Going back to the moon, Reverse Game theory for cooperation, concrete that builds itself, and how to make food from thin air. These are a few of the stories we’re talking about this week. Whether it be in the office or on the airplane headed to our next program, we’re always talking about the issues and trends that are shaping the way we learn as well as what interests each of us on the team. Read more below.
We have liftoff
We’re going back to the moon! And many didn’t know until the countdown clock was at T minus 10. Yes, we know you heard about the toilet and the email hiccups, but the overall lack of interest as compared with the original Apollo missions doesn’t signify a lack of importance. The launch is part of a renewed focus at NASA on execution, streamlined programs, and new commercial partners like SpaceX to make lunar access sustainable. It may not have the cultural cachet of the past, but missions to space continue to push human achievement and knowledge forward, showcasing new technologies and new possibilities.
Incentivizing cooperation
As a group, humans can be pretty crummy at solving communal problems. Solutions require difficult to achieve collective action or top-down compliance that limits personal freedom. A new article in the magazine Noema examines how mechanism design or “reverse game theory” can solve complex societal problems like housing shortages, climate adaptation, and restoring democratic trust. It works by turning rules on their head and instead focusing on redesigning incentives to encourage cooperation, making it the rational choice for individuals, rather than forcing individuals to change self-interest. The idea doesn’t just apply to laws, but to any institution that wishes to solve big problems, turning division into cooperation.
Finding a concrete solution
In a press release, Meta announced it developed BOxCrete, an open-source AI model designed to optimize concrete mixtures and help U.S. producers incorporate more domestically sourced materials while maintaining performance and sustainability. The model reduces reliance on imported cement by rapidly testing and refining formulations, cutting lab time, and making improvements with faster curing and reduced cracking. But BOxCrete isn’t just a fun name with questionable capitalization, it’s already deployed in real-world projects, including Meta’s Rosemount, MN data center, and is available now under an MIT license for broad industry adoption.
But would you eat it?
A new wave of biotech startups is developing “air protein” or food created from carbon dioxide using naturally occurring bacteria. Inspired by NASA’s 1960s research, these companies aim to produce sustainable, low-emission protein that could reduce reliance on traditional agriculture. While the technology is already entering markets in Singapore, it is not ready for prime time as scaling production is a real issue. But the true test will be us. Food is cultural and we’re not sure how many of us are willing to stomach a plate full of powdered bacteria.