There’s a gig worker-sized hole in Biden’s vaccine mandate plan

NASA is going to slam a spacecraft into an asteroid. Things might get chaotic.

Sponsored by Dassault Systèmes The Download Your daily dose of what's up in emerging technology A glaring omission  09.10.21 Good morning! Today: Biden's vaccine mandate plan missed out gig workers, and what will happen when NASA slams a small spacecraft into a stadium-sized asteroid. Also: photos from the world's biggest collection of malformed brains. Get your friends to sign up here to get The Download every day, and have a lovely weekend! There’s a gig worker-sized hole in Biden’s vaccine mandate plan   The news: President Joe Biden has signed an executive order which will require millions of American workers to get vaccinated against covid-19. The order mandates all companies with more than 100 workers to require employees to be vaccinated or get tested weekly. Employers will have to provide paid time off for employees to get their shots. It's part of a multi-pronged plan to try to get the pandemic under control in the US. Falling through the gaps: As we've written before, paid time off may be one of the best vaccine incentives. But once again, Biden's order only covers larger employers of 100 or more. Gig workers aren’t mentioned in the policy, even though they stand to benefit the most from policies that would offset the loss of hourly income, and make up a significant and growing proportion of the US workforce.  Why he's doing it: Biden has previously bet that incentives like money, food, and beer might help to nudge people to get vaccinated, yet 80 million people still haven't got their shots. Just 62.5% of those eligible are fully vaccinated. In short, he's tried the carrot approach—now he's opting for the stick. Read the full story. NASA is going to slam a spacecraft into an asteroid. Things might get chaotic. What’s planned: Later this year, NASA plans to launch a mission to practice how we might deflect a future Earthbound asteroid. The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) will crash a spacecraft into Dimorphos, a stadium-size asteroid that is orbiting a much larger asteroid called Didymos. The idea is to see if we can change its orbit. The big smash: The plan is to hit Dimorphos at a speed of 6.5 kilometers per second with the car-sized DART spacecraft, changing its almost-12 hour orbit around Didymos by a few minutes. The collision will produce energy comparable to three tons of TNT exploding, sending thousands of pieces of debris spewing into space. Until now we haven’t known much about what will happen to Dimorphos itself after the impact. Now a new simulation has shown that Dimorphos will start to wobble, spin, and tumble chaotically in the days and weeks after the collision. And that will make things interesting. Read the full story.   —Jonathan O'Callaghan The world’s largest collection of malformed brains   The University of Texas has one of the world’s largest collections of preserved abnormal human brains. The 100 or so jars contain brains that once belonged to patients at the Austin State Hospital, a psychiatric facility. They were amassed over three decades by Coleman de Chenar, the hospital’s resident pathologist, starting in the 1950s. Check out some more photos from the collection. This story is from the latest edition of our print magazine, all about the mind. You'll need to subscribe to get access, but you can do that for just $50 a year. We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction in these weird times. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or tweet 'em at me.)   + I can't stop laughing at this interpretive dance video.    + The teaser webpage for the Matrix 4 is (unintentionally) hilarious. But the trailer looks fantastic!    + Cauliflower is endlessly adaptable. Try out these recipes.   + How to decode your cat's behavior.    + Inside the weird and lucrative world of fake punk fashion. (NYT $)    + The 30 best mobster movies, ranked. Sponsor Message Join Our Scientific Communities and Discover the Age of Experience Join Dassault Systèmes at Science in the Age of Experience – a virtual science and technology event, September 28th, 2021. Join thought leaders and influencers from around the world to explore the newest dynamics in science. Learn how the age of experience allows us to create, test and iterate in a virtual world innovative solutions to our greatest challenges. Some of the most highly sought-after leaders in science and technology will join us – including our conference keynote, George Church, PhD., from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University. Join now. The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Why researchers are deliberately infecting people with covid "Challenge trials" are underway in the UK—so far without incident. (The Economist $)   + More people in the UK are currently in hospital with covid than at any point in the last six months. (The Guardian)   + Africa's CDC director is urging wealthy nations to donate the shots they plan to use as boosters. (NYT $)   + An unlikely theory claiming covid was circulating in Italy long before the pandemic is gaining traction. (Wired UK)  2 How 9/11 turned surveillance into a way of life The fightback is very much underway. (Wired $)    + Covid is the equivalent of a 9/11 every two days. (Axios)  3 China is becoming a "techno-authoritarian" superpower Beijing is conducting an experiment in 21st century authoritarian governance. (FT $)   + The country is effectively experiencing a second Cultural Revolution. (The Guardian)  4 Brazil's president has banned social networks from taking down certain posts Fighting "censorship" with… censorship? (NYT $)   + Texas' governor has just signed a similar (and potentially similarly unenforceable) bill. (WP $)  5 A couple lost their three-year-old son. Facebook made things so much worse. To be precise, people on Facebook. (Wired $)   6 Microsoft has indefinitely postponed reopening its US offices  It's given up trying to guess when it'll be safe again. (CNBC)   + These are the best remote companies to work for. (Quartz)   + Digital miscommunication at work is sapping people's time and energy. (Wired UK)  7 "Greenwashing" is the new climate science denialism Delay will produce the same result as inaction. (Earther)   + Earth's tipping points may be closer than we think. (The Guardian)   + The US isn't ready for the next phase of climate change. (Foreign Affairs)   + The biggest industrial plant yet to suck carbon dioxide out of the air came online yesterday. (The Verge)  8 Still confused about the blockchain? This might help clear things up 🤔 It's an inherently complex topic though, so proceed with caution. (The Verge)   + El Salvador's new bitcoin wallets could cost remittance companies millions in lost business. (CNBC)  9 Security researchers are unimpressed with Apple's bug bounty program They blame Apple’s insular culture. (WP $)   + Hackers are finding ways to hide inside Apple’s walled garden. (TR)   10 How to spot a deepfake? Check the eyes 👀 The pupils tend to have jagged edges. (New Scientist $) Act now! Offer ends today.    Get 2 months FREE when you purchase a 12-month subscription. It's time to make MIT Technology Review your go-to resource for thought-provoking insights, analysis and news about the world of technology. Don't wait–this offer ends at midnight. Subscribe now. Quote of the day “What do the people around me think when they hear me utter, “Hey, Facebook, take a photo”? Can I still look cool doing that? Can anyone?" —Mike Isaac, a technology reporter for the New York Times, explains why he's got some major reservations about Facebook's new smart glasses. Top image credit: AP PHOTO | ANDREW HARNIK Second image credit: Adam Voorhes & Robin Finlay Please send red pills to hi@technologyreview.com. Follow me on Twitter at @charlottejee. Thanks for reading! —Charlotte Was this newsletter forwarded to you, and you'd like to see more? Sign up today Leading with Innovation. Join us virtually September 28-30. For a limited time, get early bird savings when you register by July 8. Register now Follow us: MIT Technology Review One Main Street Cambridge, MA 02142   Want to change how you receive these emails? 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