This Physicist Discovered An Escape From Hawking’s Black Hole Paradox

Plus, the latest fake Covid "cure" is a drug meant to treat parasites in livestock.

The Futurist uncovers unique and inspiring topics that feed your curiosity. Curated articles on technology, science, and culture delivered to your inbox. Not for you? Unsubscribe anytime below. /tech INSTAGRAM IS RETIRING THE SWIPE UP The swipe-up will be no more. Instagram is planning to retire the feature, which allows people to visit external webpages by swiping up, starting August 30th, according to a notification viewed by The Verge and confirmed by Instagram. Instead of the swipe-up link, Instagram says people will be able to use link stickers, which are exactly as they sound: tappable stickers in stories that take people to external websites. The Verge /biz PRODUCT DESIGN IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOU THINK IT IS There are a lot of reasons why one product might sell better than another in any given category. Take gaming accessories, for instance. Bestsellers will either work better, cost less, or — everything else being equal — simply be more attractive. A product's success frequently comes down to its design, which is too often an afterthought. ZDNet /explore THIS PHYSICIST DISCOVERED AN ESCAPE FROM HAWKING'S BLACK HOLE PARADOX Steven Hawking's infamous "black hole information paradox" has motivated research in fundamental physics for decades. Do evaporating black holes really destroy information, meaning unitarity is not a true principle of nature? Or does information escape as a black hole evaporates? Solving the information paradox quickly came to be seen as a route to discovering the true, quantum theory of gravity, which general relativity approximates well everywhere except black holes. Thankfully, in the past two years, a network of quantum gravity theorists, mostly millennials, has made enormous progress on Hawking's paradox. Quanta Magazine /lifehack SAVE ON CAR INSURANCE WITH THE ZEBRA, A MARKETPLACE WHERE YOU COMPARE QUOTES FROM TOP PROVIDERS Shopping for car insurance? Here's a pro tip: Start your search with The Zebra, a hassle-free marketplace for finding the best insurance policy to fit your needs. It's your one-stop shop for reviewing policies from over 100 major insurance providers, no matter where you live or what kind of car you drive. [Partner] /interior @jakearnold /health THE LATEST FAKE COVID "CURE" IS A DRUG MEANT TO TREAT PARASITES IN LIVESTOCK As one of Mic's resident health journalists, I've reported on many supposed coronavirus "cures," from hydroxychloroquine to elderberry, all of them false and some downright dangerous. Once safe, effective vaccines emerged, I assumed those snake oil days would be behind us — but wow, was I wrong. Nowadays, people would rather take a drug meant for cows and horses than get vaccinated. Mic /gear SAMSUNG IS SHAVING UP TO $1,000 OFF ITS NEW GALAXY Z FLIP3 AND FOLD3 5G PHONES Whether you're an AT&T customer already or you're interested in signing up for the provider's $75/month unlimited plan, Samsung is giving you the opportunity to buy a Samsung Galaxy Z Series phone at a steep discount for a limited time. The latest in its foldable phone lineup, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 and Fold3 5G phones are up to $1,000 off with an eligible trade-in. That means that as long as you have another phone to exchange for it, you could pick up a sick new foldy phone for as low as $0. Experience the future in your pocket before this promotion ends. AT&T /wild SOMEONE BOUGHT AN NFT OF A FREE CLIPART ROCK FOR $1.3 MILLION Three weeks ago, a four-year-old NFT project called EtherRock suddenly went viral, sending prices skyrocketing. The premise is simple: 100 images of the same cartoon rock, each tinted a slightly different color, attached to 100 NFTs, or non-fungible tokens. According to the collection's pseudonymous developer, the rock image was pulled from the online clipart database goodfreephotos.com. Last night, EtherRock #42 — a reddish-brown iteration of that same clipart rock — sold for 400 ETH, or over $1.3 million. Vice /posted @joannexplores /bites Use the power of electricity to relieve pain and soreness in targeted areas Got 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Brew's free newsletter to get today's most important business stories condensed into bite-sized chunks Still reeling from 2020? Get clear on what you want in time to rock '22 THE FUTURIST Advertise |  Talk to Us  |  Shop |  Unsubscribe Powered by StackCommerce 21 Market Street | Venice, CA 90291