- Theodore W. Berger’s work on memory prosthetics was highlighted via a New York Times article, underscoring ongoing interest in neural implants and hippocampal chip research within the channel.  
- A discussion on Private Information Retrieval (PIR) protocols surfaced when a participant asked what it means for a server to be “computationally bounded,” framing the trade-off between privacy and computational efficiency.  
- mayko proposed a DIY read-write record player that would use a piezo-driven stylus or scalpel to cut grooves into junk CDs, exploring ultra-low-cost data storage and analog/digital hybrid media.  
- kanzure shared a comprehensive Google spreadsheet indexing every TED talk, providing a centralized resource for tracking open-access science and technology presentations.  
- The community weighed in on futuristic food tech after a Reddit link about “shit burgers” (steak cultured from sewage-derived protein) was posted, prompting both disgust and curiosity about closed-loop food systems.  
- A short speculative vignette—five playing cards intended to rouse someone from a coma—was offered as an example of narrative-based consciousness-triggering experiments, though its origin was attributed to Hollywood rather than peer-reviewed research.  
- Conversation briefly touched on uterine transplantation headlines (“Gynecological Wizardry in Sweden”), critiquing media sensationalism around the first birth from a transplanted womb originally carried by the patient’s mother.