7,000 false positives per square millimeter. The culprit was the lab gloves.
University of Michigan researchers just upended a core assumption in microplastics science. Latex and nitrile gloves, worn by the scientists doing the measuring, shed stearate particles that look chemically identical to polyethylene. Standard infrared and Raman instruments can't tell them apart. The gloves were counting as plastic.
Seven glove types tested. All contaminated. The cheapest fix: switch to cleanroom gloves, which dropped false positives to around 100 per mm² vs. 7,000.
The "credit card per week" headline (5 grams, WWF/Newcastle 2019) has separate problems. A 2022 re-analysis found severe methodological errors in the original estimate. Actual measured intake is likely 100x lower.
None of this means microplastics are harmless. Last month's data on brain accumulation still stands. But the numbers driving the panic may have been measuring the scientists, not the environment.
Science catching its own errors is exactly how it's supposed to work.
Mahjong is having a moment, but most people don’t realize which version they’re actually playing or where it comes from. In collaboration with Boba Guys, Hyphen Nation, and Richard Gu, this carousel breaks down the history behind the game and why it still matters today.
You would think he's running for prime minister the way he's gesturing with such adamance. Fist slamming down on the podium and it's all on the topic of bubble tea Mind you this is supposed to be a film award acceptance speech for Blackberry
Andrew Chau co-founded the first Boba Guys store in San Francisco with a mission to revolutionize the boba experience, focusing on quality ingredients.
Drop a comment below and let us know who should be our next highlight!
WHAT KILLED THE CRABS?
The official story is something like “a billion snow crabs disappeared.”
If that sounds fishy to you, keep reading. Let’s dive into the ecology, oceanography, & geopolitical history of the Bering Sea.
A science thread on crabs, corruption, & collapse: 🦀
Mckinsey charges $10,000 per day for a consultant at my level.....yeah👀
No its not for their problem-solving prowess but for phenomenal people skills.
Here is the most powerful people skill I learned there:👇🧵
Gen-Zers say they feel attacked whenever they see a 'passive aggressive' thumbs-up emoji
+ A 24-year-old on Reddit summed up the Gen-Z argument, saying it is best 'never used in any situation' as it is 'hurtful'