhanging branch arch and crosses a bridge over a stream. Some hikers report that they don't enjoy this a part of the hike because of the noise from the nearby road, but I didn't find it particularly bothersome.

Look out for excellent egrets hunting within the fields. Search the skies for red-tailed hawks, red-shouldered hawks, turkey vultures and other native birds of prey.

As I used to be mountaineering the loop, a tree branch had fallen on the trail, likely during a recent storm. Although the branch didn’t seriously impede the trail, it’s best understood as a warning to not travel this path during or soon after inclement weather.

Near a bridge over a stream, the trail is level and results in a ravishing clearing next to the sequoia grove. Look for trailheads for the David Hansen Trail and Mossy Rocks Trail, which lead into the grove and permit close reference to the nearly 300-year-old trees. Attentive bird watchers can spot pileated woodpeckers and blackcaps among the many leaves.

The trail ends on the intersection with Dickson Ridge Fire Road. Head downhill on Dickson Ridge Fire Road and after completing the loop you’ll almost immediately end up back on Nicasio Valley Road, a couple of hundred feet north of your place to begin. The side of the road is wide enough so that you can easily walk back to your automotive. Giaco's Valley Roadhouse in San Geronimo is an excellent option for a post-hike meal or drink.

Originally published: January 13, 2025 at 4:56 am PST

Every galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its center, very similar to every egg has a yolk. But sometimes chickens lay eggs with two yolks. In an identical way Astrophysicists like us who study supermassive black holes Expect to search out binary star systems – two supermassive black holes orbiting one another – at the center of some galaxies.

Black holes are regions of space where gravity is so strong that not even light can escape from their surroundings. They form when the core of an enormous star collapses, they usually act like cosmic vacuum cleaners. Supermassive black holes have a mass 1,000,000 times that of our Sun or greater. Scientists like us study them to know how gravity works and the way galaxies form.

Figuring out whether a galaxy has one or two black holes at its center isn't as easy as cracking open an egg and examining the yolk. But measuring how often these binary supermassive black holes form may also help researchers understand what happens to galaxies once they merge.

In a brand new study, our team combed through historical astronomical data dating back over 100 years. We searched for light emitted from a galaxy that showed signs of hosting a binary supermassive black hole system.

Galactic collisions and gravitational waves

Galaxies just like the Milky Way are almost as old because the universe. Sometimes, she collide with other galaxieswhich may cause the galaxies to merge and form a bigger, more massive galaxy.

The two black holes at the middle of the 2 merging galaxies could, if close enough, form a pair certain by gravity. This couple can live as much as lots of of tens of millions of years before the 2 black holes finally merge into one.

Binary black holes release energy in the shape of gravitational waves – ripples in space-time that specialized observatories can detect. According to Einstein General relativityThese waves travel on the speed of sunshine and cause the space around them to expand and contract, much like a wave.

Pulsar timing arrays Use pulsarsthese are the dense, shiny cores of collapsed stars. Pulsars spin in a short time. Researchers can search for gaps and anomalies within the pattern of radio waves emitted by these rotating pulsars to detect gravitational waves.

While pulsar timing arrays can detect the collective gravitational wave signal of the ensemble of binary star systems over the past 9 billion years, they will not be yet sensitive enough to detect the gravitational wave signal of a single binary star system in a galaxy. And even probably the most powerful telescopes cannot directly image these binary black holes. Therefore, astronomers must use clever indirect methods to search out out whether a galaxy has a binary supermassive black hole at its center.

Looking for signs of binary black holes

One kind of indirect method is to search for periodic signals from the centers of lively galaxies. These are galaxies that emit significantly more energy than astronomers would expect given the quantity of stars, gas and mud they contain.

These galaxies emit energy from their core or center – the so-called lively galactic nucleus. In a process called accretion, the black hole in any lively galaxy uses gravity to tug nearby gas inward. The gas accelerates because it approaches the black hole's event horizon – just as water surrounding a vortex moves faster and faster because it spirals inward.

As the gas heats up, it glows brightly in optical, ultraviolet and X-ray light. Active galactic nuclei are amongst probably the most luminous objects within the universe.

Some lively galactic nuclei can emit jets, that are beams of particles accelerated to close the speed of sunshine. When these jets line up with the road of sight of our observatories, they seem extremely shiny. They are like cosmic lighthouses.

Some lively galactic nuclei have periodic light signals that turn into shiny, fade, after which turn into shiny again. This unique signal could come from the cyclic motion of two supermassive black holes inside and suggests astronomers should seek for a binary black hole system on this galaxy.

Looking for a binary black hole system

Our team examined one such lively galactic nucleus, with the designation PG 1553+153. The light from this object becomes brighter and dimmer approximately every 2.2 years.

These periodic fluctuations suggest that PG 1553+153 accommodates a supermassive black hole binary star. But a binary shouldn’t be the one explanation for this variation. Other phenomena akin to wobbly jets or changes within the flow of fabric across the black hole could explain this pattern even without the presence of a binary black hole, so we needed to rule these out.

To understand whether the sunshine emission patterns of the PG 1553+153 system originate from a binary black hole, We simulated how Double supermassive black holes collect gas. Our models suggest that sometimes because the black holes suck in gas, dense clumps of gas accumulate around the skin of the opening.

We calculated that the time it takes for these clumps to orbit the 2 black holes must be five to 10 times longer than the time it takes for the 2 black holes to orbit one another.

So we finally had a transparent prediction that we could test. If a binary black hole system is causing the two.2-year periodic variation in PG 1553+153, then we must always also give you the option to see an extended pattern of variation, about every 10 to twenty years, because the clumps of gas across the Black holes orbit.

But to see if it really was a pattern, we had to look at it repeat itself for 4 to 5 cycles. For PG 1553+153 that may be 40 to 100 years.

Astronomers have observed the sky for lots of of years. But the era of digital astronomy, wherein astronomical images are recorded on computers and stored in databases, remains to be very young – only since across the yr 2000.

Before that, starting around 1850, astronomers recorded images of the sky on photographic plates. These are flat pieces of glass coated with a light-sensitive chemical layer traditionally utilized in photography. Many observatories world wide have photographic images of the night sky which are greater than 100 years old. Previously, astronomers sketched what the sky looked like of their notebooks.

Projects like DASCHDigital Access to a Sky Century at Harvard, have began digitization Photographic plates from some observatories to make them accessible to each scientists and non-scientists.

Our team learned that the DASCH database provided data on PG 1553+153 dating back to 1900 – greater than 120 years. We used this data set to see if we could discover a pattern that repeats itself every 10 to twenty years.

Something to our surprise, We found a 20-year pattern This is further evidence for our theory that there’s a binary system on the core of PG 1553+153. The discovery of this second pattern also helped us discover that the masses of the 2 supermassive black holes are in a ratio of two.5:1 – with one being two and a half times larger than the opposite – and that their orbits are nearly circular.

Although this historical data makes us more confident that there are two supermassive black holes in PG 1553+153, we still cannot say needless to say. Final confirmation could have to attend until the pulsar timing arrays are sensitive enough to detect the gravitational waves from PG 1553+153.

NASA plans to send manned missions to Mars in the following decade – however the 140 million miles (225 million kilometers) journey to the Red Planet The round trip can take several months to years.

This relatively long duration is on account of using conventional chemical rocket fuel. An alternative technology to the chemically powered rockets the agency is currently developing is known as nuclear thermal propulsion, which uses nuclear fission and will One day power a rocket This means the journey only takes half the time.

Nuclear fission utilizes the incredible amount of energy released when an atom is split by a neutron. The The response is known as a cleavage response. Fission technology is well established in power generation and nuclear-powered submarines, and its application to power or propel a rocket could sooner or later give NASA a faster and more powerful alternative to chemically powered rockets.

NASA and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency are joint development of NTP technology. They plan to deploy a prototype system into space and reveal its capabilities in 2027 – potentially making it one in all the primary of its kind to be built and operated by the US

Nuclear thermal propulsion could also sooner or later provide energy maneuverable space platforms that may protect American satellites out and in of Earth orbit. But the technology remains to be developing.

I’m a Associate Professor of Nuclear Engineering on the Georgia Institute of Technology whose Research group creates models and simulations to enhance and optimize designs for nuclear thermal propulsion systems. My hope and fervour is to assist develop the nuclear thermal propulsion engine that can enable a manned mission to Mars.

Nuclear versus chemical propulsion

Traditional chemical propulsion systems use a chemical response involving a lightweight fuel akin to hydrogen and an oxidizer. When these two mix together, they ignite, causing the fuel to come back out of the nozzle in a short time and power the rocket.

These systems don’t require an ignition system and are due to this fact reliable. However, these rockets need to move oxygen into space, which might put a strain on them. Unlike chemical propulsion systems, nuclear thermal propulsion systems depend on nuclear fission reactions to heat the fuel, which is then ejected from the nozzle to supply the propulsion force or thrust.

In many fission reactions, researchers send a neutron toward a lighter uranium isotopeUranium-235. The uranium absorbs the neutron and uranium-236 is created. The uranium-236 then breaks down into two fragments – the fission products – and various particles are released throughout the response.

More than 400 nuclear reactors in use worldwide currently use nuclear fission technology. Most of those nuclear reactors are in operation Light water reactors. These nuclear fission reactors use water to decelerate the neutrons and absorb and transfer heat. The water can produce steam directly within the core or in a steam generator that drives a turbine to generate electricity.

Nuclear thermal propulsion systems work in the same way, but use a distinct nuclear fuel that accommodates more uranium-235. They also work at significantly higher temperatures, which makes them extremely powerful and compact. Nuclear thermal propulsion systems have an influence density around ten times higher than a traditional light water reactor.

Nuclear propulsion could possibly be a step ahead of chemical propulsion just a few reasons.

A nuclear engine would eject and produce fuel in a short time from the engine's nozzle high thrust. This high thrust allows the rocket to speed up faster.

These systems even have a high specific impulse. Specific impulse measures how efficiently the fuel is used to generate thrust. Nuclear thermal propulsion systems have about twice the precise impulse as chemical rockets, meaning they may reduce travel time by an element of two.

History of Nuclear Thermal Propulsion

For many years, the U.S. government has funded the event of nuclear thermal propulsion technology. Between 1955 and 1973 programs were at NASA, General Electric And Argonne National Laboratories produced and tested 20 nuclear thermal propulsion engines.

But these pre-1973 designs relied on highly enriched uranium as fuel. For this reason, this fuel is not any longer used Dangers of proliferationor threats related to the proliferation of nuclear materials and technology.

The Global Threat Reduction Initiativelaunched by the Ministry of Energy and National Nuclear Safety Authoritygoals to convert most of the research reactors that use highly enriched uranium fuel to high sample low enriched uranium fuel (HALEU).

Compared to highly enriched uranium fuel, highly enriched, low enriched uranium fuel accommodates less material that may undergo a fission response. So the rockets need to be loaded with more HALEU fuel, which makes the engine heavier. To solve this problem, researchers are searching for special materials that might use the fuel in these reactors more efficiently.

NASA and the DARPAs Demonstration rocket for agile cislunar operationsThe program (DRACO) intends to make use of this low enriched, high content uranium fuel in its nuclear thermal propulsion engine. The program plans to launch its rocket in 2027.

As a part of the DRACO program, aerospace company Lockheed Martin has partnered with BWX Technologies Development of reactor and fuel designs.

The nuclear thermal propulsion engines under development by these groups must meet certain performance and safety standards. You need a core that’s operational in the course of the mission and might perform the essential maneuvers for a quick journey to Mars.

Ideally, the engine should have the ability to generate high specific impulse while meeting the necessities of high thrust and low engine mass.

Ongoing research

Before engineers can design an engine that meets all of those standards, they need to start with models and simulations. These models help researchers like those in my group understand how the engine would handle starting and shutting down. These are processes that require rapid, massive changes in temperature and pressure.

The nuclear thermal propulsion engine shall be different from any existing nuclear fission energy system, so engineers might want to develop software tools that work with this latest engine.

My group Designs and analyses Reactors with thermal nuclear propulsion based on models. We model these complex reactor systems to see how things like temperature changes can affect the reactor and the security of the rocket. However, simulating these effects can require a number of expensive computing power.

We worked on it develop latest computing tools This model shows how these reactors behave while they’re in operation Commissioning and operation without using up a lot computing power.

My colleagues and I hope that this research can sooner or later help develop models that might control the rocket autonomously.

LAS VEGAS – Four of the last five Stanley Cup-winning teams got here from states that don’t levy income taxes – and 7 of the last ten finalists.

These winning streaks by the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars have understandably sparked debate about whether the teams involved have an unfair advantage by signing players at below-market prices.

In many cases, players who sign up those states – Florida, Tennessee, Texas, Nevada and Washington are among the many states that impose no income tax apart from federal taxes – would lose thousands and thousands of dollars over the lifetime of their contracts in the event that they played north of the border or in high-income-tax states like California, New York, New Jersey and Minnesota.

The NHL is keeping track of the situation.

In a recent poll of fans, 84.6 percent of the 14,066 respondents said teams in states without income taxes have a bonus. Of those, 42.8 percent said changes should be made to level the playing field, 41.5 percent said the advantage just isn’t large enough to justify complex changes, and 14.7 percent said the problem is overblown.

“This topic comes up in our room from time to time at the board and general manager level,” NHL Vice President Bill Daly said on the NHL's European player media tour in Prague last month. “There are no easy solutions. It's not like we can just pick from column A and solve the problem overnight. Players choose where they want to play for a variety of reasons. Their financial gain is one of them, but the quality of life and the communities they live in are probably more important.”

Daly reiterated that sentiment Tuesday on the NHL's North American Players Media Tour in Las Vegas. He said while it's too early to say if that is a problem that should be addressed, he has spoken to the NHL Players Association concerning the issue and the consensus is that it will be too complicated to level the playing field.

For example, even when the league systematically adjusted the salary cap for teams in states without state income taxes, what would occur if a player was traded or sent to the minor leagues? And assuming a player is willing to sign a “hometown discount” contract that’s lower than he could have gotten elsewhere, how problematic wouldn’t it be to try to find out how much of a reduction he took?

The NHLPA doesn’t see this as a significant problem to this point. Executive Director Marty Walsh met with the 2 dozen players who took part within the media tour in Prague and explained that it’s a difficult problem to unravel and that it just isn’t considered a problem in other leagues.

As Daly said, “This is nothing new. It has always been there.”

However, some actors see a necessity for motion.

“They have to find a way to change that, frankly,” Ottawa Senators forward Shane Pinto said Tuesday. “When you look at all these free agents, you can't blame them for going south. It's the way it is, and it's best for their families, taxes and lifestyle. But I think they have to find a way, especially for the Canadian teams. They have to overpay guys every time to come to Canada, and that messes up the salary cap. I think they have to find a way to balance that out.”

“I know it's not easy, because it's always been that way, but I think it would be nice if everyone had equal opportunities.”

To be fair, few complained about Florida's lack of income tax when the Tampa Bay Lightning were doormats within the Nineteen Nineties. Few brought up the problem when the Florida Panthers didn’t make the playoffs from 2000 to 2011 and didn’t advance past the primary round from 1996 to 2022.

“I think every place has its advantages, whether it's lifestyle, and taxes are certainly a part of it,” said Nashville Predators star Filip Forsberg, whose team, with no state income tax, had a stellar summer by signing Juuse Saros to an eight-year extension and Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei to contracts totaling greater than $166 million. “At the end of the day, it makes quite a difference in our salary. That's a fair point. I don't disagree with that.

“It is above my pay grade to decide whether something is right or wrong.”

Defenseman MacKenzie Weegar signed an eight-year, $50 million contract with the Calgary Flames in 2022. He previously played in Florida and was signed alongside Jonathan Huberdeau in the Matthew Tkachuk blockbuster.

Alberta has a relatively low income tax rate compared to Canadian provinces. Still, on his current $6.25 million-a-year contract, Weegar would earn about $950,000 more if he were paid in Florida, according to the Turbo Tax and Smart Asset websites.

That doesn't bother him. But he would like it if the league and the players' union found a mechanism to create a balance in the next collective agreement.

“You definitely feel like there could be another people drawn to those teams down south,” Weegar said Wednesday. “So there could be something in the following CBA to work something out. But ultimately, the Tampas, Floridas and Nashvilles are winning teams. That's what really attracts people. When we start winning on the New Yorks and Calgary, no one really cares concerning the taxes.

“The contracts are big enough already. You don't really notice the taxes, not that much. You still live pretty comfortably. So I would say when you start winning, you'll get your guys to come and your free agents to want to play there.”

Just as Stamkos and Marchessault moved to Nashville from Tampa Bay and Las Vegas, respectively, defenseman Brandon Montour moved from one state with no income tax to a different. One day after celebrating winning the Stanley Cup during a parade on A1A in Fort Lauderdale, Montour signed a seven-year, $50 million contract with the Seattle Kraken.

He said taxes weren’t the essential reason for his decision.

“You can't say money isn't an issue,” Montour said Wednesday. “But for me, that wasn't what we were going for. We also had places with the highest taxes that we were considering. I've played in California. I've played in New York. Of course, the salary looks a little better when you're in Florida and Seattle. But that wasn't something we were focused on.”

“We tried to find something that fits our lifestyle and our family and that we can call home.”

Montour tried to know how the league and the union could handle the situation.

“What do you do, like take a percentage off the cap?” he said. “For example, if Florida signed someone for $10 million, would they take a percentage or 2 percent off the cap or something? I don't really know what they could possibly do.”

Montour said every player has different reasons for signing some other place, and there are lots of areas with high income taxes which can be attractive. He believes it's only a debate because these teams are in a cycle of winning.

“There are just too many variables that you can't really control,” Daly said, “including the fact that there are some markets that are very attractive to players and that have, so to speak, the highest tax rates in the world. But there are also other opportunities, other things that make these markets attractive to players.”

“So I think there's so much to consider when it comes to where a player wants to play and what he's willing to do to get there. And a lot of that has to do with team chemistry, how teams are put together and how the player positions himself in terms of the needs of the team. Taking all of those variables into account, I think, is going to be a very difficult task.

“However, there are after all rumors, particularly within the Canadian media, that Canadian franchises are at an obstacle. We take these rumors seriously and are at all times searching for ways to enhance the system. I just don't have any obvious answers to them.”

Daly was asked if he could envision a scenario where teams in Florida, Vegas, Nashville, Dallas or Seattle have a lower salary cap than other teams. He said, “I don't think we could ever have a distinct cap for various teams, although in some respects we do, by way of how the CBA works and bonus overages and things like that. So I suppose there's perhaps a formula that you might envision that way.”

“I have other ideas that I prefer to this one.”

When asked if he would share it, Daly laughed: “No.”

“Look, there are some rough ways you may attempt to make adjustments to account for this,” Daly said. “I don't think this issue is about attempting to push something through, especially without really pondering it through thoroughly and running it through all of the possible channels. I feel sometimes once you rush to do something based on talk, you sort of step right into a hole and the unintended consequences sort of come out.

“We'll continue to monitor it. If we can improve it, we will. I mean, I could be wrong. If the next 10 years go the way the last five have, then maybe that's something that needs to be addressed. But at this point, based on a couple of summers, I'm not really running to get there.”

For Radko Gudas, that’s superb.

The Anaheim Ducks defenseman pays 13 percent income tax in California, in comparison with zero percent when he played for the Panthers. Still, Gudas said succinctly: “I don't think the NHL should get into tax trouble.”

Even for the previous US President Donald Trumpa master at attracting attention, it is sort of unattainable to host a counter-program in the course of the Democratic National Convention.

While the members and supporters of 1 party meet every 4 years for his or her biggest party, the opposite party must frequently endure every week of widespread ignorance, irrespective of how creative or dramatic their very own efforts to counter-program could also be.

However, this doesn’t mean that the opposing parties' campaigns should take a break in the course of the party conference week. They can and do recommend their arguments regarding the upcoming election, while the opposite party honors its candidates.

But because the attention of all journalists and the general public is concentrated on the party congress, these 4 days of meetings are anything however the optimal time for the opposing party to make its voice heard.

The typically one-sided media attention in the course of the congressional weeks is certainly one of the the explanation why political campaigns normally an upswing after the conference of a couple of percentage points. But the Impact of conventions on public opinion was much larger prior to now, when there was not such strong political polarization.

Conventional recovery

In 1992, for instance, the Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton was a single percentage point behind incumbent GOP President George HW Bush when the Democratic Convention After the convention, Clinton was up 29 points.

In 2000 GOP candidate George W. Bush a lead of 8 points over his Democratic rival Al Gore after the 2000 Republican Convention.

But these recovery phases are sometimes only short-lived.

As I discuss in my book Communication and character of the President,” even the nice upswings of 1992 and 2000 gave way much closer elections.

More recently, the one candidate to record a poll gain of greater than 4 percentage points after the convention was The 2008 Republican candidate, John McCain. He lost to the Democratic candidate Barack Obama.

Hardly any opportunities for political attacks

The best an opposing party can hope for during convention week is failure.

The problem is that such debacles are rare at a time when presidential elections are frequently not fraught with last-minute drama. Conventions themselves have increasingly turn into a script.

It wasn't all the time like this.

The turbulent Democratic Party Convention of 1968 offered Republicans quite a few opportunities to attract attention to the chaotic scenes in Chicago – and thus the chaos inside the Democratic Party. But that was not vital, since the nationally televised images of Chicago riot police The suppression of the Vietnam War opponents through using tear gas and batons spoke for itself.

Difficult vice presidential elections, corresponding to Democrat Tom Eagleton in 1972 And Republican Sarah Palin in 2008also can trigger lasting partisan reactions, because the Democrats quickly Trump selected JD Vancea U.S. Senator from Ohio, as his running mate.

These partisan attacks normally intensify in the times and weeks following the convention, especially if the vice presidential candidate has difficulty their position on the national stage.

Trump's playbook

In the times leading as much as the Democratic Party Convention, Republican officials emphasized: Democratic disagreements over Israel's war in Gaza. GOP leaders have also tried to capitalize on this potential dissatisfaction about how Vice President Kamala Harris became the party’s nominee without having to undergo a primary, a process that Trump called a “shot”.

The Trump campaign has tried to portray Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, as a communist or pro-China And has wrongly argued that pictures of enthusiastic democratic masses The cheers for the ticket were generated by artificial intelligence.

Although some Republicans encouraged Trump spending less time talking about conspiracies and attacking Harris' character, Trump is drawn to his own strategy. Instead of following her advice, Trump has continued his personal attacks against Harris, by which he described her father as Professor of Economics at Stanford University“a Marxist”.

So far, nevertheless, Democratic Convention 2024 looks nothing like 1968. The comparatively small variety of demonstrators Inside and out of doors the convention hall, the Republican counterprogramming team didn't have much opportunity to use anything.

Not easy for the Democrats either

The Democrats' efforts to place together a counter-program in the course of the Republican Party convention earlier this summer were also unsuccessful.

The limited media attention the Democrats received in the course of the week of Trump’s re-nomination focused almost exclusively on the query of whether President Joe Biden would quit his candidacy for re-election – not the popular topic of the party’s counter-program makers.

Additionally, Biden's timing demonstrated the challenges in shaping narratives during opposition party congresses.

By Biden his announcement Although Harris would drop out of the race three days after the Republican National Convention ended on July 18, the launch of his campaign didn’t should compete with news of the Republican National Convention.

Congresses last lower than every week, whereas campaigns last for months. Unless there are major failures, this 12 months's counter-programs – like so many previous congress years – is not going to be remembered for long.

It was just after 5 p.m. in San Francisco's Outer Richmond when a door burst open on forty first Avenue and an individual in pajamas ran out.

With a leash in a single hand and a handbag and an empty ice cream cone in the opposite, they pulled their dog behind them and ran up the hill toward a well-known sound: Mister Softee's ice cream truck.

The line was already six people long.

But with the newly updated Mister Softee NorCal AppTo get to the ice cream truck, you don't necessarily need to run around in your pajamas: with a touch of the screen, the trucks can now be recognized from miles away.

Between noon and eight p.m., seven days every week, the app shows the live locations of all 14 ice cream trucks within the Bay Area.

“We had over 50,000 downloads,” said Felix Tarnarider, the operator of the local Mister Softee trucks.

The app has just one function, however it does it perfectly: It guides hungry customers to the closest ice cream truck from San Francisco to San Jose, from San Jose to Martinez, and even reaches customers as far east as Tracy.

Mister Softee has never been more popular within the Bay Area.

“We started in Northern California almost eight years ago,” Tarnarider said. “We only had one truck.”

It was 2016 when he quit his job in technology and decided to pursue his dream: bringing Mister Softee to the West Coast.

He had grown up in Brooklyn and remembered running out the door each time he heard the ice cream truck nearby. When he moved to the Bay Area, he couldn't consider they were so hard to search out.

“It was always in the back of my mind that I wanted to do something about it,” he said. “And whatever I felt in my gut was right: People wanted Mister Softee out here.”

He purchased a license for a single Mister Softee truck and drove it himself.

Business was slow at first. Start-up costs were high. But he learned to plan his routes efficiently and started to earn a living.

He soon hired more drivers and eventually left the truck business himself to administer the whole operation with 14 trucks from an office.

Today, demand is bigger than supply.

“We still don’t reach everyone who wants us,” he said.

Tarnarider noted that there aren't many ice cream vendors within the Bay Area that provide soft serve ice cream.

“I don't think that's part of the culture here,” he said. “But the ice cream parlors are part of the culture. They are niche products, very good and also quite expensive.”

Despite rising ice cream costs and increased fuel prices, Tarnarider has managed to maintain Mister Softee prices unchanged at $4 per cone, $4.50 for a cone with sprinkles and $5 for a double cone.

“We stand out from the crowd,” he said.

In the early Nineteen Twenties, ice cream trucks first began operating in Ohio, transporting Good Humor bars door to door. According to AAA MagazineAnother boom occurred at the top of World War II, when wartime milk rationing was lifted, which made Good Humor enormously successful.

But within the Nineteen Seventies, the corporate suffered a serious blow when town of New York implemented stricter health inspections and the corporate was caught falsifying food safety records, resulting in the top of its ice cream trucks.

Founded in 1956, Mister Softee capitalized on the decline of Good Humor and continued to franchise ice cream trucks across the country.

Today, Mister Softee operates 625 ice cream trucks in 18 states, making it the biggest ice cream truck franchisor within the United States.

And while ice cream consumption within the United States has steadily declined over the past 30 years, According to the US Department of AgricultureTarnarider didn't feel the results.

He is about to bring his fifteenth ice cream truck on the road.

And because of its successful app, it's never been easier for patrons to search out one.

“That's the best part now, the interaction with customers,” Tarnarider said. “Our customers love us.”

Originally published: July 19, 2024 at 6:30 am

Celts

The Boston Celtics wasted no time in celebrating their hard-fought NBA title, flying to Miami just hours after their Game 5 victory over the Mavericks on Monday night.

It's a well-recognized journey for the Banner 18 team, which began its championship run with a five-game sweep of the Heat and suffered back-to-back losses in Miami.

Now, three series and hundreds of frequent flyer miles later, the champions returned to TD Garden on Friday to board amphibious vehicles for town's first victory parade in six years. And despite the short trip, Jayson Tatum considers all of his trips south a breeze.

“They're always easy,” Tatum told NBC Sports Boston's Brian Scalabrine on Friday when asked if this visit to Miami was nicer than the others.

JT held the Larry O'Brien trophy, laughed and shook his head. Just last season, his dreams were shattered when the Heat knocked the Celtics out of the Eastern Conference Finals in a brutal Game 7.

This season, nevertheless, Tatum returned with a touch of vengeance. After the Celtics' 118-84 Game 5 win over Miami in May, Tatum announced that he desired to play against the Heat in the primary round of the playoffs.

“I wanted to play Miami because we might have been a little more relaxed against Atlanta last year,” he said. “I knew Miami's history, how hard they play, how well coached they are, and for a first-round game, regardless of the seeding, we had to be ready to play and fight.”

Now, the team that chanted “We want Boston” appears to be nothing greater than a side issue for Tatum.