The search for alien artifactsPLUS: Why people leave certain tasks for later. View in browser | Your newsletter preferences01.19.26 Microsoft Has a Plan to Keep Its Data Centers From Raising Your Electric Bill BY MOLLY TAFT | 3-MINUTE READIn response to a growing backlash, Microsoft said it would take steps to ensure that data centers don’t raise utility bills in surrounding areas and address other public concerns. OpenAI Invests in Sam Altman’s New Brain-Tech Startup Merge Labs BY EMILY MULLIN | 2-MINUTE READMerge Labs has emerged from stealth with $252 million in funding from OpenAI and others. It aims to use ultrasound to read from and write to the brain. The Real AI Talent War Is for Plumbers and Electricians BY CAROLINE HASKINS | 4-MINUTE READThe AI boom is driving an unprecedented wave of data center construction, but there aren’t enough skilled tradespeople in the US to keep up. A Brain Mechanism Explains Why People Leave Certain Tasks for Later BY FERNANDA GONZÁLEZ | 2-MINUTE READNew research has discovered that a neural circuit may explain procrastination. Scientists were able to disrupt this connection using a drug. The Search for Alien Artifacts Is Coming Into Focus BY BECKY FERREIRA | 5-MINUTE READFrom surveys of the pre-Sputnik skies to analysis of interstellar visitors, scientists are rethinking how and where to look for physical traces of alien technology. ADVERTISEMENT Capturing the Moment a White Dwarf Exploded BY RITSUKO KAWAI | 3-MINUTE READA research team has successfully imaged a nova in high resolution—and the images suggest that the nova was not a single, impulsive explosion. Trump Declared a Space Race With China. The US Is Losing BY NOAH SHACHTMAN | 15-MINUTE READIf you want to put people back on the moon, don’t gut the agency in charge of getting them there. RFK Jr. Says He’s Ending the War on Protein. It Doesn’t Exist BY SAM EAGAN | 3-MINUTE READThere is no war on protein. But pretending there is goes hand-in-hand with the Trump administration’s appeal to traditional masculinity. How Does the Hive Mind Work in Pluribus? BY RHETT ALLAIN | 6-MINUTE READThe “Joining” seems to connect people via radio waves. Let’s dig into the physics at play. What to Do if ICE Invades Your Neighborhood BY LILY HAY NEWMAN, MADDY VARNER, AND MATT BURGESS | 9-MINUTE READWith federal agents storming the streets of American communities, there’s no single right way to approach this dangerous moment. But there are steps you can take to stay safe—and have an impact. ADVERTISEMENT Was this newsletter forwarded to you? Sign up to receive it for free here. Plus, find all of our newsletters here. You’re receiving this email because you signed up for the Science newsletter from WIRED. Manage your preferences | View our Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe Have questions or comments? Send us a message. Need help? Contact us. Copyright © Condé Nast {date(“yyyy”)}. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.
