LEECHES INSPIRE NEW BLOOD TEST?

"About three things I was absolutely positive. First, Edward was a vampire. Second, there was a part of him - and I didn’t know how potent that part might be - that thirsted for my blood. And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him.” - Twilight

Author

Nate Huskey
May 06, 2024

Happy Monday! Be sure to subscribe and share with three friends - let’s get to the news.

SCIENCE

LEECHES INSPIRE NEW BLOOD TEST?

IMAGE CREDIT: Encyclopedia of Life/Pavla Tochorová

Swiss researchers have developed a safe and effective method of blood withdrawal that sucks blood out of the body pain-free.

Don’t be scared, this is a good thing!

Inspired by the sucking of leeches, the device acts like a suction cup to noninvasively withdraw blood from the body, blood that can ultimately be used for affordable diagnostic testing.

WHY IT MATTERS?

  • The test is capable of detecting malaria and can be administered by non-medical personnel.

  • For this reason - this test could significantly lower the cost of malaria testing in developing countries!

GO DEEPER: Read more here

ARTS

THE RAP BEEF OF THE CENTURY

Da Vinci Daily is not a gossip mag, but our mandate to cover the arts dictates that we must discuss the ongoing feud between celebrated hip hop artists Kendrick Lamar and Drake.

The Pulitzer Prize winner and the Billboard Hot 100 record-holder have each released songs over the past week attacking the other’s character: Kendrick has accused Drake of impropriety using a word ending in “edophile”, while Drake has fired back with allegations of domestic violence.

WHY IT MATTERS?

  • Kendrick Lamar and Drake are two of the most consequential musicians of the 21st century; this feud has major implications for the public perception of these two as artists.

  • As silly as it sounds, Shakespeare would’ve loved rap beef - it’s two grown men writing poetry about how much they really don’t like each other.

GO DEEPER: Read more here

SCIENCE

WHERE DID ALL THE WATER GO ON VENUS?

Colorado researchers now hypothesize that water on Venus evaporates more than twice as quickly as we previously thought.

Why? They think it’s because of the way hydrogen behaves on the planet, and NASA is sending a probe there by the end of the decade to see if they’re correct.

WHY IT MATTERS?

  • Venus is believed to have once had nearly as much water as Earth despite being much closer to the Sun.

  • Understanding the disappearence of water on Venus can therefore lend critical insight into how to prevent droughts on our planet.

GO DEEPER: Read more here

QUICK HITS:

  • Moths may be evolving to no longer flock to light - here’s why

  • Frank Stella, a pioneer of contemporary minimalist artwork, died at age 87 over the weekend. Learn more about his work here

  • Massive flooding occurred in Texas over the weekend. See the full extent of the storm here